May 19, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Starling Marte (6) celebrates with teammates after defeating the Houston Astros at PNC Park. The Pittsburgh Pirates won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

All-star voting started very early this year, and while most fans just stuff the ballot box for the players on their favorite teams, some people (including myself) prefer to be a bit more objective with their voting. The All-Star game isn’t a big deal as far as a game goes, and most people can agree with that, but the prestige of being an MLB All-Star is quite the honor, and the players certainly seem to appreciate receiving such awards. So, while trying not to be a total homer, which Pirates deserve to go to the mid-summer classic?

The Easy Choices:

Starling Marte. I’ve had concerns about Marte before, particularly looking at his plate discipline, but there’s not much more you could ask for from a leadoff hitter. Marte is batting .305, with five home runs, and seventeen RBI. He’s covered the vast expanse of left field at PNC like a gold glover. He’s batting an incredible .486 in the first inning this year. If you want to talk about a guy who can instantly jump start an offense at the beginning of the game, you’d be hard pressed to find many better. Marte shouldn’t just be at the game, but he should be in serious considerations for the starting left fielder. Starling Marte: Even atheists believe.

A.J. Burnett. Burnett leads the NL in strikeouts so far with seventy-nine, he has an ERA of 2.57. Burnett has been absolutely stellar so far this year, the only thing that would hold him back from being picked to go to the game would be the fact that he has a record of 3-4 so far, due almost exclusively to the fact that the Pirates have given him so little run support. Burnett might be retiring after this season as well (he mentioned the possibility during spring training), so it would be great to see him get the honor of being at the All-Star game as well.

Mark Melancon. He has an ERA 0f 0.78, is there anything more that needs to be discussed? How about his 9.0 K/9? That’s pretty good too. Or what about his WHIP of 0.783? If there’s a better setup man in baseball this year, I haven’t noticed him yet. His stuff is electric, and he’s been a great return on the Hanrahan trade so far this year.

Jason Grilli. He leads all of the major leagues in saves, his era is a minuscule 0.92 this year, and he’s striking out an astonishing 14.2 batters per nine innings pitched. Grilli is a fan favorite, and as a guy previously known as a journeyman for the rest of his career, it’s great to see him dominating like he is at a later stage in his career.

The Homer Pick:

Andrew McCutchen. McCutchen has been good this year, but has he been good enough to be considered an All-Star? A .280 batting average with six home runs and twenty-three RBI is very good, but is it enough to be an All-Star outfielder in the NL this year? I’m not sure. It may be that because he was so amazing last year, I’m less impressed with some very quality numbers that he’s putting up. It could also be that he really is playing above average baseball, but not elite baseball right now. As the Pirates fan that I am, I’ve voted for him. As a fan of another team? I might not be voting for him. There have been a lot of NL outfielders putting on shows to this point in the season, so my vote might go elsewhere as a fan of another team.

Who are your picks for the All-Star game from the Pirates roster? Did I leave any deserving candidates off of the list? Was I wrong to pick some of the players that I did? Sound off in the comments section.

The Pittsburgh Pirates 2011 and 2012 seasons both featured huge collapses, and the pitching was a main part as to why the team fell apart.

In 2011, the Bucs were right around the head of the National League Central before the 19-inning game in Atlanta killed all their momentum. A blown call by Jerry Meals in the bottom of the 19th lead to a rough last two months for Pirates fans, as they racked up their 19th consecutive losing season at the end of the year.

May 18, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher A.J. Burnett (34) delivers a pitch against the Houston Astros during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

2012 was much worse. We all remember it, and there really isn’t much of a reason for me to talk about it. It was awful. Sixteen games over .500 in the middle of August and they failed to get a .500 season.

Pitching was bad down the stretch.

James McDonald was an absolute mess in July, August, and September.

Erik Bedard failed to pitch a whole season with the Pirates and was released in August.

Kevin Correia was, well, Kevin Correia, an average pitcher who was granted with fantastic run support.

Even A.J. Burnett had a mediocre second half, as he went 3-7 in August, September, and October. But finished with some solid work.

Wandy Rodriguez, on the other hand, was actually the best pitcher for the Pirates in the second half of the 2012 season.

The bullpen was just as bad. Joel Hanrahan was pretty much a non-factor, and never got the chance to close out games due to the collapse. Jared Hughes, who had a tremendous first half, was eventually optioned to Triple-A at one point.

The whole Chad Qualls project was nothing but laughable, and other guys like Doug Slaten, Juan Cruz, Hisanori Takahashi, and Evan Meek pitched pretty awful. On a positive note, Justin Wilson and Jeff Locke showed promise, which is one of the main reasons why they made the 25-man roster this season.

So there it is: I said I wasn’t going to talk about the 2012 pitching collapse, but I did. Why am I telling you all of this? Because fans are all worried that it may happen again this year.

