Pirates pitcher Derek Holland pays tribute to actor Rob Schneider with cardboard cutouts

There might not be fans in the stands to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play at PNC Park, but Derek Holland made sure there was a celebrity sighting for Tuesday night’s game against the Cleveland Indians.

The Pirates left-handed pitcher had cardboard cutouts of actor and comedian Rob Schneider strategically placed around the ballpark, with shots from movies like “Benchwarmers,” “The Hot Chick” and “50 First Dates.”

Man, @Dutch_Oven45 knows we love celebs at the ballpark.

He brought @RobSchneider here as a special guest tonight. pic.twitter.com/OaMRf6BSUI

— Pirates (@Pirates) August 18, 2020

“He hit me up, he asked me, day one, at the beginning of the season, if he could get a cardboard cutout. I said, ‘Yeah, I can easily take care of that,’” Holland said following the 6-3 loss in 10 innings. “I took a little bit longer than I needed, but I made sure it was worthwhile for him. I want to give him something to laugh about. Gotta have fun with it. If we can’t have fans in the stands, at least we can make the most of it.”

Holland said he met Schneider backstage after one of his stand-up shows in Dallas when the pitcher was playing for the Texas Rangers. They became fast friends, goofing around by doing imitations and character voices. Holland said he ran into Schneider again in Seattle, when Holland was pitching for the San Francisco Giants, and invited him to talk to the team.

“The Best Seat in the House But you gotta be a stand up cardboard!” @DerekHolland @Pirates @MLB @SFGiants https://t.co/nGUwsTLNWr

— Rob Schneider (@RobSchneider) August 19, 2020

“It’s funny to see a lot of celebrities, they like baseball and baseball players want to be an actor or whatever the case may be,” Holland said, “so it’s cool how this whole thing comes together.”

Holland said Schneider appreciated the gesture, shooting him a text message after Holland pitched two scoreless innings against the Indians.

“He was basically letting me know that it was pretty cool,” Holland said. “He’s pretty pumped about it. He’s a big baseball guy, so anytime you can get somebody like that to laugh, that’s huge. He’s also been very very good to me, giving me some good pointers. He’s a funny dude. I appreciate everything he’s done.”