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It is often said that in Major League Baseball, playoff spots cannot be won early on in the season, but they can certainly be lost.  

For the Pittsburgh Pirates, it looked as if that may have been the case early on.  

The date was May 5, and the Pirates had lost 11-10 to the San Francisco Giants, putting them at a season-low eight games below .500 and 9.5 games out of first place.  

Now, almost six months later, the Pirates have punched their ticket back to the postseason for the second straight year.  

The Pirates defeated the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday evening by a score of 3-2. To make matters even better, the Cincinnati Reds took down the Milwaukee Brewers, who were chasing the Pirates in the standings.  

The victory marked the team’s 15th win in its last 18 games, as Pittsburgh has suddenly become the hottest team in baseball.  

Pittsburgh has received key contributions from a number of players, but no one has been more valuable to them than reigning National League Most Valuable Player Andrew McCutchen.  

After batting just .286 in the first month of play, McCutchen has remained hot throughout the season, raising his batting average to .313.  

Then there is second baseman Neil Walker, whose value to his team is immeasurable. In his sixth major league season, Walker has blasted a single-season career-high 21 home runs. He also increased his batting average from .251 in 2013 to .270 this season.  

Still, the Pirates probably wouldn’t have been where they currently are without catcher Russell Martin, whose contract is set to retire after this season.  

Statistically speaking, Martin is having the best season of his career, batting .294 with 11 home runs and 67 RBI in 107 games.  

Martin’s presence both at the plate batting and behind the plate catching has been one of the main reasons the Pirates have clinched playoff spots the last two seasons.  

When star third baseman Pedro Alvarez was hampered by injuries all season long, it looked as if the Pirates would have a tough time scoring runs. After all, Alvarez was coming off a 2013 season in which he blasted 36 home runs and drove in 100 runs.  

Even though Alvarez has driven in just 56 runs in 2014, the Pirates are still ranked third among all teams in the NL in runs scored.

Another major question mark about the 2014 Pirates at the beginning of the season was their pitching rotation.  

After losing starting pitcher A.J. Burnett to the Philadelphia Phillies in free agency prior to the start of the 2014 season, the Pirates had a hole to fill in the middle of their rotation.  

Enter Edinson Volquez.  

Who would have ever thought Volquez could do what he did all season long for the Pirates? After going 9-12 with a 5.71 ERA in 2013, Volquez has bounced back drastically, going 12-7 with a 3.15 ERA in 30 starts for the Pirates in 2014. 

Even Francisco Liriano, who was undoubtedly the ace of Pittsburgh’s staff in 2013, has bounced back after a slow start to 2014.  

After starting the season 1-7 with a 4.72 ERA, Liriano has returned to form over the last few months, bringing his season totals to a record of 7-10 and an ERA of 3.32.  

Liriano has allowed just three earned runs combined in his last six starts, as he has proven that he is ready to pitch in the NL Wild Card Game if manager Clint Hurdle elects to go with him.  

At the All-Star break, the Pirates were just three games over .500. After the break, the Pirates have gone 37-25. They are even currently knocking on the door in the NL Central Division race, trailing the St. Louis Cardinals by just 1.5 games.  

The Pirates couldn’t have picked a better time to get hot. It will be interesting to see if they can carry this momentum into October.  

If so, the Pirates will have a legitimate shot at making it back to the Fall Classic for the first time since 1979.

Led by Martin and McCutchen, these Pirates are fighters, and they will not go down without swinging. So buckle up and get ready for “Buctober,” as the Pirates are set to make another run in 2014.   

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com and MLB.com.

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From two decades without a winning record to two straight postseason berths: The Pittsburgh Pirates‘ ascent to relevancy is here to stay.

With a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves and a loss by the Milwaukee Brewers in Cincinnati, the Pirates clinched their first back-to-back postseason berths since Barry Bonds and Jim Leyland were wearing black and gold.

Pittsburgh’s Tuesday-night clincher in Atlanta was its eighth victory in nine games and continued a red-hot run down the stretch. The Pirates are 16-3 since beginning September with a three-game losing streak. Their recent run has also given them an opportunity to take the top spot in the NL wild-card race—which seemed unthinkable at the beginning of the month.

