10 Positive Things About Being a Pittsburgh Pirates Fan

One week from today, the Pittsburgh Pirates will embark on what figures to be their 16th consecutive losing season, tying the mark set by the cross-state Phillies from 1933-48. 

At 15 consecutive failure-laden seasons, they currently hold the longest such streak in professional sports.  In an attempt to cheer up the other seven remaining Pirate fans, here is a list of 10 reasons why being a Pirate fan can still be fun, even in the midst of losing...

10. New management in GM Neal Huntington, Executive President Frank Coonelly, et al has finally instilled a sense of mild intelligence in the front office.  At the start of spring training, Huntington wrote a letter to Pirate fans. 

In it, he explained that gone are the days when the Bucs make trades just to make a trade, and gone are the days when they sign high-priced free agents just trying to win over the city's fickle fans. 

In other words, gone are the days when Dave Littlefield gets drunk and trades for Matt Morris and his massive contract.

9. A new Dominican baseball academy is being built by the Pirates.  Groundbreaking was Jan. 22, so the payoff won't come for awhile, but in the words of Ricky Bobby, "It's just cool that we're trying stuff like that, you know?"

8. Insults: you've heard them all. Try as they might, no one can get under your skin, because you never have to defend your team. 

Someone says the Pirates suck, and you have the easiest "shut-up-the-jerk-in-the-corner" response: "Yep."  Insulters will soon find it very boring to hurl criticism at your team, only to discover you'd like to join in.

7. Walk-up tickets are almost always available.  Try showing up at Fenway Park without tickets an hour before first pitch.  At that point, your only option is shelling out $300 per ticket so you can see the BoSox play the mighty Royals on a Wednesday night.

Meanwhile, PNC Park's ticket windows are welcoming, and sellouts are rare—unless it's fireworks or bobblehead night.  Pittsburghers will always show up if they know a) something will get blown up, or b) they'll get something for free, such as a coveted John Wehner Bobblehead doll. 

6. Low expectations means every win is uplifting.  Unlike other teams, with the Pirates, you don't enter the stadium expecting a win.  You hope for one, but expect that, somehow, they'll find a way to screw it up. They are the Pirates, after all. 

But occasionally, they pull through in a big way and beat the Mets 4-3 to avoid being swept in a weekend series.  Then, you get to go to work or school the next day and proclaim, "I went to the Pirates game yesterday, and they actually won!"  I'm not kidding either—these proclamations really happen.

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