What professional Pittsburgh sports franchises come to mind first? Many would say the “Penguins, Steelers and, oh, there’s that baseball team too.” Unfortunately for fans, “that baseball team” has not experienced major success in the past couple of years. However, Pirates fans can rejoice, as it seems like “Bucco” baseball is finally back in the “‘Burgh.”
The Pirates kicked off their 2023 campaign with a series against the Cincinnati Reds, which began on March 30. Despite dropping the three-game set, 2-1, the Pirates are off to one of their greatest starts in recent history. At the end of April, the team compiled a 20-9 record, which was the best record in the National League. The Tampa Bay Rays, 23-6, was the only team to have a better record, who played in the American League.
“It’s good to have baseball back in Pittsburgh,” senior Ian Evans said.
Fans, like Evans, are certainly getting excited about the Pirates and for good reason, too. Pirates General Manager Ben Cherington made several key acquisitions in the offseason. Cherington signed veteran players, like catcher Austin Hedges and pitcher Rich Hill, to bring a leadership presence to the clubhouse. Most notably though, longtime fan favorite Andrew McCutchen, “Cutch,” signed back with the team after being traded in 2018.
“Seeing Andrew McCutchen return to the Pirates was super exciting because he was a fan favorite, and everyone was sad when he got traded,” junior Alexa Davis said. “He loves the city of Pittsburgh, so he was definitely happy to be back, too.”
Cutch has made an impact both with his bat and in rejuvenating the fanbase. For their first home game on April 7 against the Chicago White Sox, Cutch and others called for a “blackout” at PNC Park. In an overwhelming sea of dark-clothed people, the Pirates treated fans to an exciting 13-9 win.
This energy from their home opener has spread throughout the locker room and into the rest of the season. Both the high spirits and success thus far have been a total role reversal of the past two seasons. In each of those seasons, the Pirates had lost at least 100 games. As long as they keep up this pace in 2023, the team is on track to have its first winning record since 2018. Their last playoff appearance was in a Wild Card game in 2015.
“They are having a great start, and they are batting and pitching very well. I think there’s a chance they make it to the Wild Card,” sophomore Jonathan Hein said.
Simply put, the Pirates are fun to watch. The season already has several memorable moments just from April, ranging from Ji-Hwan Bae’s walk-off homerun against the Houston Astros on April 11, to 13-year Minor Leaguer Drew Maggi getting his first major league hit in a 16-1 victory against the Washington Nationals on April 29.
With the Steelers missing the playoffs and the Penguins snapping their 16-year postseason streak this past season, fans can look to the Pirates to win for the first time in a while. With signs of early success, fans are optimistic that the “Battlin’ Bucs” have made their triumphant return.