# 1980 Pittsburgh Pirates season

The 1980 Pittsburgh Pirates season was the 99th season of the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise; the 94th in the National League. After winning the World Series the previous year, the Pirates finished third in the National League East with a record of 83–79, eight games behind the World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies.

## Regular season
### Season standings

vteNL East :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 91 | 71 | .562 | — | 49‍–‍32 | 42‍–‍39 |
| Montreal Expos | 90 | 72 | .556 | 1 | 51‍–‍29 | 39‍–‍43 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 83 | 79 | .512 | 8 | 47‍–‍34 | 36‍–‍45 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 74 | 88 | .457 | 17 | 41‍–‍40 | 33‍–‍48 |
| New York Mets | 67 | 95 | .414 | 24 | 38‍–‍44 | 29‍–‍51 |
| Chicago Cubs | 64 | 98 | .395 | 27 | 37‍–‍44 | 27‍–‍54 |

### Record vs. opponents

1980 National League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | ATL | CHC | CIN | HOU | LAD | MON | NYM | PHI | PIT | SD | SF | STL |
| Atlanta | — | 8–4 | 2–16 | 7–11 | 11–7 | 5–7 | 3–9 | 5–7 | 11–1 | 12–6 | 11–6 | 6–6 |
| Chicago | 4–8 | — | 7–5 | 1–11 | 5–7 | 6–12 | 10–8 | 5–13 | 8–10 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 9–9 |
| Cincinnati | 16–2 | 5–7 | — | 8–10 | 9–9 | 3–9 | 8–4 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 15–3–1 | 7–11 | 5–7 |
| Houston | 11–7 | 11–1 | 10–8 | — | 9–10 | 5–7 | 8–4 | 3–9 | 7–5 | 11–7 | 11–7 | 7–5 |
| Los Angeles | 7–11 | 7–5 | 9–9 | 10–9 | — | 11–1 | 7–5 | 6–6 | 6–6 | 9–9 | 13–5 | 7–5 |
| Montreal | 7–5 | 12–6 | 9–3 | 7–5 | 1–11 | — | 10–8 | 9–9 | 6–12 | 10–2 | 7–5 | 12–6 |
| New York | 9–3 | 8–10 | 4–8 | 4–8 | 5–7 | 8–10 | — | 6–12 | 10–8 | 1–11 | 3–9 | 9–9 |
| Philadelphia | 7-5 | 13–5 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–6 | 9–9 | 12–6 | — | 7–11 | 8–4 | 6–6 | 9–9 |
| Pittsburgh | 1–11 | 10–8 | 6–6 | 5–7 | 6–6 | 12–6 | 8–10 | 11–7 | — | 6–6 | 8–4 | 10–8 |
| San Diego | 6–12 | 8–4 | 3–15–1 | 7–11 | 9–9 | 2–10 | 11–1 | 4–8 | 6–6 | — | 10–8 | 7–5 |
| San Francisco | 6–11 | 7–5 | 11–7 | 7–11 | 5–13 | 5–7 | 9–3 | 6–6 | 4–8 | 8–10 | — | 7–5 |
| St. Louis | 6–6 | 9–9 | 7–5 | 5–7 | 5–7 | 6–12 | 9–9 | 9–9 | 8–10 | 5–7 | 5–7 | — |