On Sept. 1, Pittsburgh was two games behind Milwaukee and the San Francisco Giants, who each held a wild-card spot. Now the Giants are currently in Los Angeles trying to fend off Pittsburgh’s attempt to take sole possession of the first wild-card berth and hosting rights away from the West Coast.

The Pirates have ascended on the back of a well-rounded team, aspects of which were on full display in Atlanta.

Gerrit Cole bounced back from giving up a run in the first two innings by allowing just a lone base hit in his final five. The right-handed ace finished with eight strikeouts in his seven frames of work before ceding to Jared Hughes and Tony Watson, who closed the game without much issue.

Pittsburgh scraped its way back from the 2-0 deficit thanks to some well-timed power hitting and mental errors from the Braves. A Christian Bethancourt throwing error scored the Pirates’ first run in the fourth, Travis Snider took Alex Wood deep in the fifth and an RBI double from Starling Marte scored Andrew McCutchen in the sixth to put the Pirates ahead for good.

Whereas last year’s celebration looked and felt like a 20-year weight being taken off their shoulders, the Pirates were much more subdued Tuesday. The scene looked like a standard win. The outfielders came together and embraced, the pitcher and catcher dapped each other up and all seemed to be going as planned.

It was only when the players came off the bench and onto the field that the importance of this victory began to sink in.

While the quieter celebration was almost certainly in deference to Atlanta—the Braves have already had enough indignities this fall; having their wild-card competitor celebrate on their field might have been a step too far—it could also be looked into a little deeper.

The Pirates are no longer the lovable postseason darling. Sure, there are good vibes remaining from last year’s thrilling run. But the great thing about sports is that getting over one hurdle only leads to another. A playoff berth begets expectations of a series win begets expectations of a pennant.

Perhaps their Yankee-esque outlook was a sign of knowing what lies ahead. 

“Our goals are what sits in front of us,” Neil Walker recently told Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “We know who we are, we know what’s going on. We’re not looking past the day. We do a really good job of kind of staying in the moment, as cliche as it is. We’re playing good at the right time.”

Or, perhaps the Pirates were just respecting the Braves by not making a mockery of them on the field.

OK, yep, totally that:

Probably not the best champagne spray in history, Mark Melancon:

Melancon will be taking all lessons from McCutchen going forward, who has his goggles game on point like a seasoned playoff vet (those pants probably need dry-cleaning, though):

The Steelers, who now own the longest playoff drought among Pittsburgh professional sports teams, played the good sport and congratulated the Pirates:

Speaking of congratulations, let’s give kudos to Tony Sanchez on his A-plus Stone Cold Steve Austin impersonation:

We kind of hope he was mid-Shmoney Dance here:

Agreed:

First, “life’s a trip” needs to be made into a Pirates T-shirt immediately. Second, the organization might want to package that moment now as part of its World Series DVDs. The Pirates pitching staff, which was a scourge to the fanbase for much of the first half, has been brilliant down the stretch. Tuesday was the eighth straight game it’s given up two or fewer runs and the 11th such instance this month.

A mean regression will come eventually. Until then the Pirates can just keep on riding this red-hot wave—possibly deep into October.

Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter 

Credit to the Pirates’ Twitter feed, Brian McElhinny and David Julian Roth for setting the scene.

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The 2014 regular season is far from over for the Pittsburgh Pirates, as they are on the cusp of another playoff spot.    

Still, it may not be too early to start thinking about what this team could look like next season.  

Following the end of this season, starting pitchers Francisco Liriano and Edinson Volquez will become free agents, and it is unclear whether the organization has any intention to re-sign either player.  

After having a career year in which he finished 16-8 with a 3.02 ERA last season with Pittsburgh, Liriano has not fared well in 2014, going 3-10 with a 3.91 ERA.  

Meanwhile, Volquez has revitalized his career in 2014, going 10-7 with a 3.31 ERA in 27 starts with the team.  

The Pirates are a young team, and they have been since 2007 when Neal Huntington became the 12th general manager in the organization’s history.  

