2012 Major League Baseball regular season review: Pittsburgh Pirates – MLB Feature
As the 2012 Major League Baseball regular season began, there was one team that looked very promising, the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Pirates started the season in tremendous fashion as they dominated in the National League Central Division early on. The team was playing brilliantly during more than half of the regular season as it looked like they were on a mission. The Pirates were winning
and doing it in style.
Let’s not forget that the Pirates have not had a winning season in close to 20-years. The thought that this year might be different began to creep in to the minds of the fans and critics alike. The Pirates were putting up phenomenal numbers early in the
season. After the first 50 games the Pirates managed to put up 147 runs. However, even more impressive was the fact the team had scored 276 in June and July.
It was looking like this might be Pirates year but unfortunately that was not the case. The team just sort of ran out of steam. The pitching, hitting and base-running began to slip. Not to mention the fact that the Pirates had a large number of stolen bases
against them. The way the Pirates played at the beginning of the season and where they ended up is an entirely different story.
The Pirates finished the season sitting fourth in NL Central Division with a 79-83 win-loss record. Again Pittsburgh had a losing season as they were unable to get to the postseason. The entire team just slumped as they began to lose games.
Pirates’ general manager Neal Huntington scrambled to save a sinking ship as he decided to acquire Wandy Rodriguez, Gaby Sanchez, Chad Qualls and Travis Snider. However, it was too little too late as the Pirates’ slump continued.
"I came out in the middle of the season and said we weren't going to have the same result, because we had better depth, better players, better leadership," general manager Neal Huntington said. "Yet we had the same slide. The first four months were a heck
of a lot more fun than the last two months. I wouldn't say it's been more concerning [than 2011] ... losing is losing, and we're all tired of it."
On a bright note, Andrew McCutchen led the Pirates in batting with 31 home-runs, 96 RBI’s and a .327 average. In the pitching department, A. J. Burnett had 16 wins and a 3.51 ERA to guide the Pirates. McCutchen had a very good season as he performed brilliantly.
He is a tremendously talented player that definitely deserves better support in the team. The offseason might bring some hope for him as the Pirates will be looking to make some massive improvements to the team. There is no doubt that McCutchen is crucial
to the Pirates if they are to have any success next year.
It looks like the Pirates will be hoping to make some positive changes in the basic approach the team takes during the regular season. Time will tell as to when the Pirates decide that enough is enough and a thorough shake-up is done.
In baseball like in life, when you are down, the only place to go is up. The Pirates will be hoping that their luck can change next year.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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