That was the kind of atmosphere everyone had in mind when the idea was conceived for an intimate, baseball-only park.
Not only did the Pirates walk off with two victories, they won the games in extra innings, and won both facing a deficit.
Taking three of four games in the weekend series against the NL Central-leading Cardinals allowed the Pirates to get within two and a half games of first place, whittling down a nine-game deficit that had looked so daunting two weeks earlier.
Those two games clearly represent highlights in the 15 seasons at PNC Park. The only comparable game is the 2013 Wild Card win over the Reds, when the Pirates reached the postseason after a 20-year losing streak.
Beyond that? For excitement and drama that stretched beyond a single game, you'd probably have to go back to Sept. 29, 1978 when the Pirates played a Friday night doubleheader against the Phillies.
The Phillies came in for the four-game, season-ending series holding a three and a half game lead.
You didn't need a calculator to figure out the scenario -- The Pirates needed to win all four games. Anything less would give the division to the Phillies (and there were no wild card consolation prizes in those days).
The rivalry between the Phillies and Pirates was white hot, with several brawls spicing the games between two excellent teams. There were fire-stoking loudmouths on both sides -- Larry Bowa for the Phillies, Dave Parker for the Pirates.
The Pirates had attendance problems then, but 45,134 people paid their way into Three Rivers Stadium that night. They saw the Pirates win both games in the bottom of the ninth inning.
In the first game, Ed Ott led off with a triple off Ron Reed, and was able to score on center fielder Garry Maddox's error.
The second game was even wilder. Steve Carlton allowed a leadoff double to Dave Parker, who went to third on another error by Maddox. By the way, Maddox was nicknamed "Secretary of Defense" and won eight Gold Glove awards.
Carlton intentionally walked Bill Robinson and Willie Stargell to load the bases. On a 1-1 pitch to Phil Garner, reliever Warren Brusstar balked in the winning run.
The sweep offered hope that the Pirates could pull of the miracle, but they lost the next day 10-8, despite taking a 4-1 lead after one inning.
So will there be carryover effect from last weekend for the last nine games between the Pirates and Cardinals? Probably not. The Cardinals devastated the Pirates with three walk-off wins in April.
If that sent a message, the Pirates didn't get it. They've won five of seven against the Cardinals since that series.
The good thing about the weekend is it preceded the All-Star break. So instead of getting swallowed in the daily grind of the schedule, it lingered so fans could savor a couple of special moments.
Plus it gave excitable announcer Greg Brown a chance to ice himself down for a few days.
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--THINKING OUT LOUD
Some quick takes on the Pirates in the second half:
--Josh Harrison's injury highlights the need for another bat, and another starter would be welcome, too. The Pirates have been fortunate with the health of their starting rotation in a season where their back-up options are limited.
But it would also be good to get some help for the bullpen. The heavy workloads on Jared Hughes, Tony Watson and Mark Melancon could be a factor in August.
--Speaking of length of season, this will soon become uncharted territory for Jung Ho Kang. He never played more than 133 games a season in Korea, and averaged 124 games a season. He played in his 73rd game on Friday.
--You can drive yourself crazy replaying drafts, but what if the Pirates had selected Buster Posey instead of Pedro Alvarez in 2008?
--There are only 90 feet between bases, yet the Pirates manage to have some incredible adventures covering those distances. Would it be legal to attach a GPS unit to each uniform sleeve?
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--LOOKING GOOD
The only significant takeaway from the All-Star game: Everyone should look as good at 79 as Sandy Koufax does.
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