Unfortunately for these two men, that may not bode well, as Liriano will turn 31 this October while Volquez will turn 32 next July.  

Both players are at the point in their careers where they will likely be seeking multi-year deals. However, the Pirates organization isn’t likely to give that to both of them.  

Pittsburgh currently has a nice arsenal of young, quality starting pitchers who have shown the ability to pitch deep into games.  

Let’s take a look at this projected starting rotation for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2015.  

1.  Gerrit Cole

There was a lot of buzz around the league last June when starting pitcher Gerrit Cole was called up to pitch for the Pirates.  

That season, he did not disappoint, going 10-7 with a 3.22 ERA and helping the Pirates get back to the playoffs for the first time since 1992.  

This season, Cole has been hampered by injuries, but he has still managed to go 7-5 with a 3.86 ERA in 17 starts.  

Cole has all the makings of a future ace, and it is likely that he will be named the ace of the staff in 2015.  

2.  Edinson Volquez

After watching Volquez bounce back so far in 2014 and become arguably the best starting pitcher for the Pirates this year, it would only make sense for Pittsburgh to try to bring him back for another year.  

Through 27 starts this season, Volquez owns an 11-7 record with a 3.31 ERA.  He has been a driving force in a rotation full of pitchers who have struggled at times.  

Volquez will turn 32 next July, which means he will probably be looking for a multi-year deal as he moves forward in his career.  

Huntington should offer Volquez a two-year contract and see where they can go in talks from there.  If Volquez is anywhere near as stellar in 2015 as he has been in 2014, the Pirates will have a reliable No. 2 starter in their rotation.  

3.  Brandon McCarthy

The Pirates are going to need to go out and sign a reliable starting pitcher during the offseason, and Brandon McCarthy could be a perfect fit for Pittsburgh.  

After a rocky start to the 2014 season while pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks, McCarthy has really found his groove with the New York Yankees, going 5-4 with a 2.80 ERA in 10 starts with the team.  

He has also shown the ability to pitch deep into games, throwing at least 6.0 innings pitched in nine of his first ten starts with New York.  

McCarthy’s best season came in 2012, when he posted an 8-6 record with a 3.24 ERA while pitching for the Oakland Athletics.  

At 31 years of age, McCarthy is probably as hungry as anyone to get back to the postseason, and he could possibly help the Pirates make it back to October in 2015.  

4.  Vance Worley

Since being called up from the minors, Vance Worley has been stellar for the Pirates, going 6-4 with a 3.05 ERA in 14 starts.  

He has never made more than 23 starts in a single season at this level, but the 26-year-old veteran is making his case for a permanent rotation spot in 2015.  

The Pirates need pitchers who can last late into games, and Worley is one of them.

Pittsburgh has one of the best set-up man/closer combinations in the league with Tony Watson and Mark Melancon. Having starting pitchers who can pitch deep into games will make it that much harder for opponents to beat Pittsburgh when the bullpen is called on to do its job.  

5. Charlie Morton/Jeff Locke

Charlie Morton pitched well in 2013 for the Pirates, starting 20 games and going 7-4 with a 3.26 ERA.  

However, Morton is another example of a starting pitcher who has not fared as well for Pittsburgh in 2014, going 5-12 but posting a respectable ERA of 3.84.  

Morton does not allow too many hits, but his 55 walks in 2014 is something that he will have to bring down in 2015.  

He will likely finish somewhere around his career-high in innings pitched, which was 171.2 back in 2010 (Morton is currently at 152.1 this season).  

Morton will likely compete with teammate Jeff Locke for the fifth and final rotation spot entering the 2015 regular season.  

Locke finished 10-7 with a 3.52 ERA in 2013 for the Pirates. Still, at times he has looked just as shaky as Morton has.  

Locke was 8-2 with a 2.15 ERA at the All-Star break in 2013. After that, he went 2-5 with a 6.12 ERA.  

In 17 games pitched in 2014, he has gone 6-4 with a 3.75 ERA. After allowing just three earned runs combined in his previous three starts, Locke was pounded for four earned runs in just three innings pitched in his last start.  

Both of these guys have shown potential to pitch well every five days, but neither has made a definite case for a rotation spot in 2015.  

