Top 10 Highlights of the 2011 Pirates Season

The Pirates wrap up another losing season, finishing 72-90, their 19th straight losing season, an unbelievable milestone, albeit one with which you don't actually want to be associated.

At the beginning of the season, I wondered what was enough for fans? How much progress would be enough for your average black and gold bleeding Pittsburgher? Did they have to make the playoffs? Post a winning record? Or just make significant improvement over past season?

At the start of the season, I went on record with a prediction of 66 wins. I'm happy to say that they exceeded my expectations. What I really didn't see coming were the high highs and awful lows. Unlike previous seasons, this team was anything but boring. I could have lived without the entire month of August, when they dropped 22 games in a single month, but, as I said, at least this year, they kept my attention from wire to wire.

Jeff Karstens Leads the Way to 2nd Place for the Pittsburgh Pirates

More random thoughts from Bucco Central:

Last night, Wandy Rodriquez brought his 3.25 era and 7-2 record into PNC Park and the Pirates laid 5 runs on him, none bigger than Brandon Wood’s 2-run dinger in the 2nd inning. Your battling Buccos added on more runs, but really, Wood's homer would have done it because Jeff Karstens was,once again, masterful.

As we round the bases into the All-Star break, consider these facts about these Pirates: