The reality of the Pittsburgh Pirates season is they have about a 1 percent chance to make the postseason and even less chance of winning the World Series, so let's enjoy this team in the present.
So far this squad has been fun to watch. Heck, even my dad, who is a huge Penguins fan found himself paying more attention to the Pirates this past weekend.
It was a weekend that saw them get over .500 for this first time in this young season, taking three out of four from Josh Bell and the Washington Nationals.
With timely hitting and a bullpen that didn't give up any runs on Sunday, along with some amazing defense over the weekend (see Michael Chavis' run-saving diving catch, Ben Gamel and Diego Castillo teaming up to throw Bell out at the plate and Gamel turning into Superman twice) the Pirates have been fun to watch.
All five of their victories have been in come-from-behind fashion and as pitcher Wil Crow said after the team's first home win against the Cubs, "Our key is to win. That rebuild crap is annoying to hear. We are trying to win and if that's how we have to do it, that's how we have to do it."
"There are different ways to win ballgames and we are going to go about it differently," added Crowe.
General Manager Ben Cherington explained that strategy to win games during his show on Sunday, saying part of their plan for success is using technology.
Some other highlights this season include third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes batting .400 through nine games with 12 hits, two RBI, two doubles and two stolen bases. Center fielder Bryan Reynolds has two, home runs, three RBI and is batting .273.
Big Daniel Vogelbach and Michael Chavis have also been impressive so star with a combined 15 hits, two home runs and eight RBI. Vogelbach is batting .292 and Chavis is hitting .500.
While pitchers Mitch Keller and JT Brubaker have ERAs over 9.00, the Bucs have five relief pitchers under .300, which means even if they are behind, the bullpen isn't giving up many runs, giving the Pirates a chance to be in most games.
Reality could come crashing down any time for this Pirates team, so let's enjoy it while we can.
And while many have the Pirates losing over 90 games, one thing that has been proven so far is this team should be fun to watch, and at this point, isn't that all we can ask for?
