Jason Grilli paced up and down in front of the left-field wall at PNC Park more than two hours Friday night before the first pitch, signing autograph after autograph for early arriving fans.
Nearly a year has passed since the Pirates traded the right-hander reliever to the Los Angeles Angels before he ended up with the Atlanta Braves. But Grilli’s affinity for Pittsburgh and Pirates fans persists. This weekend marks his first visit to PNC Park since the trade, but he doesn’t feel like a guest.
Pittsburgh is his home after Grilli, 38, purchased a house in the area this past offseason. He has played in eight cities in his nomadic major league career, but, after working for the Pirates for 3½ seasons, he felt more comfortable here than anywhere else and determined it would be a good place to raise his children.
“This is becoming home for me,” Grilli said before the Friday game. “I’m just slowly adapting to becoming a fulltime Yinzer.”
Some of that adaption, though, will have to occur in Atlanta, where Grilli has settled into his role as the Braves closer after the team traded Craig Kimbrel — one of baseball’s best closers in recent seasons — to San Diego right before opening day.
Grilli hardly has missed a beat. Through 28 appearances, he is tied for fourth in the National League with 20 saves. His 2.63 ERA would be the second-best of his career over a full season, trailing only his 2011 campaign with the Pirates.
“He’s been good,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “He’s been really good. He prepares really well, too. He knows what he wants to do in the ninth inning. He doesn’t spook.”
Though the situation surrounding his departure from the Pirates organization weren’t ideal — Grilli’s ERA was 4.87 and he had lost his closer’s role before the trade — he had some of his best seasons with the Pirates. Most notably, he made the National League All-Star team in 2013 while recording 33 saves and a 2.70 ERA.
Grilli’s contributions to the team that broke the franchise’s 21-year playoff drought are not forgotten. Pirates fans still thank Grilli regularly when he’s in town, including when he and his wife visited a local supermarket before the game Friday night.
“If you gave it your all, these people are on your side forever more,” Grilli said.
That goes for his former teammates, too.
Grilli stays in touch with many of his 2013 teammates after their success created a lasting bond. He considers the crowd at the 2013 National League wild-card game at PNC Park to be the loudest he has heard.This weekend, the stakes are different. The Pirates beat Grilli’s Braves twice in three games in Atlanta earlier this month, although Grilli earned a win against his old team.
“I want to have the bragging rights against my old buddies,” Grilli said.
Grilli’s appearance Friday night did not adhere to that plan. He entered when the score was tied in the 10th inning and allowed a walk-off double to Pirates shortstop Jordy Mercer.
This series marks the final time the Pirates and Braves will meet this regular season, preserving hypothetical bragging rights until Grilli returns to his new home in the offseason. He will be neighbors with Pirates second baseman Neil Walker and live down the street from center fielder Andrew McCutchen.
“We’ll have some good barbecues,” Grilli said.
Max Cohen: mcohen@post-gazette.com, 412-263-1720 and Twitter @MaxACohen.
First Published: June 27, 2015, 5:17 a.m.
