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By Jarrod Prugar
For the Mirror
Over the course of 25 years of Altoona Curve baseball, many players have donned Curve jerseys, some memorable and others not so much.
Tonight's Mount Rushmore of Curve, PA giveaway boasts the top four players in Curve history as voted on by the fans.
"We are excited to be able to honor some of the greatest players in Altoona Curve history," Altoona general manager Nate Bowen said.
Those players all feature resumes that have endeared them to Curve fans near and far from historic performances to retired numbers to World Series champions and everything else in between.
First on the list is Adam Hyzdu. Hyzdu appeared in Altona in 1999 and instantly became a hit. He launched 55 home runs during the 1999 and 2000 seasons and still holds single-season records for games played (142), walks (94), home runs (31), runs (96) and RBI (106).
Hyzdu's No. 16 has adorned the light pole just beyond the left field bleachers since his number was retired in September of 2000 mere days before his call-up to Pittsburgh.
Next up is former pitcher and teammate of Hyzdu, Bronson Arroyo. Arroyo had 15 wins in the Curve's inaugural season in 1999 before going on to be an integral part of ending the Curse of the Bambino in Boston as a member of the 2004 Red Sox.
The 15 wins Arroyo had is still a single
-season record and he's also gone on to release a record featuring 12 rock covers which was released in 2005.
Andrew McCutchen has gone on to have one of the most illustrious careers a former Curve player has had. The 2013 NL MVP is a five-time All Star, four-time Silver Slugger and 2012 Gold Glove winner.
Affectionately known as Cutch, he was a member of the Curve in 2006 and 2007 before making his Major League debut for the Pirates in June of 2009. The 2023 season saw McCutchen make his triumphant return to Pittsburgh after signing with the team in the offseason.
Rounding out the Curve's Mount Rushmore is Big Country Brad Eldred. Eldred will forever stay in Altoona lore with one of the most insane months of baseball in all of professional baseball.
The former Curve first baseman hit 14 home runs and had 50 RBI in August of 2004 which is believed to be a minor league record. For comparison's sake, the MLB record is 53 by Joe DiMaggio.
Eldred went on to hit a total of 30 home runs in the 60 games he spent with the Curve making his debut with the Pirates in 2005.
"The Curve would like to thank all of our fans who participated in the off-season voting process to help us come up with these four great players," Bowen said.