Major League Baseball

Pirates living an impossible dream

Published Jul. 26, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

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Bob Klapisch

You don’t have consider yourself part of the growing legion of Pirates’ loyalists to appreciate the miracle at PNC Park. This cuts across every demographic — if you love underdogs, behold the standings: The Bucs are the NL Central’s new powerbrokers.

This was supposed to be impossible, the team that started the season with the majors’ lowest payroll ($45 million) still hanging with the Cardinals (despite a 4-3, 19-inning loss to the Braves Tuesday night that ended on a controversial call by home plate umpire Jerry Meals). For the Pirates, there wasn’t enough money, let alone good karma, to reverse a franchise losing streak that started in 1993.

Yet, here the Pirates are, led by their charismatic manager, Clint Hurdle, propelled by a largely unknown assembly of players, putting an end to Pittsburgh’s nightmare. It all began in the millisecond Sid Bream slid under Barry Bonds’ throw in the ninth inning Game 7 of the ’92 League Championship Series.

Bucs fans still argue on Internet message boards that Bream was out, and that the Braves never should’ve gone to the World Series. That’s how deep the wound nestled in the city’s consciousness, at least until now.

Hurdle has the Pirates believing anything is possible, which given the parity in the Central, just might be so.

The Cardinals haven’t been able to match the Bucs’ pitching. Nor have the Brewers. In fact, the Pirates’ 3.39 ERA isn’t just the division’s best, it ranks No. 5 in the NL — a stunning upgrade over 2010, when the Bucs were dead-last with a 5.00 ERA.

Perhaps even more remarkable is that Hurdle’s pitchers succeed without heavy reliance on strikeouts — they’re last in the NL in swings-and-misses. Although the absence of power arms is a red flag to one talent evaluator — “there’s no way you’re going to beat the Yankees or Red Sox (in the postseason) by pitching to contact” — the focus in Pittsburgh is on the here and now, specifically the mini-showdown series against the Braves.

Monday night’s 3-1 victory was one of the dividends of Sunday’s come-from-behind, 4-3 victory over the Cardinals. It kept the Pirates from being swept by St. Louis — and ended the Bucs’ first three-game losing streak in a month. As catcher Michael McKenry notes, “we’re a team that believes in each other.”

The Bucs can thank Hurdle for that — he’s a fountain of optimism and good will, the very personality traits needed to neutralize two decades of losing. Hurdle, who served as the Rangers’ hitting coach last year, had interviewed with the Mets during the offseason, seemingly a perfect fit. He’d played for the Mets and managed in their minor league system in the '80s, and so impressed that GM Sandy Alderson would have hired him.

Only, Hurdle was sufficiently wary of the team’s current financial situation to look elsewhere. Against all odds, he found himself intrigued by the challenge in Pittsburgh.

“To me, the greatest coaching opportunity in all of sport is here,” Hurdle told the New York Times. “Show me an NBA team with the history that this one’s had the last 18 seasons. Show me an NFL team, show me an NHL team. The skepticism, it’s all been earned. The angst of the fans, it’s real. If this was a marriage, there wouldn’t have been a separation. There would have been a divorce a long time ago.”

Hurdle doubts about the Pirates were all addressed before he took the job, specifically in their willingness to build from within. Ownership has spent $30 million on the draft in the last three seasons, more than any other team and, as noted by the Times, the $5 million spent on bonuses for international players ranked fifth in the majors.

This isn’t to say the Pirates aren’t without deficits or needs. Hurdle is the first to admit a run-producer would benefit an offense that’s 13th in runs and OPS, and 14th in home runs. Through Monday night’s game, the Pirates had gone 275 at-bats without an HR.

There’s been talk of the Pirates chasing Carlos Beltran — and, incredibly, rival executives are hearing Pittsburgh is willing to absorb more of the slugger’s salary than the Phillies or Braves. Still, Beltran’s no-trade power makes it unlikely he’d choose the Bucs over teams with a greater chance of getting to the playoffs.

There are other possibilities, too, although GM Neal Huntington has no desire to sacrifice top prospects like pitchers Jameson Taillon and Luis Heredia, as well as catcher Tony Sanchez.

For that reason, the Pirates will likely go into August and September with the same arsenal that’s carried through a surprising July: a strong starting rotation that has no real ace, a shutdown closer in Joel Hanrahan and the hope that outfielder Alex Presley, who’s on the DL with a contusion in his left hand, can be at least partially replaced by Pedro Alvarez, who was summoned from Class-AAA Indianapolis on Tuesday.

The other weapon is Hurdle and his energy. Several times a week he sends texts messages to his friends, citing a famous passage or quote that emphasizes the value of hard work and belief in one’s self. Hurdle invokes philosophers, statesmen and theologians, but each text ends with the same sign-off: “Make a difference today. Love, CH.”

It’s hard to argue with that kind of enthusiasm. The Pirates’ fans are already all in — attendance is averaging over 23,000 a night at PNC, the most since the ballpark opened in 2001. Try explaining impossible to them.

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