Expect Morton and Locke to battle for the final rotation spot during spring training in 2015.  

While the Pirates are looking to reach the postseason for the second straight year, the organization must also keep in mind what this team will look like next season.  

As they plan for the future, the Pirates will have a lot of decisions to make following this season.  

If they can shape their rotation in this manner, however, Pittsburgh should be set up for at least a few more years of success.  

*Statistics Courtesy of Baseball-Reference

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With less than a month left to play in the 2014 Major League Baseball regular season, the Pittsburgh Pirates are on the outside of a playoff race looking in.  

While it is still manageable for Pittsburgh to reach the playoffs for the second straight year, it is not too soon to start thinking about what this team will look like in 2015.  

Let’s take a look at 10 free agents the Pirates organization should target during this offseason.

First, we will take a look at a few starting pitchers (one of whom is already in the organization) the Pirates should go after when the season ends.  

Starting pitchers Francisco Liriano and Edinson Volquez will become free agents when the season ends, which means the Pirates may have to fill two major holes in the rotation.   

Brandon McCarthy, SP

Brandon McCarthy is one example of a starting pitcher the Pirates may look to sign during the offseason.

Over nine Major League seasons, McCarthy has gone 50-64 with a 4.12 ERA.  He started the 2014 season with a record of 3-10 and an ERA of 5.01 while pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks.  

Since being traded to the New York Yankees, however, he has been lights-out, going 5-4 with a 2.80 ERA and helping a depleted Yankees team stay in the playoff mix.  

Considering he will turn 32 next July, McCarthy probably wouldn’t get a lengthy contract offer from Pittsburgh, but dishing out a little extra money for him could pay huge dividends for a team whose rotation will not have many proven veterans in it.  

Wei-Yin Chen, SP

One thing lacking in the Pirates’ starting rotation is a solid left-hander, and Baltimore Orioles‘ Wei-Yin Chen may be the answer to that.  

Over three Major League seasons, the 29-year-old has 33 wins and 22 losses while pitching to an ERA of 3.97.  

Each year, however, his numbers have improved, and in 2014, he has gone 14-4 with a 3.83 ERA.  

Chen is a nasty left-hander who could help potential ace Gerrit Cole lead Pittsburgh’s rotation in 2015. Signing him would be huge for the advancement of the franchise.  

Jason Hammel, SP

When the Oakland Athletics acquired both Jeff Samardzija and Jason Hammel in a trade with the Chicago Cubs during this season, it looked as if they were getting two potential aces.  

Samardzija has pitched well for Oakland, but Hammel has not, going 2-5 with a 4.98 ERA in nine starts.  

Still, that shouldn’t keep Pittsburgh from offering him a contract this offseason, as he has shown the ability to pitch tremendously in the National League.  

In 17 starts with Chicago prior to being traded, Hammel was 8-5 with a 2.98 ERA.  He also walked only 23 batters in 108.2 innings pitched.  

The Pirates will likely need a few starting pitchers prior to the start of the 2015 regular season, and Hammel (now 32 years old) may be a good fit for them.  

Edinson Volquez, SP

Edinson Volquez has been arguably the biggest surprise for the Pirates in 2014.  

After finishing the previous five seasons in a row with an ERA over 4.00, Volquez has led the way for the Pirates with an ERA of 3.31 and an 11-7 record.  

Considering Volquez‘s shaky past, it wouldn’t be a great surprise to see him ask for a reasonable, short-term contract.  

If so, the Pirates better go out and re-sign him, as he would be a low-risk and high-reward guy.  Re-signing him would probably make much more sense than re-signing Liriano, whose ERA has risen by almost an entire run between the last two seasons.  

Andrew Miller, RP

The Pirates have just three left-handers in the bullpen on their 40-man roster.  They will need another reliable arm in the bullpen to come in and get lefties out late in games.  

Enter Andrew Miller.  

The 29-year-old reliever has pitched brilliantly over the last three seasons for the Boston Red Sox and the Orioles.  

In 63 appearances in 2014, Miller has pitched to a 2.34 ERA.  He also owns a WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) of just 0.873 in 2014.  

