Barnes Burner: Win or lose, Pirates 2013 season a massive success

Playoff baseball returns to Pittsburgh tonight, when the Pirates play the Cincinnati Reds in a one-game wild card playoff. The winner of the game moves on to play the St. Louis Cardinals in the five-game National League Divisional Series. 

Win or lose, though, this 2013 Pirates season is a success. 

Not just because the Pirates broke their infamous 20-season losing streak, but more because the Pirates won 94 games this season and are set up for success in the coming seasons after Neal Huntington’s sixth season as the team’s general manager. 

The Pirates’ sights entering the season were set beyond simply winning 82 games. After all, winning 82 games makes a team nothing much beyond average in Major League Baseball. 

Instead, Pittsburgh aspired to win the National League Central Division and advance into the playoffs. The team didn’t win the division, but its 94-68 record landed them with a home game in the wild card round against Cincinnati. 

Pittsburgh finished the season with a three-game sweep of its final regular-season series in Cincinnati to guarantee playoff baseball would be played at PNC Park. Tonight, Francisco Liriano faces Johnny Cueto in what will be the final game of the season for one of the two teams. 

Liriano finished his season after starting late when he broke his right arm over the Christmas holidays in 2012. The injury followed his signing by the Pirates to a two-year deal worth almost $13 million. 

The move brought back shades of haunted days when the Pirates traded valuable minor-league assets for Matt Morris in July 2007. Morris made five starts, going 0-4 with a 9.67 ERA, and was released April 27, 2008, before retiring three days later.

Morris’ acquisition was the straw that finally broke the camel’s back on then-general manager Dave Littlefield’s tenure. His departure ultimately resulted in Huntington’s hire a few months later. 

After Liriano’s injury, Huntington and the Pirates reworked his deal for only $1 million guaranteed, with performance-related incentives and a team option for 2014. Liriano’s option was picked up in August, and any doubt about the signing was erased as Liriano began pitching. 

Liriano made his first start May 12, and now he finishes the year with a 16-8 record and 3.02 ERA. This is arguably the best season of his career. 

Moves such as this reflect the vision Huntington had for the Pirates when he took the general manager position on Nov. 2, 2007. It’s a vision that guided the organization’s 12th general manager to erase in six years the bad feelings created by the past 20. 

The trades sending players such as Nate McLouth and Jason Bay out of town for minor-leaguers weren’t popular, but Charlie Morton — acquired in the McLouth deal — will start playoff games for the Pirates if they advance past the wild card. 

In the draft, Huntington flooded the minor league system with talent by picking big-time talent in the first rounds as well as aggressive spending in the middle rounds. Plus, the Pirates finally stopped ignoring the Latin American sector and expanded their international free-agent budget while building a baseball academy in the Dominican Republic. 

The steps were small and painful at first, but the strides are growing larger and more impactful. Center fielder Andrew McCutchen is the favorite for the league’s Most Valuable Player award, and 2011 No. 1-overall choice Gerrit Cole made his debut this season. 

Jameson Taillon, Gregory Polanco and other top-ranked prospects are on the way, and they represent another step as the Pirates are no longer rebuilding, but adding on to what seems like a playoff contender of a team. 

The wild card game today is one step. It could be a step toward a deep playoff run, maybe even a World Series title. 

If it isn’t, though, this season is not a failure. In fact, it’s the most meaningful year of baseball Pittsburgh has seen in two decades.