Our long national nightmare is over – the trucks are unpacked in Bradenton and the Pittsburgh Pirates are headed into town.
Given that our Wake Up Call earlier this week featured some images from Truck Day, I won’t spend a lot of column inches on re-sharing those images…just bask in this one from Pittsburgh Pirates Equipment Manager Scott Bonnett. Baseball really is almost back!
.@Pirates equipment room at Pirate City is up and ready. pic.twitter.com/4a0mPkopxG
— Scott (@bonnett_scott) February 9, 2017
Water Water Everywhere…
Someone who clearly needs baseball to get started again ASAP is pitcher Steven Brault, as he obviously has too much time on his hands…
Fell asleep with a glass of water in my hand last night. Woke up at 5 am cause I spilled said glass. 6 hrs with a glass of water is good tho
— Steven Brault (@SquidBrault) February 7, 2017
Teammate Tyler Glasnow was very impressed…
https://twitter.com/TGlasnow/status/829057069013544960
If you haven’t already caught this, these guys like to bust on each other a lot. And the tradition continues even after they move to different teams, as illustrated by catcher Reese McGuire adding a little constructive criticism on Brault’s Insta post.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQOuR_sjwZg/?taken-by=skoobuh
And Also Snow…
So righty Daniel Hudson is a new addition to the team, coming over from the Diamondbacks in the offseason. One thing about Phoenix, Arizona, where the Diamondbacks play…it’s a little bit warmer in April than it is in Pittsburgh. Huddy is trying to grasp that concept after watching a clip of a snow game last season…
https://twitter.com/DHuddy41/status/829744486976626688
https://twitter.com/DHuddy41/status/829745826771513344
All in good fun, he continued the weather gag…
https://twitter.com/DHuddy41/status/829753446148419585
https://twitter.com/DHuddy41/status/829754059649216513
Yep, he’s gonna fit right in with this team.
Another guy who seems ready to slide into that Pirates vibe is newly acquired pitcher Pat Light. He was quick with a thank you to his former team and pro Pittsburgh from the start.
Thank you @Twins for my time there! Can't wait to see what my time in Pittsburgh has to offer! @Pirates
— Pat Light (@Pat_Light) February 10, 2017
Plus, he seems to enjoy his siblings AND a good sing along to Billy Joel (does he know Joel played PNC last season?).
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQMDZYKFLHU/?taken-by=pat_light
Dad Duty
Not only does Hudson have a similar sense of humor, but he also has the same family focus the Pittsburgh Pirates are oft reputed to have.
https://twitter.com/DHuddy41/status/829778948875657216
Felipe Rivero continues his offseason baseball training with a twist – he’s always involving the family.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQHT7lDgXHD/?taken-by=felipe_43rivero
Trevor Williams is making sure son Isaac has a hefty dose of a few naughty habits to tide him over while dad’s away…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQRaKvsh2Pt/?taken-by=mellamotrevor
Jose Osuna squeezed in just a few more moments with his family as well this week.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQP5HKFApdC/?taken-by=joseosuna36
And while little Emilia is catcher Francisco Cervelli’s niece, so he’s technically not on Dad Duty, he takes the title of doting uncle to whole new level.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQIxUJKhl0g/?taken-by=fran_cervelli
Good Son
Speaking of doting, Gregory Polanco wins the Son of the Week award with his lovely Happy Birthday celebration of his beautiful mom on Instagram.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQTwMIWjN5s/?taken-by=gpolanco25
Bradenton or Bust
Jared Hughes’ beloved Tilly is ready – are you?
Next stop Bradenton! 🌴☀️⚾️
Tilly's pumped: pic.twitter.com/WEGexUYOvY
— Jared Hughes (@locatejared) February 8, 2017
Jameson Taillon is also ready to light this candle!
Thanks for the memories this offseason H-Town! Bradenton, you're up next 🛫 let's do this thing!
— Jameson Taillon (@JTaillon50) February 10, 2017
He and Nick Kingham worked out throughout the offseason in Houston, so before leaving they received a proper sendoff from their training facility…
Good luck to @JTaillon19 and @NickKingham in #springtraining @pittsburghpirates @MLB #fsp #fairchildren #mlb #pitcher pic.twitter.com/xreC4ZDcwe
— FSP-Fairchild Sports (@FSP_training) February 9, 2017
Infielder Phil Gosselin, who joined the Pirates from the Diamondbacks yesterday in exchange for Frank Duncan, is ready to hit the Sunshine State and get to know his new teammates.
So excited to be a part of the @Pirates organization! Pumped to get to Bradenton and start spring training!
— Phil Gosselin (@PGosselin15) February 11, 2017
And Finally…
We couldn’t get through the Social Media Round Up without mentioning an event that sort of blew up because of social media last weekend. Starling Marte told MLB Dominicana that he would be playing centerfield for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017. They ran with the story on Saturday, as did other media outlets – although, interestingly enough, not all sports reporters in Pittsburgh jumped on the bait. On Sunday, the Pirates released a statement from Manager Clint Hurdle confirming the move – Marte would play center, Polanco left and Andrew McCutchen, in the most anticipated move of the offseason, would move to right. Here’s our take on how things went down.
Andrew McCutchen – in a most diplomatic of moves, simply posted this image of Roberto Clemente in the Pirates right field as a response of sorts to the hub-bub. I truly believe that no one wanted the position change to go down quite the way it did. But Cutch’s humility in the face of what could be construed as a demotion illustrates once again why the man is an asset to this team. He understands that it’s an honor to play where Clemente did and by using such a powerful image, said everything he needed to say on the matter.
— Andrew McCutchen (@TheCUTCH22) February 6, 2017
Programming note:
Next week’s Round Up will be coming to you from sunny (I hope) Bradenton, Florida. We hope to have a few fun surprises in store for you then!
That’s all this week for the Pittsburgh Pirates Social Media Round-up. Have a great week and #LetsGoBucs
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