Simply put, he has become one of the best lefty relievers in the league, and the Pirates would benefit greatly from signing him in the offseason, as they would create a three-headed monster that would consist of closer Mark Melancon, Tony Watson and Andrew Miller.  

Russell Martin, C

Catcher Russell is a must-sign for the Pirates heading into the 2015 regular season.  

The 31-year-old backstop has been a key contributor to the Pirates’ success over the last two seasons. His veteran presence behind home plate has been so important that it would be hard for Pittsburgh to go out and find someone who could match it.  

A three-time all-star, Martin finished 24th in the National League Most Valuable Player voting last season. However, he may be just as valuable to his team as reigning MVP Andrew McCutchen is.  

Considering the list of catchers who will hit the market this offseason is very slim, the Pirates must re-sign their catcher if they wish to have more success next season.  

J.J. Hardy, SS

No matter how you look at it, Jordy Mercer simply isn’t the answer at shortstop for the Pirates in the long run.  

Now, Mercer is not terrible, as he was batting just .256 with nine home runs on the season entering Friday and owns a lifetime .264 average in three big-league seasons.  

Still, if the Pirates could go out and get a player like J.J. Hardy this offseason, their offense would improve greatly.  

Although Hardy’s home run total has dropped from 25 in 2013 to just nine in 2014, his batting average has increased from .263 to .281 during that time.  

Hardy has been one of the driving forces of the Orioles offense, which has been one of the best in the league in 2014.  

His batting average ranks fourth in all of baseball among shortstops in 2014, while Mercer’s is 12th.  

Hardy could provide the Pirates with both a high average and plenty of power (if he regains his power stroke).  

Either way, Hardy would likely be a great fit for Pittsburgh in 2015.   

Jed Lowrie, SS

Another shortstop who may hit the open market is Jed Lowrie of the Oakland Athletics. 

In fact, he may even come at a discount.  

After a fantastic 2013 campaign in which he batted .290 and drove in 75 runs for Oakland, Lowrie has disappointed this season, batting just .239 in 113 games played.  

Given his downward slope in statistics, Lowrie may be willing to sign a short-term deal, as long as he is given enough money.  

For the Pirates, that may be just what they are looking for, as a report from Baseball America has shortstop Alen Hanson ranked as Pittsburgh’s No. 6 prospect.  

If Lowrie has a bounce-back season in 2015 with the Pirates, they could have the best infield in the National League Central Division.  

Mark Reynolds, 3B

After signing a one-year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers prior to the start of the 2014 season, Mark Reynolds started producing right away.  

In 119 games this season, Reynolds has hit 21 home runs but driven in just 44.  

He is batting a well-below average .198 on the season, but his power at the plate is something the Pirates could use coming off the bench or platooning at first or third base.  

Don’t expect Reynolds to be at the top of the Pirates’ wish list heading into free agency, but if they could sign him and use him as a utility backup, it would provide great depth to their bench.    

Ben Zobrist, Utility

Ben Zobrist is right up there with Josh Harrison as one of the best utility players in baseball.  

In 126 games with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2014, Zobrist has batted .273 with nine home runs and 44 runs batted in.  

The great thing about him is that he can play pretty much anywhere in the field (other than pitcher or catcher).  

A two-time all-star, the 33-year-old veteran knows all about winning, and his presence both in the lineup and the clubhouse could help this young Pirates team in 2015.  

The main focus will be on pitching this winter for the Pittsburgh Pirates.  However, if they can go out and sign a few of these offensive players, they will be set up to make another postseason run in 2015.  

*Statistics Courtesy of Baseball Reference

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The road to the majors is often a long and difficult travel.    

However, getting there may be a bit easier than remaining there, as has been the case for Pittsburgh Pirates‘ starting pitcher Vance Worley.  

In 2011, Worley started 21 games for the Philadelphia Phillies, going 11-3 and helping his team cruise to the top of the National League East.  

The 2012 season was a completely different story for Worley and the Phillies, however, as he went 6-9 and posted a 4.20 ERA in 23 starts with the team.  

