If it was not for the Brewers, this would be an encouraging start of the season for a young Pirates club.
Baseball doesn't work like that, though. And while the Pirates are a more than respectable 8-5 against the rest of the league, they are 0-6 against the defending Central Division champs, including a 3-2 loss at PNC Park Thursday where they let a ninth inning lead slip through their fingers.
"Talking to other guys, we really wanted to get this one today, and to let it slip through and me being the one on the mound is especially frustrating for me," Chris Stratton, who blew the ninth inning save, said.