Unlucky 21

The number 21 may be lucky in cards, but it is very unlucky for Western Pennsylvania sports fans. Only the Pittsburgh Steelers allow a player to wear this sacred number, while to the rest of the region's franchises the number means heartbreak. The Penguins retired it after budding superstar Michel Briere died in 1971 following an automobile accident. Hall of Fame Pirate shortstop Arky Vaughan, who drowned in 1952 while trying to save a friend, also wore unlucky 21. The tragic story of Roberto Clemente is well known and caused the team to retire the cursed number. A diverse group of Pittsburgh writers and sports lovers present those stories and more in twenty-one tales of Western Pennsylvania sports sorrow.