A (half) season to remember

By Michael Bennett
  
Amid Lombardi Trophies and Stanley Cups, the Pittsburgh Pirates have toiled through nearly 20 years of losing seasons. Now, miraculously, they sit six games over .500 and in the thick of the playoff race.


It’s hard to admit that, until this year, my most enduring memory as a Pirates fan was witnessing the implosion of Three Rivers Stadium in 2000.  It was a blast, to say the least; I stared at the concrete beast from a parking lot across the Ohio River, waiting anxiously for the boom, the crack, and the long-anticipated collapse of the house that Clemente built. 


But to be honest, the event was anti-climactic.  I got up at 6 a.m. to stake off a prime observation spot, and after a minute of booming there was nothing left to see. The smoke floated over the rivers, and the site was nothing but a pile of concrete sitting between Heinz Field and PNC Park, two brand new parks waiting for their highly anticipated inaugural seasons.  Needless to say, the rebuilding process for the Pirates stadium was much simpler than its roster counterpart.  The good news is, I finally have a new memory to justify the Pirate “P” etched permanently into my upper back.


The park was filled for the 30th anniversary of the 1971 World Series against the Orioles, and it wasn't just for the free commemorative stein. The ’71 roster was recognized before the Tuesday night game, and Roberto Clemente’s widow received a standing ovation when her husband’s name was announced. Everyone in that place got goosebumps. The eyes of every single old yinzer in the stands glazed over, their minds elsewhere, perusing memories of walk-off homers and playoff parades.  I could only look around in admiration. It was the closest I could get to a winning season.


I’m eager to see if this will be the year that the Pirates turn the corner.  The team could very well keep its hunger alive and finish above .500, and maybe even reach the playoffs.  With the current state of the NL Central, a team that combines efficient and consistent pitching with timely hits and fervent small ball can’t be ignored as a contender.  But the problem remains that, in the back of everyone’s minds, we know it would be just as predictable for the starting rotation to cave in, or for the already-lacking offense to hit a slump.  It would make this season just another drawn-out falsity ending in an anti-climactic and brutal collapse.  


It feels different this year, at least that’s what everyone’s saying.  Andrew McCutchen is the all-around talent Pittsburgh hasn’t witnessed since Barry Bonds left in 1993.  The park cheers for Joel “The Hammer” Hanrahan to make his run to the mound like its Major League. The whole team is at the dugout fence for the 9th inning: it’s like they actually believe they can win. We’ve reached July, and PNC Park is still bustling on weeknights.  Everywhere I go there’s a fist pound or a cheer for a Pirates hat–a quick transition from the days of no-name jerseys and fan boycotts. 


If there’s anything to take out of this when the smoke clears, it’s that deep down, under years of embarrassment and outrage, Pittsburgh is truly a baseball city.  Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise: we’ll take a pay-off pitch in the bottom of the ninth over a fourth-and-two or hockey shootout any day.  There’s also a youth movement emerging from the team’s turnaround.  Similar to the rebound of the Penguins in 2007, young people are joining the fan base, bringing with them a refreshing passion for the team that’s been lost since Sid Bream slid into home in the ’92 NLCS. 


The rebuilding process is still in its early stages.  The Pirates have drafted elite pitching talent in the last two drafts, but it will be a few years before those arms reach Pittsburgh.  Right now, the team is waiting to see if third baseman Pedro Alvarez develops into the power hitter it desperately needs, and the front office will think twice before making a move to lose prospects in order to push for the playoffs this year. The farm system is a patient game, but it’s the only strategy a small-market organization with a once-depleted structure can carry out.  If management sticks to the plan and doesn’t gun for renting players for prime prospects, the city will stand by, knowing that plenty of winning seasons could be in store in the coming years. 


For now, we have a half-season full of memories to tide us over.  Finally, something better than watching a stadium implode.