Call to the pen
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Pittsburgh Pirates clinch postseason berth

By Steve Engbloom

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For the second straight season, the Pittsburgh Pirates are heading to the postseason. Yes, you read that correctly. A franchise that has not seen back-to-back playoff appearances in over twenty years (1990-92) will once again be a participant. Not sure many believed that could be the case when on May 5th, the Buccos stood 9.5 games out of first place.

There were issues in the bullpen. The closer at the season’s onset, Jason Grilli, was traded. Pedro Alvarez has seen a reduced role. Josh Harrison has emerged as a legitimate player and position is of no concern. There was a brief period where they were without their superstar and defending NL MVP Andrew McCutchen. The Francisco Liriano of 2014 has not been the Liriano of 2013.

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    • Yet, manager Clint Hurdle has, well, managed, to keep the team focused and on the right path. And when you look at some of the numbers, you might be a little shocked at what the Pirates have accomplished so far this season. They’re posting some good offensive numbers.

    So you’re telling me that the Pirates are doing it with their bats? Yes, I am. The majority of the team’s pitching stats reside around league average, so it’s not like the bats are doing it all. Take a look.

    Pittsburgh is 4th in the NL in scoring with 4.20 runs per game. A team slashline of .260/.330/.403 has them ranked as 3rd, 2nd, T2, respectively. And the squad’s OPS+ of 107 is topped only by the 109 owned by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

    The Pirates still have a chance to claim the National League Central division title. As of this morning, they are only 1.5 games behind division-leading St. Louis.

    The Cardinals have four games remaining, while the Pirates have five. Pittsburgh still has a pair in Atlanta, then travel to Cincinnati for the regular season’s final three games. The Cards have one game in Chicago against the Cubs. The Redbirds will head to Arizona to face the Diamondbacks for their final trio of games.

    Winning the division is still attainable, but the Buccos will need help and play well in their final five. And if Pittsburgh can deliver, it would be their first division title since they won the NL East (yes, in the days of only two divisions) back in the 1992 season.

    And if you think the Pirates faithful are partying now, imagine if they win the division.

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