### Game log

1980 Game Log: 83–79 (Home: 47–34; Away: 36–44) :
April: 11–5 (Home: 5–2; Away: 6–3)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
1April 10@ Cardinals0–1VuckovichBlyleven (0–1)—42,8670–1
2April 11@ Cardinals4–3Jackson (1–0)Hood—16,9981–1
3April 12@ Cardinals7–2Bibby (1–0)Fulgham—15,6622–1
4April 13@ Cardinals3–0Rooker (1–0)MartinezJackson (1)16,3013–1
5April 14Cubs5–4 (10)Tekulve (1–0)Sutter—44,0884–1
6April 17Cardinals9–12SykesCandelaria (0–1)—5,2334–2
7April 18Cardinals12–10Jackson (2–0)KnowlesTekulve (1)10,1965–2
8April 19Cardinals1–2FulghamRoberts (0–1)—12,6425–3
9April 20Cardinals6–3Rooker (2–0)VuckovichTekulve (2)35,5676–3
10April 21@ Expos7–1Candelaria (1–1)Grimsley—10,3277–3
11April 22@ Expos5–3Bibby (2–0)SandersonTekulve (3)7,3738–3
12April 23@ Expos2–3RogersBlyleven (0–2)—8,1618–4
13April 25@ Cubs3–5ReuschelRooker (2–1)Sutter7,7148–5
14April 26@ Cubs9–2Candelaria (2–1)Lamp—32,9929–5
15April 29Expos5–4 (10)Solomon (1–0)Sosa—8,49810–5
16April 30Expos5–0Bibby (3–0)Lee—8,54511–5 :
May: 14–13 (Home: 8–6; Away: 6–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
17May 1Expos2–1 (10)Tekulve (2–0)Fryman—8,42612–5
18May 2Braves1–6NiekroRooker (2–2)—11,47612–6
19May 3Braves1–3 (10)HraboskyJackson (2–1)—34,10412–7
20May 4Braves13–4Bibby (4–0)Boggs—14,35813–7
21May 6Dodgers2–1Tekulve (3–0)Howe—9,81714–7
22May 7Dodgers7–6Tekulve (4–0)Hough—11,40415–7
23May 9@ Padres4–3Tekulve (5–0)Fingers—34,07816–7
24May 10@ Padres9–5Robinson (1–0)RasmussenRomo (1)18,16817–7
25May 11@ Padres0–5JonesCandelaria (2–2)—22,52217–8
26May 13@ Giants0–5BlueBlyleven (0–3)—13,79817–9
27May 14@ Giants3–2Bibby (5–0)KnepperTekulve (4)8,73418–9
28May 15@ Giants3–2 (12)Romo (1–0)Griffin—7,78119–9
29May 16@ Dodgers6–8ReussTekulve (5–1)Sutcliffe47,92919–10
30May 17@ Dodgers1–3SuttonBlyleven (0–4)Howe50,08219–11
31May 18@ Dodgers0–2WelchBibby (5–1)Howe49,86719–12
32May 21Padres4–3Romo (2–0)Fingers—20–12
33May 21Padres3–2Jackson (3–1)CurtisTekulve (5)17,30121–12
34May 22Padres4–6ShirleyTekulve (5–2)Fingers12,49621–13
35May 23Giants5–4 (13)Jackson (4–1)Holland—9,61922–13
36May 24Giants9–10 (15)GriffinScurry (0–1)—11,59122–14
37May 25Giants2–5BlueCandelaria (2–3)—42,62622–15
38May 26@ Phillies6–7ReedTekulve (5–3)—45,39422–16
39May 27@ Phillies3–2 (13)Romo (3–0)NolesTekulve (6)35,98923–16
40May 28@ Phillies3–6LerchRobinson (1–1)Reed30,20923–17
41May 29@ Phillies5–4Solomon (2–0)RuthvenRomo (2)30,63024–17
42May 30Mets1–5 (6)ZachryCandelaria (2–4)—17,10124–18
43May 31Mets5–0Blyleven (1–4)Swan—13,90125–18 :
June: 13–16 (Home: 7–3; Away: 6–13)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
44June 1Mets13–3Bibby (6–1)Falcone—49,62626–18
45June 2Phillies9–3Robinson (2–1)Lerch—19,99027–18
46June 3Phillies4–3Jackson (5–1)McGraw—22,14128–18
47June 4Phillies3–4CarltonCandelaria (2–5)—31,07528–19
48June 6@ Mets4–9HausmanBlyleven (1–5)—18,35228–20
49June 7@ Mets5–6 (11)AllenJackson (5–2)—13,50928–21
50June 8@ Mets4–6BurrisRomo (3–1)Glynn28–22
51June 8@ Mets3–0Solomon (3–0)BombackTekulve (7)29,32929–22
52June 10@ Reds5–3Candelaria (3–5)SotoTekulve (8)26,64830–22
53June 11@ Reds2–3PastoreBlyleven (1–6)—29,21130–23
54June 12@ Reds10–6Bibby (7–1)LaCossRomo (3)31,55731–23
55June 13Astros5–3Solomon (4–0)NiekroTekulve (9)31,85432–23
56June 14Astros3–7RyanRobinson (2–2)LaCorte33,92232–24
