Pirates/Steelers training camp
For many years, at least going back to the 1970s, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been known for tough, hard nosed football. Smash mouth football. Tough, physical play. Big backs in the backfield rushing the ball and taking it to the defense, wearing it down. Well, who would have thought that the 2011 Pittsburgh Pirates would be playing a similar brand of ball, only on the diamond, after 18 years of futility?!
Yes, this year’s Pirates are getting it done by any means necessary, a brand of baseball that manager Clint Hurdle and his staff have implemented since his hiring and during spring training. Hard work, hustle, dig out ground balls, play stellar defense, and manufacture runs. This has been the story of this year’s Pirates.
Of course, you need to have pitching and the Pirates have had that thus far this year. The work that the starting staff has done, not to mention the bullpen, has been getting it done. Then again, the starters need to go at least seven innings to save the bullpen a little bit. If this team is to compete and challenge for a spot in the playoffs, then the starters are going to have to be more consistent. There was a time when starters went seven or eight innings, a set up man came in and gave way to the closer in the ninth. Well, thanks or no thanks to pitch counts, that doesn’t happen anymore.
Is it being picky after all of these years of watching what passes for baseball but has been anything but? I guess that depends on whom you ask. The general consensus has been to play .500 ball this year and set the table for 2012. Someone forgot to tell the players and the coaching staff that. Expectations have been raised, as well they should be, and this has been the result.
No one knows what the future holds with regards to the rest of the season. There are still two months left to play after this month concludes, which it will on Sunday, and we begin August. This team is going to scratch and claw its way to the end and let the chips fall where they may. This has been the mantra all season.
The Pirates played a key series last weekend against the St. Louis Cardinals, losing the first two before winning on Sunday in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the 10th inning. Xavier Paul beat out a ground ball to first, stole second then proceeded to third on an error. Chase d’Arnaud then hit a sacrifice fly to center, driving in Paul and winning the game. Nothing more than textbook baseball and a very gritty and determined performance.
This past week, the Pirates will have traveled to Atlanta, then Philadelphia. At one point, the Phillies and the Pirates were fierce division rivals before realignment and the Pirates going to the National League Central. Nonetheless, a road trip is very important for any team, galvanizing it for the stretch run. Winning a series, taking two out of three, or splitting a four games series is what this team needs to continue doing. That has been the recipe all season.
As has been discussed on sports talk radio, who would have thought in July that we would be talking baseball instead of discussing football and training camp? That has been the story. Normally, at this point of the year, it would be all football, all the time. Not the case this year. And honestly, that’s a good thing. Nothing against football and the Steelers, but the Pirates needed to perform like this and give the fan base a reason to believe. It has and this is the story of the baseball season. Yet this leads into the next topic this week, although it hasn’t much of one, being overshadowed by the baseball season.
The NFL lockout is over and the league and its teams can get back to the business of playing football. As of press time, there is a lot of work that needed to get done in a short period of time. Director of Football Operations Kevin Colbert had his hands full this week with free agency, signing the draft class, and getting under the salary cap, where the Steelers found themselves $10 million over. While it’s great news that football can get back to business, the sad part is that the Hall of Fame game has been cancelled, the first time in the history of the game that has happened. Induction ceremonies will still take place.
Teams have reporting dates of Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of the week that passed, depending on when their first preseason game is scheduled. The Steelers will have reported on Thursday with afternoon practices on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with an off day on Monday. There will be a night practice this Friday August 5 at Latrobe Stadium that has become an annual event. The first preseason game will be Friday August 12 in Washington. Others to follow will be Thursday August 18 at home against Philadelphia, at Carolina on Saturday August 27, and the final game at home against Atlanta on Thursday September 1.
Much has been made about how this whole lockout progressed and all of the negotiations that took place. All of us cannot fathom how to split up a $9 billion pie, but that is the money that has been at stake. Maybe your perception has been that of greed; however, we, as fans, contribute mightily to that pie with ticket sales and merchandise purchases. This is not to put the kibosh on us. It is just to put all of this into reality. We support our team by buying the items of the team colors. That is what we do and helps us feel good about ourselves by showing how we feel about the team that represents us.
Everyone wanted their fair share. Players wanted their slice because they are the product. The public buys tickets and attends games to watch the players perform. Owners have to make money or their organizations go into the red, hence losing money. Then there are the large market owners versus the small market owners. Competitive balance has allowed small market teams to compete for championships. If that went by the wayside, the Steelers and Packers of the world would have had to find tricky ways to compete and stay relevant.
This leads to my next topic. The Steelers have appeared in three of the last six Super Bowls, winning two of them. However, after each of the two previous appearances, the Steelers failed to make the playoffs. If that trend continues, that doesn’t bode well for this season. Losing the last Super Bowl, no thanks to turnovers, may have provided a spark and definitely a bad taste in the mouths of the players.
While more will follow as training camp opens and the preseason begins, this could be the last hurrah for the Steelers defense. It is getting older and it has been addressed, so far, in the last few drafts, including this year’s first round pick Cameron Heyward. As many of the veterans who are 30 and over, no one gets younger in this business and youth will eventually replace the veterans. Three of the big question marks regarding signing deals and extensions are LaMarr Woodley, Ike Taylor, and Troy Polamalu. Imagine Polamalu in another uniform.
Not that we have to push these guys out the door, mind you. This lockout has aided the veteran teams, as they will be better prepared to handle the disruptions and the distractions of the lockout. Those teams will hold together better because they know their respective systems. As long as injuries don’t take a toll, this could be one last hurrah before the transition takes place to youth in the coming years. Heyward, Ziggy Hood, Lawrence Timmons, and Woodley (provided he gets signed), are the present and future of this team.