That offseason, he was traded to the Minnesota Twins for Ben Revere, where he did not fare well at all, posting a 7.21 ERA in 10 starts before being sent down to Triple-A.  

This past March, Worley‘s contract was purchased by Pittsburgh, and he pitched for Triple-A Indianapolis until June.  

When Worley was called up to start a game against the Miami Marlins on June 15 this year, it looked as if he had never left the majors. The veteran allowed no runs on just five hits in 7.0 innings pitched en route to a no-decision.  

Worley would go on to make three more consecutive starts in the rotation, going 2-1 while allowing seven earned runs in 20.2 innings pitched during that span.  

While he is accustomed to being sent down to the minors and then called back up again, it looks as if Worley may now be here to stay.  

After spending almost three weeks in the bullpen in July, Worley returned to the rotation on July 22, when he shut down the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing just one earned run in 6.0 innings pitched.  

Just five days later, Worley pitched one of the best games of his career, throwing a four-hit shutout against the San Francisco Giants.  

Very quietly, Worley has actually been one of the best pitchers this season for Pittsburgh, leading all Pirates starting pitchers with an ERA of just 3.01 in 86.2 innings pitched.  

The 26-year-old righty has remained in the Pirates’ starting rotation since July 22, but if he continues to pitch well, he may remain in the Pirates’ future plans.

The Pirates may lose two of their starting pitchers after this season, as both Francisco Liriano and Edinson Volquez will become free agents. Both veterans are over 30 years old, which probably won’t fit general manager Neal Huntington’s organizational plans.  

Of course, it is too early to start thinking about next season, as the Pirates are right in the thick of another playoff race.  

Still, if Worley can continue to pitch well deep into September and possibly even October, there is no reason to believe he won’t be in consideration for a permanent rotation spot at the beginning of the 2015 regular season.   

*Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference

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For much of the first half of the 2014 regular season, the Pittsburgh Pirates looked lost as a team, falling as far out as nine games behind the Milwaukee Brewers on June 28.  

At that point, the Brewers owned a league-best 51-32 record, as they also led the reigning National League-champion St. Louis Cardinals by 6.5 games in the National League Central Division.  

The Brewers have been the biggest surprise in 2014, as they were coming off a terrible 2013 season in which they finished with a record of 74-88.  

Now, Milwaukee has come back down to Earth, and both the Cardinals and Pirates are knocking on the door.  The Brewers have lost five games in a row and eight of their last 10 overall.   

St. Louis has managed to pull into a tie for first place with Milwaukee, but Pittsburgh is on the verge of possibly making it a three-way tie.  

The Pirates enter a three-game showdown with the Cardinals having won seven of their last 10 games.  

Meanwhile, the main reason St. Louis is now tied with the Brewers is because of Milwaukee’s poor play of late.  St. Louis has struggled too, having dropped six of its last 10 contests.  

Clearly, the Pirates have been the hottest team lately in their division, which is why they sit just two games behind both St. Louis and Milwaukee.  

Now, the Pirates need to show up ready to play in St. Louis more than ever.  

The last time the Pirates sat alone atop the standings in 2014 was April 4, just four games into the regular season. Gerrit Cole earned the victory that day as the Pirates pounded the Cardinals by a score of 12-2.  

Now, Cole has the opportunity to bring his team one game closer to the top, as he will take the mound in the first game against Lance Lynn and the Cardinals Monday.  

According to Caitlin Swieca of MLB.com, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny has a positive outlook on the remainder of the season.  

“We still see our best baseball ahead of us and believe the time is ripe for us. But we’ve also seen some not very good baseball from our club as well. We just have to limit those and stretch out those good runs,” Matheny said.  

After seeing how well Pittsburgh has played of late, however, the time seems to be riper for them, and they give Matheny and his Cardinals another bad stretch this week.  

Although Milwaukee is still ahead of the Pirates, Pittsburgh’s real concern right now is St. Louis, as the Brewers seem to be slowly fading away in the standings.  

This series marks the last time the Pirates and Cardinals will square off against each other in the regular season. That means these are the last three times that Pittsburgh can gain a full game directly by defeating St. Louis.  