57June 15Astros4–1Candelaria (4–5)Forsch—49,54133–24
58June 16Reds5–3Blyleven (2–6)PastoreJackson (2)19,94034–24
59June 17Reds3–4MoskauRomo (3–2)—25,56534–25
60June 18@ Braves2–3GarberTekulve (5–4)—34–26
61June 18@ Braves4–5CampRomo (3–3)Garber17,15434–27
62June 19@ Braves3–4MatulaRobinson (2–3)Bradford10,58534–28
63June 20@ Astros4–6ForschCandelaria (4–6)Sambito35,95534–29
64June 21@ Astros2–4RuhleBlyleven (2–7)Sambito45,86734–30
65June 22@ Astros2–1Bibby (8–1)NiekroJackson (3)46,21335–30
66June 23@ Cardinals1–6KaatSolomon (4–1)—20,42235–31
67June 24@ Cardinals2–3SykesRhoden (0–1)—21,85835–32
68June 25@ Cardinals1–4HoodCandelaria (4–7)Seaman26,10235–33
69June 27@ Expos6–4Romo (4–3)RogersRobinson (1)44,23236–33
70June 28@ Expos4–3Bibby (9–1)LeaRomo (4)38,06537–33
71June 29@ Expos1–4PalmerSolomon (4–2)Norman46,18637–34
72June 30Cardinals5–4Romo (5–3)Hood—16,59138–34 :
July: 18–10 (Home: 10–4; Away: 8–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
73July 1Cardinals3–2 (10)Jackson (6–2)Kaat—17,00639–34
74July 2Cardinals5–7 (11)UrreaScurry (0–2)—15,25039–35
75July 3Cubs5–3Bibby (10–1)KrukowJackson (4)14,06240–35
76July 4Cubs2–4McGlothenSolomon (4–3)Sutter40–36
77July 4Cubs1–2CapillaRobinson (2–4)Tidrow24,66840–37
78July 5Cubs5–4Candelaria (5–7)HernandezRomo (5)46,37241–37
79July 6Cubs5–4 (20)Bibby (11–1)Lamp—25,99442–37
80July 10@ Mets0–2ZachryCandelaria (5–8)—21,54042–38
81July 11@ Mets4–2Blyleven (3–7)SwanTekulve (10)30,90743–38
82July 12@ Phillies4–5SaucierTekulve (5–5)—53,25443–39
83July 13@ Phillies7–3Robinson (3–4)EspinosaTekulve (11)48,13244–39
84July 14@ Phillies13–11Jackson (7–2)Reed—44,24545–39
85July 15Giants5–2Candelaria (6–8)KnepperTekulve (12)17,11446–39
86July 16Giants3–1Blyleven (4–7)WhitsonJackson (5)18,22647–39
87July 17Giants3–2Tekulve (6–5)Holland—25,50848–39
88July 18Dodgers6–4Rhoden (1–1)WelchRomo (6)30,13149–39
89July 19Dodgers7–3Solomon (5–3)Sutcliffe—28,73150–39
90July 20Dodgers2–4HootonCandelaria (6–9)Howe50–40
91July 20Dodgers8–7Jackson (8–2)Castillo—41,93251–40
92July 22@ Padres4–3Bibby (12–1)LucasTekulve (13)17,50452–40
93July 23@ Padres2–3FingersRomo (5–4)—14,60852–41
94July 24@ Padres7–1Blyleven (5–7)Shirley—15,74653–41
95July 25@ Giants5–1Candelaria (7–9)Knepper—22,83054–41
96July 26@ Giants3–4 (10)MintonJackson (8–3)—28,56654–42
97July 27@ Giants6–4Bibby (13–1)BordleyTekulve (14)31,18655–42
98July 28@ Dodgers6–4Rhoden (2–1)WelchTekulve (15)46,97356–42
99July 29@ Dodgers2–10HootonBlyleven (5–8)—47,01356–43
100July 30@ Dodgers0–3ReussCandelaria (7–10)—50,30856–44 :
August: 14–17 (Home: 8–13; Away: 6–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
101August 1Padres0–1MuraBibby (13–2)Fingers22,30456–45
102August 3Padres2–5CurtisRhoden (2–2)—56–46
103August 3Padres1–4ShirleyRobinson (3–5)Fingers20,51756–47
104August 5@ Cubs3–11ReuschelCandelaria (7–11)—22,93956–48
105August 6@ Cubs9–7Tekulve (7–5)TidrowRomo (7)57–48
106August 6@ Cubs2–0Blyleven (6–8)CapillaJackson (6)24,30558–48
107August 7@ Cubs11–3Solomon (6–3)Hernandez—28,36459–48
108August 8Phillies6–5Tekulve (8–5)McGrawRomo (8)30,35460–48
109August 9Phillies4–1Candelaria (8–11)EspinosaTekulve (16)39,98461–48
110August 10Phillies7–1Bibby (14–2)Lerch—62–48
111August 10Phillies4–1Robinson (4–5)LarsonTekulve (17)37,32363–48
