 |
|
(Keith Srakocic/AP)
|
By
Stevo-Sama | @yoshiki89
While many
baseball fans are still managing the hope that their team can maintain and/or
gain ground on their chances for postseason play, realistic or otherwise, fans
of the Pittsburgh Pirates are literally standing on the edge of a season that
still, with only 16 games left, has several outcomes. The most unattractive of
these has to be the distinct possibility that 2012 could mark the 20th
consecutive losing season for the Pirates, extending a record for the longest
such streak in North American professional sports history.
Yes, it has been 20 long years since the Pirates lost their third consecutive NLCS contest (to the Atlanta Braves, in seven games) after finishing 96-66 under manager Jim Leyland, their third consecutive season finishing over .500.
20 years may not have seemed long enough, at the time, to erase the memory of Barry Bonds’ off-line throw from left field that failed to reach Mike LaValliere in time to tag out Sid Bream for Atlanta’s winning run. Losing is relative, so it’s hard to determine the pain of 3 back-to-back NLCS losses then when leveraged against 19 losing seasons now.
Since moving from the NL East to the NL Central following the 1993 MLB expansion, the Pirates have never had a winning season in their current division.
From a franchise-historical perspective, the Pirates are not a losing team by any measure. They rank 11th among all 30 active teams in W-L% (.503 in 19,941 games from 1882 through 9/17/2012). They are 7th among active teams in World Series victories (5) and 11th in Division Pennants (9).
9/18-9/20 MIL (4-8)
9/21-9/23 @HOU (11-3)
9/24-9/27 @NYM (1-2)
9/28-9/30 CIN (6-9)
The Pirates should be able to gain ground against the Astros and will certainly need it against the Reds in order to keep the dream of winning better than .500 for the remainder of the season. The NL Wild Card, while still a possibility, is a much more nefarious feat, and one that is more dependent upon the performance of five other teams ahead of the Pirates.
Even with the perceived extra incentive for regular season victory afforded by expanded postseason play this year, there is a more realistic incentive for the Pirates, as a team, to make a dedicated run to stay over the .500 mark. With more teams in the Wild Card running (and competition assumed to be thinned a bit, if one subscribes to the negative-playoff-expansion theory), their fans will more than appreciate an end to the consecutive losing season streak over a bow out of the Wild Card race.
Yes, it has been 20 long years since the Pirates lost their third consecutive NLCS contest (to the Atlanta Braves, in seven games) after finishing 96-66 under manager Jim Leyland, their third consecutive season finishing over .500.
20 years may not have seemed long enough, at the time, to erase the memory of Barry Bonds’ off-line throw from left field that failed to reach Mike LaValliere in time to tag out Sid Bream for Atlanta’s winning run. Losing is relative, so it’s hard to determine the pain of 3 back-to-back NLCS losses then when leveraged against 19 losing seasons now.
Since moving from the NL East to the NL Central following the 1993 MLB expansion, the Pirates have never had a winning season in their current division.
From a franchise-historical perspective, the Pirates are not a losing team by any measure. They rank 11th among all 30 active teams in W-L% (.503 in 19,941 games from 1882 through 9/17/2012). They are 7th among active teams in World Series victories (5) and 11th in Division Pennants (9).
Perhaps it’s
the success of the franchise from 1882 through 1992 that has made the past 19
seasons so difficult to comprehend. As most hard-luck fans can tell you, “any
team can have a bad year”…but with the Pirates, even those who aren’t fans are
frustrated with this troublesome losing streak. There really isn’t a great
number of baseball fans who want this streak extended. In fact, there are
probably just as many rooting for a Pirates over-.500 season as there are for
the Orioles to keep on doing whatever the heck it is they are doing to win
baseball games right now.
But, with a Wild Card berth in such close proximity…only four games behind with 16 games left to play at the end of the day on 9/17/12…will a simple over .500 season be good enough for the Pirates faithful, especially after this team was as many as 16 games over .500 on August 8th? Or, will an expired Wild Card berth extinguish the end of this odious losing season streak?
In order to accomplish finishing 2012 with a winning record, Clint Hurdle and the Pirates are going to have to win at least eight of the 16 games they have left to play. Strength of schedule is a somewhat loose and variable parameter; the Pirates’ remaining opponents are currently 0.3 runs per game worse than the average MLB team.
Also worth
considering, the Pirates are a combined 32-22 in W-L against their opponents in
their remaining series: But, with a Wild Card berth in such close proximity…only four games behind with 16 games left to play at the end of the day on 9/17/12…will a simple over .500 season be good enough for the Pirates faithful, especially after this team was as many as 16 games over .500 on August 8th? Or, will an expired Wild Card berth extinguish the end of this odious losing season streak?
In order to accomplish finishing 2012 with a winning record, Clint Hurdle and the Pirates are going to have to win at least eight of the 16 games they have left to play. Strength of schedule is a somewhat loose and variable parameter; the Pirates’ remaining opponents are currently 0.3 runs per game worse than the average MLB team.
9/18-9/20 MIL (4-8)
9/21-9/23 @HOU (11-3)
9/24-9/27 @NYM (1-2)
9/28-9/30 CIN (6-9)
The Pirates should be able to gain ground against the Astros and will certainly need it against the Reds in order to keep the dream of winning better than .500 for the remainder of the season. The NL Wild Card, while still a possibility, is a much more nefarious feat, and one that is more dependent upon the performance of five other teams ahead of the Pirates.
Even with the perceived extra incentive for regular season victory afforded by expanded postseason play this year, there is a more realistic incentive for the Pirates, as a team, to make a dedicated run to stay over the .500 mark. With more teams in the Wild Card running (and competition assumed to be thinned a bit, if one subscribes to the negative-playoff-expansion theory), their fans will more than appreciate an end to the consecutive losing season streak over a bow out of the Wild Card race.
Otherwise
known as "The
Baseball Enthusiast," Stevo-sama is a scorekeeping addict who scores
every game he watches and/or attends, and typically posts these scoresheets on
his blog with a game story of one sort or another. Stevo is a self-proclaimed
proponent of the Scorekeeping Revolution, community member of the Eephus
League, and proud member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.
No comments:
Post a Comment