*Our heartfelt congratulations to Ben Roethlisberger and Ashley Harlan as they tied the knot last weekend and are now husband and wife. With all of the allegations against Ben over the last few years, he seems to have finally settled down and found someone to complement him. Best wishes to the happy couple!
Yes, this year’s Pirates are getting it done by any means necessary, a brand of baseball that manager Clint Hurdle and his staff have implemented since his hiring and during spring training. Hard work, hustle, dig out ground balls, play stellar defense, and manufacture runs. This has been the story of this year’s Pirates.
Of course, you need to have pitching and the Pirates have had that thus far this year. The work that the starting staff has done, not to mention the bullpen, has been getting it done. Then again, the starters need to go at least seven innings to save the bullpen a little bit. If this team is to compete and challenge for a spot in the playoffs, then the starters are going to have to be more consistent. There was a time when starters went seven or eight innings, a set up man came in and gave way to the closer in the ninth. Well, thanks or no thanks to pitch counts, that doesn’t happen anymore.
Is it being picky after all of these years of watching what passes for baseball but has been anything but? I guess that depends on whom you ask. The general consensus has been to play .500 ball this year and set the table for 2012. Someone forgot to tell the players and the coaching staff that. Expectations have been raised, as well they should be, and this has been the result.
No one knows what the future holds with regards to the rest of the season. There are still two months left to play after this month concludes, which it will on Sunday, and we begin August. This team is going to scratch and claw its way to the end and let the chips fall where they may. This has been the mantra all season.
The Pirates played a key series last weekend against the St. Louis Cardinals, losing the first two before winning on Sunday in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the 10th inning. Xavier Paul beat out a ground ball to first, stole second then proceeded to third on an error. Chase d’Arnaud then hit a sacrifice fly to center, driving in Paul and winning the game. Nothing more than textbook baseball and a very gritty and determined performance.
This past week, the Pirates will have traveled to Atlanta, then Philadelphia. At one point, the Phillies and the Pirates were fierce division rivals before realignment and the Pirates going to the National League Central. Nonetheless, a road trip is very important for any team, galvanizing it for the stretch run. Winning a series, taking two out of three, or splitting a four games series is what this team needs to continue doing. That has been the recipe all season.
As has been discussed on sports talk radio, who would have thought in July that we would be talking baseball instead of discussing football and training camp? That has been the story. Normally, at this point of the year, it would be all football, all the time. Not the case this year. And honestly, that’s a good thing. Nothing against football and the Steelers, but the Pirates needed to perform like this and give the fan base a reason to believe. It has and this is the story of the baseball season. Yet this leads into the next topic this week, although it hasn’t much of one, being overshadowed by the baseball season.
The NFL lockout is over and the league and its teams can get back to the business of playing football. As of press time, there is a lot of work that needed to get done in a short period of time. Director of Football Operations Kevin Colbert had his hands full this week with free agency, signing the draft class, and getting under the salary cap, where the Steelers found themselves $10 million over. While it’s great news that football can get back to business, the sad part is that the Hall of Fame game has been cancelled, the first time in the history of the game that has happened. Induction ceremonies will still take place.
Teams have reporting dates of Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of the week that passed, depending on when their first preseason game is scheduled. The Steelers will have reported on Thursday with afternoon practices on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with an off day on Monday. There will be a night practice this Friday August 5 at Latrobe Stadium that has become an annual event. The first preseason game will be Friday August 12 in Washington. Others to follow will be Thursday August 18 at home against Philadelphia, at Carolina on Saturday August 27, and the final game at home against Atlanta on Thursday September 1.
Much has been made about how this whole lockout progressed and all of the negotiations that took place. All of us cannot fathom how to split up a $9 billion pie, but that is the money that has been at stake. Maybe your perception has been that of greed; however, we, as fans, contribute mightily to that pie with ticket sales and merchandise purchases. This is not to put the kibosh on us. It is just to put all of this into reality. We support our team by buying the items of the team colors. That is what we do and helps us feel good about ourselves by showing how we feel about the team that represents us.
Everyone wanted their fair share. Players wanted their slice because they are the product. The public buys tickets and attends games to watch the players perform. Owners have to make money or their organizations go into the red, hence losing money. Then there are the large market owners versus the small market owners. Competitive balance has allowed small market teams to compete for championships. If that went by the wayside, the Steelers and Packers of the world would have had to find tricky ways to compete and stay relevant.
This leads to my next topic. The Steelers have appeared in three of the last six Super Bowls, winning two of them. However, after each of the two previous appearances, the Steelers failed to make the playoffs. If that trend continues, that doesn’t bode well for this season. Losing the last Super Bowl, no thanks to turnovers, may have provided a spark and definitely a bad taste in the mouths of the players.
While more will follow as training camp opens and the preseason begins, this could be the last hurrah for the Steelers defense. It is getting older and it has been addressed, so far, in the last few drafts, including this year’s first round pick Cameron Heyward. As many of the veterans who are 30 and over, no one gets younger in this business and youth will eventually replace the veterans. Three of the big question marks regarding signing deals and extensions are LaMarr Woodley, Ike Taylor, and Troy Polamalu. Imagine Polamalu in another uniform.
Not that we have to push these guys out the door, mind you. This lockout has aided the veteran teams, as they will be better prepared to handle the disruptions and the distractions of the lockout. Those teams will hold together better because they know their respective systems. As long as injuries don’t take a toll, this could be one last hurrah before the transition takes place to youth in the coming years. Heyward, Ziggy Hood, Lawrence Timmons, and Woodley (provided he gets signed), are the present and future of this team.
*Our heartfelt congratulations to Ben Roethlisberger and Ashley Harlan as they tied the knot last weekend and are now husband and wife. With all of the allegations against Ben over the last few years, he seems to have finally settled down and found someone to complement him. Best wishes to the happy couple!
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