They finally got hot and put together a sustained stretch that got them back in the division race.
It was so abrupt that some people are wearing neck collars to ease the whiplash.that resulted.
People
have been complaining about the Pirates for three months. "It's time to blow it up and start over...No chance, might as well
sell and get something....Hurdle doesn't want to win..."
Then
they won six in a row, including a four-game sweep of the first-place
Brewers, ending s 6-1 homestand that moved them to .500 and within three
he's of first place.
On Friday people were calling
talk shows advising them to trade for an outfielder because Starling
Matte is banned from this year's postseason. Honest.
A
team can't look much better than the Pirates have lately. Starting
pitching is solid, matched by the bullpen. The offense is clicking and
late inning deficits merely set the stage for dramatic comebacks.
Suddenly Max Moroff is getting s Gatorade shower for delivering the game-winning hit. Honest.
As veteran baseball observer Joe Shuta of twominutetimeout.com
noted, "The Pirates are in one of those 'doing everything right'
periods. If they were in the World Series now, they would win it."
He's right about that. The success of the last two weeks has wiped out the frustration of the first three months.
The
nature of baseball is the best teams have stretches where noting goes
right, and rotten teams will have a week or two where they don't look
totally rotten.
The Pirates are not at either
extreme. Their talent level says they're capable of a winning season,
and they can compete in a division where no one has taken charge.
Whether
they make deals to bolster the roster in advance of the non-waiver
trade deadline isn't entirely up to them. There's a question of who's
available, what the cost is (in return players, not salary).and how the
market unfolds. Teams with value to offer also have an abundance of
potential trading partners.
The Pirates could use a
third baseman, a starter, a bullpen arm and a bat off the bench. It's
not realistic to think they can fill all those needs in season.
The
hot streak will eventually cool, because they always do. But if nothing
else, the Pirates have made themselves relevant again.
Fans have gone from firing everyone to worrying about the postseason lineup.
---
--TECHNICOLOR SPLASH
One thing we've learned from the habit of emptying the drink coolers over the star of the game.
The Pirates are the only people over age 12 who like that sick-looking blue Gatorade.
---
--SOON ON THE LOOSE
Here's a story about O.J. Simpson, who was granted parole last week after nine years in prison on a robbery conviction.
Back in better times, Simpson was working for NBC. He came to town during the week to do some interviews with Steelers players.
The Steelers were still at Three Rivers Stadium, and there was a small media work room right off the office lobby.
Simpson
spent part of the day in that work room, killing time between the
interviews. He was instantly everybody's best friend. He couldn't have
been more engaging, to the point that he would listen carefully to
conversations and pick up on everyone's name so he could address people
by name.
One grump even mumbled that he couldn't get his work done because Simpson kept talking to him.
Nobody who was in that room that day walked away with anything less than a good feeling about O.J. Simpson.
Which just goes to show you never know.
(John Mehno can be reached at johnmehnocolumn@gmail.com).
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