However, the Pirates still have to play the Brewers three more times as well before the season ends, meaning they must continue to play well in order to make it back to the playoffs for the second straight season.  

Things are looking up for the Pirates, and a series victory against the Cardinals will bring them that much closer to the organization’s first National League Central Division title ever.

Statistics Courtesy of Baseball Reference 

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With only 29 games remaining in the regular season, the Pittsburgh Pirates trail the San Francisco Giants by just 2.0 games for the second wild-card spot.  

Currently, the organization cannot be thinking about the future, as it has a chance to win right now.  

Still, when the season is over and talks arise about potential call-ups in 2015, the organizational leaders in Pittsburgh have to smile.  

Lately, fans and analysts across the nation have been talking about just how good the New York Mets can be with a potential pitching rotation consisting of studs Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler and Noah Syndergaard, but the Pirates have a chance to match or even top that rotation.  

Starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow has been lights-out in 2014 with the High-A Bradenton Marauders.  In 23 games started, Glasnow is 12-5 with an earned run average of just 1.74.  

According to his team’s official Twitter page, Glasnow even set a team record this season:

The 21-year-old right-hander was ranked third among all Pirates prospects entering this season, according to Baseball America.

According to Karen Price of the Tribune Review, Glasnow and teammates Nick Kingham and Josh Bell will play in the Arizona Fall League.  The league serves as a showcase for some of the game’s brightest prospects, providing them a chance to display their abilities deep into the year.  

Glasnow recently was named Florida State League Pitcher of the Year, according to Sam Dykstra of MiLB.com.  There is no doubt this kid has the potential to be the future ace of this organization in the next few seasons.  

Like Glasnow, Kingham has performed well in 2014, going 5-4 with a 3.28 ERA in 13 starts with the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians.  Kingham was called up from Double-A Altoona only 12 starts into the season.  

According to the same report from Baseball America, Kingham is ranked fifth among all Pirates prospects. However, considering he is two years older than Glasnow and has already pitched at the highest minor league level, it is conceivable that he may get the call to the majors first.  

Now, let’s not forget about the most highly touted pitching prospect of all in the Pirates farm system, Jameson Taillon.  

Many believed Taillon would make his major league debut at some point during this season.  However, he was just another victim of a torn UCL leading to Tommy John surgery in April.  

The 22-year-old has played three minor league seasons for the Pirates, averaging 8.4 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.  

Taillon was ranked 22nd among all minor league prospects around the league heading into the 2014 regular season, according to Baseball America.  

Barring any major setbacks in his road to recovery, Taillon should be ready to pitch again next spring, and if he pitches as well as he had prior to the injury, we may see him in a major league uniform sometime during 2015.  

These three prospects alone have the potential to make up one of the strongest starting rotations in baseball in the next few years, and the Pirates have to feel pretty good about that.  

A player who cannot be forgotten about is one who has already proved he can excel at the major league level, starting pitcher Gerrit Cole.  

Over his first two major league seasons, Cole has gone 17-11 with an ERA of 3.42, and he was one of the main reasons the Pirates won 94 games last season.  

Cole is not eligible for arbitration until 2017, and he will not become a free agent until 2020.  The Pirates have locked in a player who has the ability to lead the rotation, which is what they will need going forward.  

Pittsburgh also currently has the four-year veteran Jeff Locke, who has done well in 2014, going 6-3 with a 3.51 ERA in 16 games started.  Locke will not be a free agent until 2019.  

Then there is Francisco Liriano, who led the Pirates to the postseason in 2013 with a 16-8 record and a 3.02 ERA.  Although Liriano has improved during the second half of this season, his poor start to 2014 has resulted in his 3-10 record and 3.98 ERA.  

Liriano will be a free agent at the end of the 2014 season, and unless he is willing to take a short-term deal, the Pirates probably won’t bring him back.  After all, he will turn 31 in October and has made over 30 starts in a regular season just once in his nine-year career.  

With the amount of talented prospects in the farm system, it would not make much sense to sign Liriano to a huge deal, as a number of players are just a few seasons away from making an impact at the major league level.  

