Sporting News
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June 30, 2012
(Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images North
America)
The easy answer is the same as last year, too: Are you serious?
After 19 consecutive losing seasons, the Pirates need more than two winning months to convince anyone that 2012 will be the year.
Just look at their roster. Their No. 1 starter is a guy who practically was given to them by the Yankees. The rest of the rotation is composed of journeymen and unproven youngsters. Then there's the lineup. The Pirates have one regular hitting .336 and everyone else hitting under .270. A mere plus-3 run differential doesn't scream long-term success, either.
And don't forget how their season fell apart last year. The Pirates were seven games over .500 on July 19 and on top of the N.L. Central. From there, they went 19-46 and clinched their losing season with two weeks to spare.
So you can be excused for thinking their winning ways in 2012 will last about as long as this heat wave stifling much of the country.
Or you can be like me. Perhaps the 100-degree heat has fried the part of my brain responsible for rational thinking but I'm here to tell you the Pirates will contend for the long haul. OK, maybe that's a bit extreme.
I'm not quite ready to bet the air conditioner on a winning season but I can offer four reasons why the Pirates should be able to win at least 40 more games in the next three months, which is what they need to finish .500. And I'm not basing this on what the Pirates did to the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night, as impressive as was their 14-5 thrashing of Adam Wainwright and a beleaguered bullpen.
1. Andrew McCutchen has grown up. The 25-year-old Floridian became an All-Star with a sparkling first half in 2011 but struggled as much as his teammates in the second half. He hit just .216 and struck out more and walked less even though he played in 18 fewer games. He was not injured, either, unless you count his back being figuratively worn down from shouldering such a load.
"He tried to ratchet up his game and really tried to bring eight other guys on his back and change the game every time he went to the plate," manager Clint Hurdle said Friday. "He learned that he's not served best by doing that and we're not served best by him trying to do that."
This year McCutchen leads the Pirates in average, homers, RBIs, runs, stolen bases and highlight defensive plays. He is hitting .344 after a 4-for-5 Friday that included his 15th homer. By not trying to carry the team on his back, he has done exactly that.
"Last year taught me a valuable lesson," McCutchen said.
It's time baseball fans learned a lesson, too. That is, McCutchen might not be the game's best center fielder but there's none better under 6-4, the listed height of Josh Hamilton and Matt Kemp.
2. Their offense isn't as bad as its first-half numbers. The Pirates began Friday as the NL's second-lowest scoring team, averaging less than four runs a game. But that's changing in a hurry.
In June, the Pirates lead the NL in runs and homers while producing their best scoring month since July 2008.
It hasn't been only McCuthen, either. Pedro Alvarez has been on an upswing and Garrett Jones has done enough in the cleanup spot to make pitchers have to think about someone besides McCutchen in the three-hole.
The Pirates still lack the lineup depth of the Reds and Cardinals but this month has given their pitchers reason to believe they don't have to dominate every night.
3. That pitching has been strong, too. Yes, when your rotation is led by the erratic A.J. Burnett and oft-injured Erik Bedard, success can be fleeting. Burnett has won eight straight starts and is due to come back to earth at some point. Bedard, however, has yet to give them much, with four wins in 15 starts to go with a 4.27 ERA.
The Pirates have at least one starter with the stuff to sustain a strong start, right-hander James McDonald, 7-3 with a 2.44 ERA. Stuff never has been the issue for the 27-year-old. This year he has been taken in by, of all people, Burnett and has become, shall we say, more professional about his craft.
"His preparation has been a heck of a lot better this year," closer Joel Hanrahan said. "He pays attention to the games. He does his work in between starts. A.J. has really taken him under his wing and that's helped out for both of them."
The Hanrahan-led bullpen that was last year's strength has been ever better in 2012. It ranks second in the NL and completely outclassed the Cardinals' pen Friday night. Over the final four innings, Pirates relievers allowed one single while Cardinals relievers were knocked around for 11 hits and seven runs.
A key to the Pirates' pen this year has been veteran right-hander Jason Grilli settling into the eighth-inning role. Out of baseball two years ago because of a horrific knee injury, Grilli joined the Pirates last July and this year has taken off. He is averaging 14 strikeouts per nine innings and has posted a 2.05 ERA in 32 outings.
"I don't think anybody expected Grilli to be as good as he is right now," Hanrahan said. "It's sure helped me."
4. They learned plenty from last year. At this point a year ago, the Pirates were finding out that if they win, people in and out of Pittsburgh will notice. The spotlight didn't last long but at least they felt its warmth.
"Even that little experience is going to help us," Hanrahan said. "We got a taste. We all want to get past that."
Ask Hurdle what his club learned from 2011 and he focuses on the first half. It was his first season managing the Pirates and his primary objective was to get his players to forget about all the losing years. He wasn't around for that, as he pointed out more than once, and the players weren't there for a much of it.
"A lot of lessons were learned in the first four months, too, when we played very well," Hurdle said. "The experience of getting through that 162-game experience has helped them all. They know they add to their mental toughness, to their physical conditioning, to being a part of something greater than themselves."
Now here they are again. If the Pirates are fretting over another second-half collapse, they aren't letting on.
"Second half isn't here yet," McCutchen said. "We're focusing on the Cardinals, and not really on anything else."
It will be here soon enough, though, and everyone around baseball will be waiting for the losing ways to take over.
But don't be surprised if the wait is a lot longer this time around.
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