There are certain moments in life in which sports can deliver a jolt of such pure and unadulterated joy that they are capable of drowning out all of the day to day bullshit of life and the world around us. They can overwhelm the countless hours in which sports can be frustrating, boring, depressing, or meaningless.
It’s just a regular season game and it doesn’t clinch anything, but Russell Martin’s three-run home run tonight was one of those moments. The Pirates have crossed many long miles in the past two seasons and they have exorcised a lot of demons, but there’s something that remains in games against the Brewers and the Cardinals. I specifically pointed out before this game started that the Pirates have been so much better than the Brewers lately, and I did it because I know that bugaboo exists in the minds of Pirate fans everywhere.
For 7 1/2 innings, the doubt crept in. Yovani Gallardo mowed the Pirates down like it was 2008. Some of the Brewers’ hits found holes, some of the Pirates’ hits didn’t. After Starling Marte lead off the eighth inning with a single, Andrew McCutchen struck out badly against Jonathan Broxton. The doubt crept a little closer. Then Neil Walker singled through the left side of the infield, and Russell Martin sent a long fly ball to right center field. I swear to you that that ball stayed up in the air for an hour. You can watch the replay (over and over and over and over again): Martin flipped his bat and a few fans reacted at first, but then even Greg Brown was holding his breath until the ball barely cleared the fence. After that: bliss.
I don’t know where this season is ultimately headed for the Pirates, but maybe for this exact second it doesn’t matter all that much. For the longest time the Pirates were systematically unable to deliver moments exactly like this one. Now that they can? Well, on some nights you can recognize what it was that we Pirate fans were missing, and even almost two full years into the Pirate Renaissance, this is worth savoring.
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