The New York Yankees’ clipper ship docked at PNC Park confident that even in their current state of disrepair they would pillage some of the hidden bounty and buried treasure that the Pirates had hidden away. In the beginning of the series the Yankees played as if they and their mega salaries were related to “Uncle Sham” as opposed to being direct descendants of “Uncle Sam.” Plus, the 2008 Yankees are not the Yankees of old. They seem to be getting old. The fact of the matter is that when this year’s team is compared to and contrasted with normal Yankee standards, the present squad from the Big Apple is not very good.
The first game of the three-game set had the crowd almost chanting “up with hope, down with salaries,” or something in that area. But when the Pirates lost the second game in convincing Pirate-like fashion, the Bucs once again proved that you can remove the stripes from a zebra but you still better not depend on safely and successfully riding the equine across the finish line at the Kentucky Derby. Also, contrary to popular belief or the tainted and time-tested knowledge of the Vegas bookies, whichever you might prefer to believe, the Pirates bobblehead-loaded fans seem to feel that somewhere, somehow the Pittsburgh Slumber Company (the 2008 Pirates), may somehow still find a way not to be lovable losers.
The Pirates had a chance to alter their psyche for the remainder of the season but then the Yankees reverted back to being the Yankees and the Pirates, at the stroke of midnight, removed the glass slippers and proudly stuck out their glass jaw, once again reverting back to just being the same ole, lame ole, Pirates.
The rubber match between the two teams was postponed due to rain. We need to pray for a heavy dose of precipitation to also postpone the rescheduled contest and to enlist the help of Big Chief Lucka-Lucka, the king of the rainmakers to chant for rain on the makeup date so that the Pirates will at least finish the 2008 season at .500 against at least one team.
Meanwhile, the Bronx Bombers returned to Gotham City to face their inner-city rivals, the NY Mets. The “Boyz from the Hood” although minus their now ex-manager Willie (Pink slip early in the AM) Randolph were still able to take four of six games from the Bronx Bombers. The last game of the series was a dandy of a game pitched by one of the many player give-a-ways orchestrated by the infamous Dave Littlefield, the Pirates ex-GM, VP or whatever title one would like to bestow on him. Actually, the title of philanthropist/magician are two of the nicer nouns that come to mind when analyzing the bargain basement, cash-rich deals that Littlefield made during his eclectic, almost cursed tenure as the chief talent evaluator with Pirates. All around MLB there is evidence, judging by the empty storehouse of athletic talent in Pirate land, that Littlefield’s past generosity is greatly appreciated around the league. A magician is not supposed to reveal the secrets of his tricks. Littlefield not only revealed the methods behind his magic, he gave away all the stage props as well.
Ex-Pirates standout and current Mets star lefty Oliver Perez pitched seven innings and had a Houdini-type outing against his intra-borough rivals, defeating the Yanks 3-1. Perez is just one of the gifts that Dave Littlefield developed to bestow upon another MLB franchise. Perez beat the Yanks in convincing fashion and upped his 2008 record to 6-5. It was his second win against them this season. His career record against the Yankees is now 5-1 in six starts. He has won each of his four starts against them since joining the Mets. The Pirates could use some David Copperfield-like pitching performances from their starting rotation, who are beginning to resemble the “Blues Crew” or maybe based on their inconsistency, they have been watching too many episodes of “Blues Clues.”
I am still of the mindset that the Pirates will finish the season at 10 or more games above .500. I said it in my preseason analysis after my visit to spring training and hey, that’s my story and I am sticking to it, reluctantly.
This time a year ago, the Pirates were hovering around 14 games below .500. As of June 30, the Bucs were within five games of being even steven. Pittsburgh’s current manager, John Russell, seems to at the very least be able to relate and motivate the players. Under Lloyd McClendon, the players seemed to afraid to play. They seemed to be wound a tad too tight, always afraid of making a mistake. When Jim Tracy took the reins, they seemed as if they were too loose, not caring if they made an error or not. It was almost like, if we win or lose it really doesn’t matter because we can always go the beach and chill after the game is over. Russell seems to be striking a good balance between discipline and fun. New GM Neal Huntington also seems to be bringing a new face and feel to the ball club.
The Pirates are now being retrained not only in the art of competing but the team is now being re-introduced to the concept of winning. The athletes that the Pirates are currently placing on the field are going to be forced to extract the will and desire to win from within but that is only one-half of the equation. The owners of the franchise are now backed into a corner and they are being forced to answer the $64 million Capital One question—What’s in your wallet?
