PiratesFest 2010 has come and gone, and overall there was something strange in the air this year: optimism. I have gone to PiratesFest every year since I was 7-years-old and I have to say I have never seen such optimism in the air. A lot of people seem to be pretty happy with the direction the Pirates are going in, and I to found myself caught up in the good feeling.
I am not sure why people were so optimistic this year compared to years past, but it’s very refreshing. As a Pirates fan I am used to negativity, and to see other fans actually feeling excited for baseball warms my heart. Some say PiratesFest is just for children and for the most part, they are right, but it can definitely be fun for adults. I always enjoy watching the Pirates interacting with fans, and I love being around people that love this team as much as I do.
The biggest story out of PiratesFest had almost nothing to do with the event. The rumored offer by The Penguins Ownership Group to buy the Pittsburgh Pirates from Robert Nutting. A lot of fans despite being happy with the job Neal Huntington and Frank Coonley are doing strongly dislike owner Bob Nutting. They feel he is cheap, and unwilling to spend the money necessary to field a consistent winning ball club. When I first heard the rumor that Mario and company were interested in the Pirates I was obviously intrigued, and my mind went a lot of different places thinking about what Mario would do as owner of the Pirates. I don’t like Bob Nutting, but I don’t really hate him either. I feel like he’s a good businessman, but whether that makes him a good owner is a matter of debate. I doubt we’ll ever see Bob Nutting sell the Pirates anytime soon. He seems convinced that winning baseball is on the horizon and as a fan; I hope he is correct, because I cannot handle too many more losing seasons. When this new management team took over in 2007, they said building a winning team was a process. Well it’s been 3 years and the tools are in place. It’s put up or shut up time for the Pirates. Let’s hope 2010 is the beginning of a new era of winning baseball in Pittsburgh.
Well, from my outlooking experience, Piratefest is something that is used to sort of indoctrinate the younger kids into the fanbase when they show a love of baseball, and the morale is always good for the team (or so I hope). Plus, it helps the parents to have a bonding time with their children, and also root for the home team.
ReplyDeleteI think that with each decade, we get another push forward of hope in order to believe that our team will do better, a fresh out come. It's this hope and this belief that will forever make me a Pirates fan above anything else. We might not be the best team, but damned if the fans don't have spirit. The TRUE fans.