112August 11Mets2–1 (6)Solomon (7–3)Jackson—13,79064–48
113August 12Mets1–3BurrisRhoden (2–3)Allen18,75464–49
114August 13Mets3–5HausmanCandelaria (8–12)Reardon19,51464–50
115August 15Expos7–3Bibby (15–2)RogersTekulve (18)29,72165–50
116August 16Expos5–0Blyleven (7–8)Sanderson—32,39066–50
117August 17Expos5–1Rhoden (3–3)Norman—67–50
118August 17Expos2–4GullicksonRobinson (4–6)Fryman49,41267–51
119August 19@ Astros2–5RyanCandelaria (8–13)Sambito39,41567–52
120August 20@ Astros1–5RuhleBibby (15–3)Smith32,11267–53
121August 21@ Astros5–12SambitoBlyleven (7–9)—33,88467–54
122August 22@ Reds4–2Robinson (5–6)MoskauTekulve (19)37,93668–54
123August 23@ Reds2–1Rhoden (4–3)PastoreJackson (7)43,48269–54
124August 24@ Reds5–2Candelaria (9–13)LaCoss—37,07270–54
125August 25Braves6–8HannaBibby (15–4)Bradford15,65770–55
126August 26Braves2–4 (10)GarberTekulve (8–6)—14,69570–56
127August 27Braves4–7MatulaRobinson (5–7)Hrabosky12,36370–57
128August 28Reds0–4MoskauRhoden (4–4)—17,40670–58
129August 29Reds7–8SotoTekulve (8–7)Hume41,49470–59
130August 30Reds3–5SeaverBibby (15–5)—24,49370–60
131August 31Reds4–5LaCossBlyleven (7–10)Soto21,77470–61 :
September: 10–17 (Home: 7–5; Away: 3–11)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
132September 1Astros4–10SmithRobinson (5–8)—70–62
133September 1Astros7–5Rhoden (5–4)PladsonJackson (8)26,37471–62
134September 3Astros10–4Candelaria (10–13)AndujarRomo (9)18,50272–62
135September 5@ Braves4–7CampTekulve (8–8)—29,61072–63
136September 6@ Braves2–3NiekroBlyleven (7–11)Garber17,82172–64
137September 7@ Braves5–6BradfordTekulve (8–9)Camp19,76272–65
138September 8@ Phillies2–6McGrawRomo (5–5)—40,57672–66
139September 9@ Phillies4–5 (14)BrusstarLee (0–1)—43,33372–67
140September 10@ Cardinals7–6Bibby (16–5)HoodRomo (10)10,30073–67
141September 11@ Cardinals2–1Blyleven (8–11)Martin—7,52174–67
142September 12@ Expos0–1SandersonRhoden (5–5)—36,99274–68
143September 13@ Expos4–0Robinson (6–8)Rogers—51,30575–68
144September 14@ Expos0–4GullicksonCandelaria (10–14)—56,13775–69
145September 16Phillies3–2Bibby (17–5)RuthvenTekulve (20)22,23976–69
146September 17Phillies4–5 (11)McGrawTekulve (8–10)Lyle23,65076–70
147September 19Mets4–3Rhoden (6–5)Lynch—17,59377–70
148September 20Mets6–9 (11)AllenTekulve (8–11)Miller22,08477–71
149September 21Mets9–4Candelaria (11–14)Burris—20,32078–71
150September 22Expos4–2Bibby (18–5)SandersonTekulve (21)18,41679–71
151September 23Expos1–7RogersBlyleven (8–12)—26,72979–72
152September 24Cardinals6–3Rhoden (7–5)MartinJackson (9)4,29780–72
153September 25Cardinals2–10KaatRobinson (6–9)—6,80580–73
154September 26@ Cubs8–9CaudillTekulve (8–12)—3,94180–74
155September 27@ Cubs0–2MartzBibby (18–6)Tidrow15,56580–75
156September 28@ Cubs2–3KrukowBlyleven (8–13)Caudill10,30580–76
157September 29="@ "Mets4–5 (10)ReardonJackson (8–4)—1,78780–77
158September 30@ Mets2–3FalconeRobinson (6–10)—1,75480–78 :
October: 3–1 (Home: 2–1; Away: 1–0)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
159October 1@ Mets10–5Bibby (19–6)BurrisRomo (11)2,39281–78
160October 3Cubs3–1Jefferson (1–0)ReuschelCandelaria (1)5,27082–78
161October 4Cubs0–6McGlothenPerez (0–1)—2,71782–79
162October 5Cubs1–0Robinson (7–10)Capilla—20,58883–79 :
Legend:        = Win        = Loss Bold = Pirates team member :

