The Pittsburgh Pirates will make the playoffs. Yes, this is going to be a reality in the steel city this year. Not only will this be a new experience for the younger generation fan, it will be one for some of the young players as well. Only a handful of players on the Pirates active roster have experienced the postseason, but manager, Clint Hurdle said he’s had the team prepared for this race all season.
“We’ve had a check-and-balance system that we put in on opening day and it’s continued to carry through till now. We haven’t added anything because it’s ‘September’, we haven’t added anything because we’re in a pennant race. I’ve never been a big fan of playing the game a certain way for five months and now it becomes more important.” Hurdle said.
If you think about it, Hurdle has had the team in a postseason mentality all year with the pressures of turning the franchise around as well as pressure from the fan base with “the streak”.
“I think you reach a professional point in time where those things need to be in check and actually,” said Hurdle. “That’s what we tried to put in place, that it wasn’t about pressure in September, it was about pressure from opening day and what was expected of you and what you were going to be asked to do.”
Even with all of the pressures the team has encountered, Hurdle acknowledges the team has been having a good time during this stretch.
“I think they are. Some more than others,” said Hurdle. “I think being a young player in a pennant race, my rookie year I think there was also those times where you want everyone to think you were loose and you might not be as loose as everyone thinks you are just because, but I was fortunate, I had some guys around me that helped me and we got guys outside helping with that and I do think that from a coaching perspective that the staff and the manager need to model the right behaviors as well, have some fun with this, embrace this, dance with it rather than wrestle with it and I think we all are doing that pretty professionally.”
For Justin Morneau, who played in seven postseason games in two different seasons for the Minnesota Twins, it’s another chance to enjoy the ride. “I’m here to do whatever he [Hurdle] needs me to do to help this team win. I’m here to enjoy the ride and be apart of it.”
He also sees this team making the contributions needed by every piece. From new acquisitions, to bench players, to everyday starters.
“I think that’s the key to winning teams,” said Morneau. “To have good baseball teams it seems like it’s someone different everyday and obviously starting pitching is the first thing and those guys have given us a chance every night and you like to be able to come through for those guys when they throw the ball so well. It’s fun to be apart of that when it seems someone different every day steps up.”
With seven games remaining on the final homestand, the playoff monkey will most-likely be lifted at PNC.
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(Photo Credit: Jared Wickerham/Getty Images )