As they are led by Gerrit Cole over the next few seasons, the Pirates may have one of the best rotations in baseball for years to come, and while it is certainly true that all prospects do not pan out, it is hard to doubt the talent the Pittsburgh Pirates have in their farm system.  

*Statistics Courtesy of Baseball-Reference

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It’s not a stretch to say the Pittsburgh Pirates’ weak September schedule could propel them into the playoffs if the team takes care of business against a trio of last-place teams.

The Pirates play host this weekend to a faltering Cincinnati Reds squad that currently sits four games under .500, a team that is all but eliminated from the playoff hunt. The Pirates then head to St. Louis for a pivotal three-game set that could go a long way toward determining the Bucs’ playoffs future.

But after that, the seas part and the sun comes out in a big way. The Pirates start a stretch of 13 games against last-place teams that are a combined 43 games under .500.

The schedule opens up with a three-game set in Chicago followed by a four-game series in Philadelphia. The Bucs then head home for another three-game set against the Cubs and follow with a three-game series against Boston.

The Pirates currently sit two games out of the wild card in the National League and four games out of first place in the National League Central Division. There are 29 games left on the schedule before the regular season closes on Sept. 28, giving the team plenty of time to play catch-up in the standings.

The time is coming for the Pirates to make their surge. They took care of business last weekend in Milwaukee, taking two of three from the first-place Brewers on the road. They took care of business at home this week too, taking two out of three from the second-place Cardinals.

Baseball Prospectus currently gives the Pirates a 30 percent change at making the postseason, a number that should rise substantially in the coming weeks.

That’s because these teams are in last place for a reason. That’s also not to mention most of those last-place teams, in particular the Chicago Cubs, have already begun a process that’s very familiar to Pirates fans: calling up prospects and letting them sink or swim in the month of September.

That’s not to say the Pirates should sweep all of those series. The prospects getting called up will be there for a reason, even if they have very little experience in the majors.

But taking two out of three from those teams, even on the road, isn’t too much to ask given the Pirates’ recent strong play against teams above them in the standings.

If the Bucs take care of business like they should, the stage will be set for an epic end-of-September showdown with three games against Milwaukee at home and four games against Atlanta on the road.

Nothing is out of the question yet, not even a first-place finish for the Pirates. If the team can manage to take care of this trio of last-place teams, a sea of black could again wash over PNC Park this October with a second consecutive playoff series in the Steel City.

The hunt for a black October is on.

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As if Tuesday night couldn’t get much worse for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Pedro Alvarez is apparently in a walking boot.

Dan Zangrilli of 93.7 The Fan in Pittsburgh reported that the 2013 All-Star third baseman needed the aid of a boot as he departed PNC Park:

Alvarez left the Pirates’ 5-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals after suffering from “left foot discomfort,” the team announced:

That was after the Pirates revealed Andrew McCutchen exited early as well with “left rib discomfort.” Losing one of those players would’ve been bad enough, but to watch them both go down is concerning for Pittsburgh.

Alvarez might be experiencing a slight drop in his power numbers from the past two years, but he’s still second on the team in home runs and tied for second in runs batted in. The Pirates can’t afford to have his bat out of the lineup for too long.

Pittsburgh is 5.5 games out in the National League Central and a game back in the wild-card race. Making up either one of those deficits would be harder to do without Alvarez.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates are in the thick of the National League wild-card race, but they received some unfortunate news Tuesday evening. The team’s official Twitter page filled fans in on the details regarding the health of superstar Andrew McCutchen:

McCutchen was 0-for-3 when he left Tuesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals. His importance in the Pittsburgh lineup cannot be overstated, though.

On the year, he is hitting .307 with 20 home runs, 70 RBI, 69 walks and 17 stolen bases. He also boasts a .942 on-base plus slugging percentage and is a crucial piece of the team’s defense from center field.

The defending National League MVP has helped lead the Pirates into playoff contention for the second consecutive year. They are 1.5 games out of the second wild-card spot, and this series with the Cardinals (who lead all wild-card contenders) is particularly important.

Losing McCutchen for an extended amount of time would cripple Pittsburgh’s postseason hopes. Stay tuned for updates as they develop.

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