Russ Babines was only 13 only thirteen-years old when Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Roberto Clemente died in a plane crash, but the memories of the star baseball player left him with a lasting impression.

"Clemente was my favorite athlete, and the favorite player of most of the kids in my neighborhood," said Mr. Babines, who grew up in Shaler.

The Hall of Fame right fielder was killed on Dec. 31, 1972, when his cargo plane crashed after takeoff from an airport in Puerto Rico, It was on a mission to bring relief supplies to the victims of an earthquake in Nicaragua.

Mr. Babines, 54, who now lives in McCandless, has taken those childhood memories and woven them into a play, "The Great One," a coming-of-age story about a young woman growing up in Pittsburgh. entitled "The Great One."

The play will have its Pittsburgh premiere Feb. 21 at the Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, 937 Liberty Ave., Downtown.

"Mark Clayton Southers, founder and artistic director of the theater, Pittsburgh Playwright Theater heard about the play, liked it and is its producer," Mr. Babines said.

Mr. Babines said the "The Great One" began as a film script, but he thought it would work well on the stage, too. He describes it as "a G-rated family-friendly story."

A staged reading of the play was held in September at the Third Street Gallery in Carnegie, sponsored by the Carnegie Screenwriters, a Western Pennsylvania group of writers and film professionals. Karen Baum, Adrienne Wehr and Dana Hardy each read one act of the play as the main character in the play — Molly O'Brien — in different phases of her life.

Seeing his play brought to life by the actors was a satisfying experience for Mr. Babines.

"There is a lot of acting talent in town. It's amazing how good the actors here are," he said.

Tressa Glover will play the role of Molly in the Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre production.

While the story taps into Mr. Babines'  memories of Roberto Clemente, while he was growing up, he is quick to point out his story is not a biography. He said it's  of Clemente, but a redemptive story about the main character, Molly.

Mr. Babines has also written three feature length-movie scripts in addition to his play.

"I always enjoyed movies, and thought maybe I could write one," Mr. Babines said.

He bought a few print versions of movies scripts to learn the format then picked up a how-to-book about writing for the movies.

Although his background is in accounting and finance, he soon found he had a knack for writing, and pursued it in his spare time, often writing in the evenings.

His first script, "Hired Up," a comedy of misunderstanding, attracted interest from the motion picture distribution and production company Miramax.

"They liked it very much and encouraged me to do more," he said.

His second script, "Treat her Right," a romantic comedy, also did well screenwrting contests as did the "The Great One."

All of his scripts have placed in the top tier of competitions, often finishing as a finalist or a quarterfinalist.

Mr. Babines said he is looking forward to the premier of his play, and believes Mr. Clemente left a lasting legacy.

He has visited the Clemente Museum on Penn Avenue in Lawrenceville several times, and even has an autographed photo of the legendary baseball player.

"Clemente was widely respected. Even kids appreciated and recognized his talent. Ultimately I would like to have the film made," he said.

Bob Podurgiel, freelance writer: suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.

Correction, posted Jan. 16, 2014: The date of Clemente's death has been corrected.

First Published: January 16, 2014, 5:00 a.m.