The Pirates are eight games over .500, and fans still aren’t satisfied. Some are completely paranoid of the pitching being worn out, and I can’t blame them at all. The only thing is, I think this year is different.

Apr. 8, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jeanmar Gomez (30) throws during the fourth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

I have faith that the starting pitching staff will be successful through September. A.J. Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez, Jeff Locke, Jeanmar Gomez, and Francisco Liriano all look solid. James McDonald is currently on the disabled list, but has shown a little bit of progress since his dreadful 2012 second half. I have confidence in J-Mac, and think he’ll pitch some big games for the Pirates if he finds himself in the rotation again.

On top of these six, the Pirates have a couple of reliable pitchers returning sometime in the near future. Jeff Karstens is currently making rehab starts in Altoona, and Charlie Morton is slated to return around the All-Star break. That’s eight pitchers right there that are all worthy of being in the starting rotation. Furthermore, the Pirates even have players like Phil Irwin and Kyle McPherson who are capable of making spot starts from time to time if needed.

Fans are thinking that they’ll see Gerrit Cole at some point this season, but the more I watch him pitch in Triple-A, the more I think he’s just not big league ready.

In my opinion, the starting pitching is fine. There are at least five proven starters in the rotation, along with other guys who are capable of making starts.

The thing that fans should be worried about is the bullpen.

I hate to be pessimistic, but I don’t have much faith in the bullpen when it comes to keeping it together for 162 games. My take on the bullpen: Two good pitchers, and a bunch of other average pitchers who help make up the un-original name of the “Shark Tank.”

Jason Grilli and Mark Melancon have been ridiculous. Honestly unbelievable. Each of their ERAs is under one, and they are both worthy of making the National League All-Star team.

May 19, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Jason Grilli (39) reacts after the final out against the Houston Astros during the ninth inning at PNC Park. The Pittsburgh Pirates won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The only thing about the two of them is that they are being overused.

The Pirates season is a little over a quarter way over, and they have played 44 games. Melancon has pitched in 23 of them. Grilli has pitched in 22 of them.

That’s not good. If those two get worn out, the bullpen is in serious trouble.

Justin Wilson has opened eyes out of the bullpen, and has been a great left-handed reliever this far. Tony Watson, Jared Hughes, Vin Mazzaro, and Bryan Morris are all average relief pitchers, and if I had to guess, Jose Contreras will be released at some point in the season. There are a few positives as far as minor league relief helps goes, and players like Duke Welker and Vic Black could be called up at some point later in the season.

Help could also be on the way from some of the starters who get bumped to the bullpen. It looks now like Burnett, Rodriguez, and Liriano have three of  the five rotation spots locked down. Locke is awfully close to being in that company. Gomez has looked good as both a reliever and a starter, and could definitely be a contributor of of the ‘pen at some point. Even though I love him as a starter, Karstens could be looking at a bullpen stint this year.

When it’s all said and done, the bullpen is what will decide this team. The batting looks fine, and the starting pitching, as I explained, has the depth to not be worn out come August and September. The bullpen will need to do it’s part, and if Grilli and Melancon are worn out later on in the season, some relief pitchers are going to have to step up and help prevent this team from another late season tragedy.

May 19, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez (right) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the Houston Astros during the fifth inning at PNC Park. The Pittsburgh Pirates won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Looking back at this series, you can’t help but notice how strange it was. The three games were decided by a dropped pop-up (game one), Mark Melancon with a rare bad outing allowing the Astros to extend game two, leading to an extra innings win, and the Pirates winning game three 1-0, on an opposite field home run by Pedro Alvarez. Yes, you read that correctly, Pedro Alvarez hit a ball out of the park to left field.

We didn’t expect a sweep of the Astros, but two of three is fine. The same expectations and hopes are held for the Cubs series. If the Pirates take two of three from the Cubs, they’ll have done their job against the weakest part of their schedule for the month of May. Matt Garza will start game one of the series, and I like the Pirates chances against him.

The Pirates batting average as a team against Garza is .295 over the course of his career. Garza does have an excellent K/BB ratio against the Pirates (25/3), but given the Pirates relatively high team average against him, their chances should be pretty good to open the series.

Wandy Rodriguez will get the start for the Pirates in the first game of the series, and his last two starts have been stellar, totaling thirteen innings and only giving up two runs over those starts.Wandy has dealt in his last few chances, so let’s hope his hand stays hot tomorrow night as well.

The Pirates have to take two of the three they play with the Cubs, not just to keep pace with the Reds and Cardinals right now, but because a three game series at the house of horrors is next. Oh, I’m not looking forward to that. The Pirates wins against the Astros were weird, but as long as they keep winning baseball games, it doesn’t matter how they do it.