Pirates City Connect Leaked: Black and Gold With a Gotham Twist

Update: The Pirates City Connect has been officially released by Nike and MLB. See our Official Pirates City Connect Review With New Photos.

The Pittsburgh Pirates' 2026 City Connect uniform just leaked on Reddit, courtesy of user dannotheiceman. And honestly? We don't hate it.

Images via dannotheiceman / Reddit

The jersey is black with gold "PIRATES" lettering across the chest in a gothic typeface that leans hard into the Gotham City angle. If you didn't know, Pittsburgh doubled as Gotham in The Dark Knight Rises, and Nike clearly took that and ran with it. Gold piping lines the collar and sleeve cuffs, and the red Nike swoosh adds just enough of a secondary color pop to keep it from being one-note.

Down near the bottom hem you can spot a small "PITTSBURGH" tag, and the collar reportedly reads "WE BLEED BLACK AND GOLD" on the inside. That's a nice touch. It's the kind of detail that makes a jersey feel like it was actually built for the city and not just slapped together in a conference room.

The Back: Clemente Forever

Images via dannotheiceman / Reddit

The back features Clemente #21, which is always going to hit. Gold lettering and numbers on black is clean. The nameplate font matches the front, keeping the gothic feel consistent throughout. There's nothing flashy here, and that's the right call. Let the name do the talking.

The Sleeve Patch: PGH Goes Hard

Images via dannotheiceman / Reddit

This might be the best part of the whole uniform. The sleeve patch features "PGH" in that same gothic lettering with crossed swords behind it, the classic Pirates mascot in the center, and "1887" flanking the sides. There are hints of red in the bandana and details on the pirate, which ties back to the red swoosh on the front. The whole patch is outlined in gold and sits on the black sleeve like a coat of arms. It looks like something you'd see on a medieval shield, and we mean that as a compliment.

The bat-wing shape at the top of the patch is another nod to the Gotham connection. Subtle enough that it doesn't feel forced, but obvious enough that you get it.

Our Grade: B

We like this one. The color scheme is right. Black and gold is what the Pirates are, and we respect that they didn't try to reinvent the wheel or go with some random color that has nothing to do with the franchise. Too many City Connects stray so far from the original identity that you can barely tell what team you're looking at. This one stays in the lane.

The pop of gold is strong. The hints of red throughout give it depth. The sleeve patch is genuinely cool. And putting Clemente on the back of the leaked version is smart marketing whether Nike intended it or not.

Where it loses us a little is the typeface. The gothic lettering on "PIRATES" is fine, but it feels like it's trying a bit too hard to sell the Gotham angle. We would have liked something that still felt dark and edgy but with a little more originality to the letter shapes.

We also want to see the hat before we commit to a final verdict. City Connect hats have a history of making or breaking the full look, and right now we're only seeing the jersey.

The Bottom Line

It's a B. Solid, not spectacular. The Pirates stayed true to who they are, the details are thoughtful, and the Gotham connection actually works here because Pittsburgh earned it. We just need to see the complete uniform before we go any higher.