PITTSBURGH — When A.J. Burnett came to the Pirates, the organization was in much different shape. They were coming off a 72-90 season that saw them collapse in the second half after acting like pseudo-contenders in the first half. They weren’t able to attract any interesting free agents. If you said “Ray Searage can fix this pitcher” you’d be laughed at. The farm system had a lot of potential, but mostly with a lot of players at the lower levels. The team was just starting to take a dive into unconventional approaches like extreme defensive shifts and focusing on catcher pitch framing.
First Pitch: Burnett Comments on the Pirates Future, Strides They’ve Made Since 2012
