Sorry, Pittsburgh fans. Any hope of the Pirates breaking one of professional sports worst records in 2012 went out the window on Sunday, as Pittsburgh suffered loss No. 82 against the Reds.
What looked to be such a promising year for the once-storied franchise took a turn for the worst in September. Although the divison race was already out of the question in the beginning of September, the Buccos were only a game-and-a-half behind the Cardinals and Braves for the NL wild card spots.
And then, it all fell apart. In a collapse similar to the Red Sox of 2011, Pittsburgh went 7-21 in September, falling out of playoff contention in a hurry. While the losses continued to pile on, their record of most consecutive losing seasons in MLB history still had hopes to be broken in 2012. But, after their most recent defeat at the hands of Cincinnati, that streak continued once again.
The Pirates have now had 20 consecutive losing seasons. They broke the previous record of 17 after their losing season in 2010, and have now pushed their record for futility into a second decade.
Ironically, in a day where history was made in Pennsylvania, a team in the AL broke their own record for losing seasons. The Orioles clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 1997, and are still battling the Yankees for the AL East crown.
On the brighter side however, the Pirates have made strides towards creeping over the .500 mark in the last two years. In 2011, they finished 72-90, a year after losing 105 in 2010. This season will also mark the first time in eight years that the Jolly Rogers will lose in the 80 game range.
With MVP candidate Andrew McCutchen and a revitalized pitching staff with the likes of AJ Burnett and Joel Hanrahan, Pittsburgh may not be so far off from a postseason berth.
In the words of such a common phrase in this region: "There's always next year."
