Pittsburgh Pirates road trip report card for week of May 22-25

In conclusion

The fact that the Pirates split this series makes it seem like it was an up-and-down trip, but I don’t see it that way. Yes, the first two games were frustrating. But to me, the way the Bucs picked themselves up in the second half of the set gives off a good vibe as the team returns home.

Having a 22-26 record is far from an ideal situation. But considering all that has gone wrong with this season in less than two months, being four games under .500 and four games out of first place in the NL Central isn’t a terrible place to be. Every time it seems like the Pirates are going to hit the skids for good, they come right back and give us reason to be intrigued.

Better yet is that Pittsburgh is continuing its stretch of sub-par competition, as in the next nine days, it has six games with the woeful Mets that will provide an opportunity to chip away in the standings.

Next: Pirates In A No Win Situation With McCutchen

The most encouraging takeaway from the final two games at SunTrust Park is undoubtedly the offense. As I mentioned earlier, as long as Marte and Cutch are not performing well/at all, I will have my concerns. At the same time, the rise of Adam Frazier has been one of the better stories of the season, while guys like Jose Osuna and Gift Ngeope are getting big hits to prove that they belong. The Pirates will also get a boost when Polanco returns to action; which could come as early as Friday night.

As of right now, the Bucs are no World Series favorite. But they are creeping back up to respectability. All we fans and bloggers can do is watch and see whether they progress or regress.