## Roster
### Opening Day Lineup

Opening Day Starters :
| # | Name | Position |
| 18 | Omar Moreno | CF |
| 10 | Tim Foli | SS |
| 39 | Dave Parker | RF |
| 8 | Willie Stargell | 1B |
| 34 | John Milner | LF |
| 5 | Bill Madlock | 3B |
| 14 | Ed Ott | C |
| 3 | Phil Garner | 2B |
| 22 | Bert Blyleven | P |

## Player stats
### Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
Regular Season :
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| E. Romo | 75 | 11 | 5 | 0.455 | 1 | 4 |
| T. Peña | 8 | 21 | 9 | 0.429 | 0 | 1 |
| R. Rhoden | 20 | 40 | 15 | 0.375 | 1 | 11 |
| M. Easler | 132 | 393 | 133 | 0.338 | 21 | 74 |
| L. Lacy | 109 | 278 | 93 | 0.335 | 7 | 33 |
| M. Alexander | 37 | 3 | 1 | 0.333 | 0 | 0 |
| B. Carbo | 7 | 6 | 2 | 0.333 | 0 | 1 |
| D. Robinson | 30 | 57 | 19 | 0.333 | 1 | 8 |
| D. Parker | 139 | 518 | 153 | 0.295 | 17 | 79 |
| B. Robinson | 100 | 272 | 78 | 0.287 | 12 | 36 |
| B. Madlock | 137 | 494 | 137 | 0.277 | 10 | 53 |
| T. Foli | 127 | 495 | 131 | 0.265 | 3 | 38 |
| W. Stargell | 67 | 202 | 53 | 0.262 | 11 | 38 |
| E. Ott | 120 | 392 | 102 | 0.260 | 8 | 41 |
| P. Garner | 151 | 548 | 142 | 0.259 | 5 | 58 |
| P. Pérez | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0.250 | 0 | 0 |
| M. Sanguillén | 47 | 48 | 12 | 0.250 | 0 | 2 |
| R. Scurry | 20 | 4 | 1 | 0.250 | 0 | 0 |
| O. Moreno | 162 | 676 | 168 | 0.249 | 2 | 36 |
| J. Milner | 114 | 238 | 58 | 0.244 | 8 | 34 |
| V. Law | 25 | 74 | 17 | 0.230 | 0 | 3 |
| D. Berra | 93 | 245 | 54 | 0.220 | 6 | 31 |
| E. Solomon | 27 | 32 | 7 | 0.219 | 0 | 1 |
| S. Nicosia | 60 | 176 | 38 | 0.216 | 1 | 22 |
| J. Candelaria | 35 | 77 | 15 | 0.195 | 0 | 7 |
| K. Bevacqua | 22 | 43 | 7 | 0.163 | 0 | 4 |
| J. Bibby | 35 | 77 | 12 | 0.156 | 1 | 7 |
| J. Rooker | 4 | 7 | 1 | 0.143 | 1 | 2 |
| B. Blyleven | 37 | 61 | 5 | 0.082 | 0 | 2 |
| B. Beall | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
| A. Hassler | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
| G. Jackson | 61 | 10 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
| J. Jefferson | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
| K. Tekulve | 78 | 9 | 0 | 0.000 | 0 | 0 |
| M. Lee | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| M. Mahler | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| D. Roberts | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 162 | 5,517 | 1,469 | 0.266 | 116 | 626 |

