Last year, the Pirates went 24-52 against the NL Central. Starting tonight, they play them almost exclusively until May 16th, save one series against the Dodgers at the end of April. If this season is going to fall apart, it’s probably going to happen very soon (unless you’d like to argue that it’s happened already on this last road trip).
Other things to mention this morning: you’ll notice the comments system changed over yesterday. All the log-in information should be the same, but this one is a little cleaner with a refresh button right at the bottom and no need for unnecessary comment titles.
Also, I finished Dirk Hayhurst’s The Bullpen Gospels this morning. Great baseball read if you’re looking for one at some point this season. If you’re not familiar with Hayhurst, he’s a reliever for the Blue Jays (currently on the DL for the season) and the book is about Hayhurst’s 2007 season in the Padres’ system as he struggles with what was, to that point, a stagnant career. (FCC mandated note: no one paid me to say that and I paid for the book myself.)
I’m falling behind on updating minor league stuff (like I always do), but Bradenton is off to a great start with some very encouraging performances from a lot of people. It’s early, obviously, but this is the year we’re going to start seeing some of the Huntington draft guys break out if it’s going to happen. There are finally a bunch of players worth following at every level of the system, so let’s hope that a few of them exceed expectations this year.
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