After winning 95, 98 and 96 games in 1990, 1991, and 1992 I’m sure Pirates fans did not anticipate that 2011 would come about and their team would have not only failed to return to those heights, but failed to even finish a season with a winning record. However, the light at the end of the tunnel is approaching and while the Pirates will not win the World Series or reach the playoffs this year, in September they will be playing each of their final games with the knowledge that they are entering territory unseen in nearly two decades. As wins 82, 83, and 84 are collected, the Pirates players will be celebrating more than any team that makes the playoffs as the good times begin to return to Pittsburg.

General Manager Neal Huntington has been working tirelessly to draft, sign and develop players that will return the Pirates to their former glory. Although the job is not finished, 2011 will see the young team turn the corner. Jose Tabata, Andrew McCutchen and Garret Jones make up the outfield – McCutchen a five tool star in the making surrounded by two solid players. Neil Walker was the surprise middle infielder of 2010 with a good bat and a solid glove. Lyle Overbay, the former Brewer and Blue Jay will bring veteran leadership and some pop at first base and Pedro Alvarez, while up and down last year, is ready to take on the major leagues. He has matured physically and mentally and his presence at third base will define the Pirates for years to come.

The starting rotation, lead recently by the solid if not spectacular Paul Maholm, is also featuring a youth movement. Former Dodger James McDonald is on the rise and Kevin Correia is underrated. This isn’t to say it will be an easy road for the Pirates; the Astros will be bad but their fellow NL Central rivals the Brewers, Cardinals and Reds will be more successful. The Cubs are talented as well. However the Pirates of 2011 are not the same team we have seen since the early 90s. I may be a little early, but the Pirates, like the Royals, are a team on the rise.

Like March Madness or Sunday football, the opening weekend has every team playing game after game after game. Every pitcher starts with an ERA of 0.00 and every batter starts off with an Elvis Andrus-esque home run total (also zero).

For some teams this was a great weekend and for others, not so much. My hometown Red Sox gave up home runs to the Rangers like they were going out of style. The Dodgers however took 3 out of 4 games against their chief rivals in San Francisco, who happened to win the World Series a few months back.

Matt Holliday will soon have one fewer internal organ and the low budget Rays lost perhaps the biggest bargain in the game when Evan Longoria felt pain in his oblique.

But with no team having yet gone through it’s five man pitching rotation, and at worst, in a three game slump, times are good. Even for the Royals.

While Strasburg is just 21 years old, he turns 22 in July. This puts him just a few months older than the youngest pitcher to start an All-Star Game, Dwight Gooden. Good company. Unlike Strasburg however, when Gooden was selected in 1986 that was his third year full season in the majors. Ok. No one is thinking Strasburg would be the starter for the National League, that honor is likely going to Ubaldo Jimenez. But Gooden was also an All-Star in his rookie year. However, Gooden made his first start on April 7^th, 1984 and pitched 218 innings over 31 starts on his way to becoming Rookie of the Year. Overall Gooden collected 276 strikeouts with a WHIP of 1.073 and a 2.60 ERA. It would be tough for Strasburg to put up that kind of dominant run in just over half a season. Even more so in a handful of starts before the All-Star Game selections.

Through his first three starts Strasburg’s BABIP has been a sparkly .262, in line for some regression. ZiPS is projecting this to rise over the remainder of the season to .328. With a projected ERA of 4.09 and a projected FIP of 3.56, along with a K/9 of 9.65 and a K:BB of 3.47, the rookie would be doing quite well for himself even with a regression and a drop in luck.

The other big variable in analyzing Strasburg’s performance thus far is the quality of competition. His first three starts were against the Pirates, Indians and White Sox and his next start will be against the Royals. The Pirates are hitting just .237/.305/.361 – all of which are the second lowest marks in the National League above only the Houston Astros. The Indians at least have a team OPS just over .700 hitting .249/.325/.376 as a team, but find themselves above only Baltimore and Seattle by this measure. Chicago, the first team to win against Strasburg, though it was in extra innings so they are not the first team to give him a loss, is hitting .247/.321/.399. In a strange turn of events, the Royals actually find themselves as the toughest competition for the rookie as the team is right in the middle for OPS at .279/.335/.410 and actually leads the league in batting average.

Are three starts enough to merit All-Star talk? Probably not. Are these three starts in particular a good measure of his skills? Again, not ideal. Would it be a fantastic media event to have the young, hyped, Strasburg at the All-Star Game? Of course. The National League can’t seem to buy an All-Star win since “this time it counts” was instituted. And in the All-Star Game we’d at least get to see Strasburg matched up against some quality competition, if only for an inning.

The decline in offense has been going on for a while, but some hitters just don’t seem to do what they used to and pitchers are surging. Is this the end of “Moneyball” sluggers or a golden age for pitching?

A power hitting lefty with a decent glove? Not a bad addition for any team.

I don't Cano what he looks like

Inexplicably, Robinson Cano has no picture on StatTracker. Really makes you wonder who keeps this thing “up to date” or as close to that as Yahoo! seems to attempt.

But in 2009 and the start of 2010 Davis hasn’t hit at all for the big league team.  A .238/.284/.442 line in 2009 is buoyed by his .308/.338/.496 compilation after the slugger returned from a minor league vacation. Again, a strong finish, yet his 2010 season has been a month of sorrow: .188/.264/.292. And back to the minors he goes.

Justin Smoak meanwhile was mashing Double A to the tune of .328/.449/.481 before cooling down after a Triple A promotion (.244/.363/.360).  Being described as “a switch-hitting version of Justin Morneau with better defense” by Baseball Prospectus’s team of experts means Chris Davis could face a long minor league exile if Smoak adjusts to the big leagues faster than his predecessor.

If he’s available in your fantasy league, grab him now.  If you have Davis already, even better.

• Keep Jeremy Hermida in left and put Josh Reddick in center
• When Ellsbury returns, he takes over left field and Hermida slides into the DH role.

This lets the Red Sox take their time with Ortiz/Lowell DH “platoon” and gives Reddick an extended look in the majors.  Maybe he boosts his trade value or, if Cameron can’t make it back quickly, he forces himself into the lineup and lets the Sox part with Ortiz/Lowell without worrying about losing what could be dead money.

The pitching will improve.  The defense hasn’t been that bad outside of the running game (23 of 24 base stealers have succeeded) and the offense could take care of itself if Hermida can live up to his potential.