Did Pirates Fans Actually Expect the Magic To Last All Season?

Don't cry Jeffy...just get your head right...

This 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates season has been nothing short of magical thus far.  Whether it is Francisco Liriano's renaissance, AJ Burnett's stellar play (minus the last 2 outings), Andrew McCutchen as a potential MVP, unbelievable walk off hits and HRs by guys like Russell Martin and Josh Harrison...all of it can be boiled down into one word: Magical.  There were times where this team literally defied logic.  Like when they came back from 4 down against the Reds and won in extra innings...remember the game where GI Jones hit it over the Clemente wall, over the RF stands, carried the walk way, almost killed a guy on a bike, and landed in the river on a fly??  Yeah...we all say that coming...riiiiiiiight.

I am not here to discredit what the Pirates have done, but they have been magicians with the 1 run / extra inning win this year.  I've said it all along to anyone that will listen (and thats not many people)...those 1 run games can turn on you in a heartbeat, and that is exactly what is happening.  Look at how the Pirates are losing these extra inning games, and these one run decisions.  Their starters are struggling early with pitch counts, they are giving up leads, and they are allowing those "seeing eye" singles leak into the grass that ends up being the game winners.  That formula look familiar?  Just reference the 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates from May to July. 

Just because the "magic" seems to have worn off doesn't mean this team is going to collapse.  They have hit a rough patch, but Neil Walker put it best after yesterday's 16 inning loss to the Diamondbacks "We are playing good baseball, but aren't winning the games.  We have to keep on plugging away."  (Okay, maybe that isn't the quote VERBATIM but you get what he's saying)  The Pirates aren't playing poorly.  The bats have gone quiet for most, and the pitching has been streaky, but the Pirates are in almost every game they play (except with Jeff Locke and Company allow 15 runs on Saturday).  The Battlin' Bucs have to do just that...keep battling.  After all, even with the repulsive play they've gotten from some of their pitchers (yeah I'm looking at you Jeff Locke), this team still holds a 2 game lead over the Cardinals for the division.

This team embarks on a 7 game road trip starting in San Diego (3 games) and then heading to the bay area for 4 against the Giants.  I must say that looking at pitching matchups and potential starters...the Pirates should be coming back to the friendly confines of PNC Park with at LEAST 4 wins and 3 losses.  This team needs to turn it around, and unfortunately they play better at PNC Park than they do on the road.  Nonetheless, if this team has shown us ANYTHING...its that its inconsistencies lead you to believe that anything can happen.  Liriano can have a dud outing like he did in Denver, AJ Burnett can blow 2 leads in back to back starts, and an All Star pitcher can turn into a dud almost overnight.  Just as those inconsistencies can be bad...the same can be good.  Pedro Alvarez can get red hot and start spanking pitches out of the park, "Cutch" can continue to keep his average on the rise, and players like Marte and Walker can start to contribute the way we all expect them to.  This team is far from out of it, and you wouldn't know that from listening to Pirates fans today.  This team should be just fine, but you can't expect the magic to last all season...can you?