17 awesome things about the Pittsburgh Pirates

(PHOTO Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports)

The Pittsburgh Pirates advanced to the NLDS on Tuesday with their 6 2 win over the Reds at PNC Park. If you haven t been following baseball this season feel free to read that sentence a few more times to let it sink in. The Pirates won 94 games in 2013 en route to a Wild Card berth in their first winning season since 1992.

Now that you ve come to grips with the Pirates being awesome here are 17 awesome things about the Pittsburgh Pirates

1. The streak is over (PHOTO Gene J. Puskar/AP Photo)

The Pirates run of futility was the longest in American professional sports. It started after Barry Bonds left the team for free agency following the 1992 season and featured countless lowlights like former manager Lloyd McClendon stealing first base and going home. All over now. The Pirates are just a bunch of winning winners who win.

2. Pretty much everything about Andrew McCutchen

McCutchen looks like a favorite to take home the NL MVP Award so he deserves and received his own list. In short He s great at baseball he seems like a good dude he s a great impressionist and he can draw. Oh And

3. He comes with his own national anthem singer

McCutchen s mother Petrina is a gospel singer in their native Florida with a beautiful voice. She sometimes sings the Star Spangled Banner before Pirates games as she did before the Wild Card game on Tuesday.

4. Starling Marte s defense

Starling Marte is a center fielder who plays left field due to McCutchen s presence. He s a heck of an all around player and he can go get it in the outfield.

5. They stuff burgers in doughnuts and eggs in sausage (PHOTO Pittsburgh Tribune Review)

PNC Park concessions rolled out two amazing new offerings this season The Brunch Burger a burger sandwiched by two halves of a doughnut topped with bacon and a fried egg and Scotch eggs hard boiled eggs wrapped in sausage and deep fried. The Pirates don t just win ballgames they stuff delicious foods into other delicious foods.

6. Pedro Alvarez s power

The Pirates 26 year old third baseman led the National League in home runs in 2013. He also led in strikeouts. He s a big swinger and when he connects it goes very far.

7. Their bullpen

It looked like a tough blow for the Bucs bullpen when All Star closer Jason Grilli went down with an injury in July with a forearm injury but replacement Mark Melancon proved dominant in his stead. The team s 2.89 bullpen ERA was third best in the league. In Justin Wilson and Tony Watson they have a pair of fireballing lefties to neutralize some of the game s best sluggers.

8. A.J. Burnett s curveball

The veteran Burnett has hinted that he could retire after this season meaning the playoffs might be the last opportunity fans have to enjoy his tantalizing Uncle Charlie. He threw it 35 percent of the time in 2013 the highest rate of curveballs among NL starters.

9. Their pillbox hat history (PHOTO AP Photo)

In 1976 five teams wore pillbox style hats in honor of the National League s centennial season. All except the Pirates ditched them by 1977 but the Pirates rocked them until 1986. They were the team that wore hats a totally different shape than every other team. It was sweet. Few wore it better than Willie Stargell.

10. They re called The Pirates (PHOTO AP Photo/Disney)

That s the other thing We hear the name Pittsburgh Pirates so often that we sometimes forget to consider all the funny connotations that come with it. Arrgh ye scallywags.

11. Grilled Cheese time

Grilli s back from his injury and closing for the Pirates again. When he enters games the Pirates play a video that announces It s Grilled Cheese time and somewhat inexplicably includes shots of Grilli making a sandwich. It s incredible.

12. Their home park (PHOTO Keith Srakocic/AP Photo)

With its cozy confines and its views of the Allegheny River and the Pittsburgh skyline PNC Park is widely considered one of the nicest parks in baseball. It s great to see it filling up with enthusiastic Pirates fans.

13. Shrewd late season pickups (PHOTO Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports)

The Pirates stayed quiet at the July 31 trade deadline. Then in late August they scooped up Marlon Byrd and Justin Morneau both of whom started Tuesday s game without mortgaging much of their future. Striking late with waiver deals allowed GM Neil Huntington to make sure his team was bound for a pennant race before giving up any young players.

14. Francisco Liriano s slider

Liriano struck out more than a batter an inning in 2013 and yielded more than 50 percent ground balls thanks to a wipeout slider he throws 36 percent of the time. Ask Joey Votto about it after Liriano struck him out twice on Tuesday night.

15. A hometown hero (PHOTO Gene J. Puskar/AP Photo)

Pirates second baseman Neil Walker was born in Pittsburgh in 1985 and grew up a Pirates fan. He told Pittsburgh s City Paper that he fell for the team at age 7 meaning he got to enjoy the team s playoffs run in 1992 before enduring an awful lot of heartache. Hard to imagine anyone s more invested in the Pirates success.

16. Travis Snider s dedication to meat

The Pirates outfielder tweets under the handle Lunchboxhero45 which is awesome enough on its own. But he backs it up with a true passion for meat and a thorough understanding of its preparation.

17. Roberto Clemente s legacy (PHOTO AP Photo)

That bridge you see out beyond the outfield at PNC Park That s the Roberto Clemente Bridge. The park s right field wall is 21 feet high because Clemente wore No. 21. The Hall of Famer was a pioneer among Latino ballplayers a humanitarian and a heck of a hitter. And with the Pirates playing well he has not been forgotten According to online retailer fanatics.com Clemente s jersey sales have spiked this month.

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