The Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t need a bat signal to summon A.J. Burnett back to PNC Park. A simple phone call sealed the deal to get Burnett to serve as the narrator for the unveiling of their City Connect uniforms.

Burnett wore a custom jersey with his old No. 34 on the back Friday afternoon, just hours before he was to throw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Pirates-Tampa Bay Rays game. The Pirate-themed jerseys, adorned with mustard gold as a nod to the Roberto Clemente-led 1971 World Series champions, passed Burnett’s vibe check.

“I think I would have worn them every five days,” said Burnett, who always wore the alternate black jerseys when he pitched. “I just think they’re really sharp. Everything they did with them – black and gold inside, even a little red accent pops out. I think it’s gorgeous.”

Even better for Burnett was being back at the ballpark where he pitched on the 2013 and ’15 wild-card playoff teams while the Pirates entered the weekend series in first place in the National League Central. More than a decade since he played for the Pirates, Burnett remains popular.

“Actually, walking in the stadium from the hotel, it just brings back everything,” Burnett said. “I had every hair on my body standing up on my walk over here. And the greetings from everybody is great. You see them left and right. They don’t leave me alone. It’s awesome so far.”

Burnett received an invitation to spend time with the team the first week of spring training at Pirate City in Bradenton, Fla., where he served as a mentor and shared his experiences with a young pitching staff that features a 23-year-old ace in Paul Skenes, a two-time All-Star right-hander who won the NL Cy Young Award in an unanimous vote.

“It’s just scary, because he ain’t even close to prime or peak, so it’s just going to be fun to watch him,” Burnett said. “And, from what I gather, they all enjoy being around each other, competing against each other. Same thing when we played. Seems like all they want to do is punch tickets. I know it was other things, but that’s the mentality. They have arms for days, so I loved watching them work, being around it again, seeing how they go about their business.”

Burnett was on the same staff as another former No. 1 overall pick with the Pirates, so it’s no surprise that he sees similarities between Skenes and Gerrit Cole.

“They’re both bulldogs, for one,” Burnett said. “One thing I gather from both – and Cole is this way – but it doesn’t matter how good they throw; they want to do better the next time out. And that was a big thing with Cole. He’d go seven strong, like one hit, two hits and one run, and just sit down like, ‘How can I go better next time?’ I feel like Paul’s the same way. He wants to be better every time out. I think the rest of the staff has seen that, and they’re feeding off that as well.”

Pirates manager Don Kelly said Burnett made an impact on the starting rotation in spring training, sharing a winning attitude that has carried over into the regular season.

“It’s great to see him back,” Kelly said. “It was awesome to have him in spring (training). We’ve talked about what he means to Pittsburgh, what he meant to those ’13 and ’15 teams, the edge that he brings. He’s the perfect guy for City Connect Night to be back.”

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