### Pitching

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
Regular Season :
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| J. Jefferson | 1 | 62⁄3 | 1 | 0 | 1.35 | 4 |
| R. Scurry | 20 | 372⁄3 | 0 | 2 | 2.15 | 28 |
| E. Solomon | 26 | 1001⁄3 | 7 | 3 | 2.69 | 35 |
| G. Jackson | 61 | 71 | 8 | 4 | 2.92 | 31 |
| E. Romo | 74 | 1232⁄3 | 5 | 5 | 3.27 | 82 |
| J. Bibby | 35 | 2381⁄3 | 19 | 6 | 3.32 | 144 |
| K. Tekulve | 78 | 93 | 8 | 12 | 3.39 | 47 |
| J. Rooker | 4 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 3.50 | 8 |
| P. Pérez | 2 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 3.75 | 7 |
| B. Blyleven | 34 | 2162⁄3 | 8 | 13 | 3.82 | 168 |
| R. Rhoden | 20 | 1262⁄3 | 7 | 5 | 3.84 | 70 |
| A. Hassler | 6 | 112⁄3 | 0 | 0 | 3.86 | 4 |
| D. Roberts | 2 | 21⁄3 | 0 | 1 | 3.86 | 1 |
| D. Robinson | 29 | 1601⁄3 | 7 | 10 | 3.99 | 103 |
| J. Candelaria | 35 | 2331⁄3 | 11 | 14 | 4.01 | 97 |
| M. Lee | 4 | 52⁄3 | 0 | 1 | 4.76 | 2 |
| M. Mahler | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 63.00 | 1 |
| Team Totals | 162 | 1,4581⁄3 | 83 | 79 | 3.58 | 832 |

## Awards and honors
### All-Stars

1980 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
* Dave Parker, starter, outfield
* Jim Bibby, reserve
* Phil Garner, reserve
* Kent Tekulve, reserve

## Transactions

* November 1, 1979 – Dock Ellis granted free agency.
* November 1, 1979 – Bruce Kison granted free agency.
* November 1, 1979 – Rennie Stennett granted free agency.
* November 21, 1979 – Signed Andy Hassler as a free agent.
* November 24, 1979 – Signed Cecilio Guante as an amateur free agent.
* December 21, 1979 – Traded John Burden (minors) and Larry Littleton to the Cleveland Indians. Received Larry Andersen.
* January 11, 1980 – Drafted Keith Creel in the 1st round (6th pick) of the 1980 amateur draft (January Secondary), but did not sign the player.
* January 11, 1980 – Drafted Tom Nieto in the 3rd round of the 1980 amateur draft (January Secondary), but did not sign the player.
* January 11, 1980 – Drafted Bill Bathe in the 10th round of the 1980 amateur draft (January), but did not sign the player.
* March 28, 1980 – Traded a player to be named later to the Atlanta Braves. Received Eddie Solomon. The Pittsburgh Pirates sent Greg Field (minors) (April 25, 1980) to the Atlanta Braves to complete the trade.
* April 1, 1980 – Traded a player to be named later and cash to the Seattle Mariners. Received Odell Jones. The Pittsburgh Pirates sent Larry Andersen (October 29, 1980) to the Seattle Mariners to complete the trade.
* April 5, 1980 – Signed Dale Mohorcic as a free agent.
* April 10, 1980 – Signed Mickey Mahler as a free agent.
* April 24, 1980 – Sold Dave Roberts to the Seattle Mariners.
* May 16, 1980 – Signed Ramon Pena as an amateur free agent.
* June 3, 1980 – Drafted Rick Renteria in the 1st round (20th pick) of the 1980 amateur draft.
* June 3, 1980 – Drafted Tim Burke in the 2nd round of the 1980 amateur draft.
* June 3, 1980 – Drafted Joe Orsulak in the 6th round of the 1980 amateur draft. Player signed August 20, 1980.
* June 10, 1980 – Sold Andy Hassler to the California Angels.
* June 23, 1980 – Signed Trench Davis as an amateur free agent.
* July 10, 1980 – Signed Rafael Belliard as an amateur free agent.
* July 16, 1980 – Traded Jerry McDonald (minors) to the Atlanta Braves. Received Bob Beall.
* August 5, 1980 – Traded Rick Lancellotti and Luis Salazar to the San Diego Padres. Received a player to be named later and Kurt Bevacqua. The San Diego Padres sent Mark Lee (August 12, 1980) to the Pittsburgh Pirates to complete the trade.
* August 20, 1980 – Released Alberto Lois.
* August 21, 1980 – Signed Ravelo Manzanillo as an amateur free agent.
* September 1, 1980 – Signed Bernie Carbo as a free agent.
* September 11, 1980 – Selected Jesse Jefferson off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays.
* October 8, 1980 – Released Bernie Carbo.
* October 10, 1980 – Released Jim Rooker.
* October 21, 1980 – Released Gene Pentz.

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Portland Beavers | Pacific Coast League | Jim Mahoney |
| AA | Buffalo Bisons | Eastern League | Steve Demeter |
| A | Salem Pirates | Carolina League | Johnny Lipon |
| A | Shelby Pirates | South Atlantic League | Joe Frisina |
| Rookie | GCL Pirates | Gulf Coast League | Woody Huyke |