THE BULLPEN

     And so it goes, Buctober came in with a bang and went out with a whimper, just like that. Mrs. Black-N-Gold had hoped that your Pittsburgh Pirates would help us celebrate Buctober all they way into November, culminating with a celebration at the Point to raise both the Jolly Roger and the World Series trophy. Unfortunately, they ran into a roadblock called the San Francisco Giants. But hold your heads up Pirates fans. There was still much to celebrate during this glorious season. Now, as the leaves began to fall of the trees and we hunker down for a long winter's nap, the Pirates organization will have many questions to answer in anticipation of next season's campaign.

1)Will manager Clint Hurdle get his bad hip fixed? He had told the media that 72 hours after the season ends, he would go in for surgery. Get well soon, Skip!

2)Will the Pirates re-sign uber-catcher Russell Martin? I think it's no question that they need to make every effort, and then some, to bring back the glue that holds the  pitching staff together. Unfortunately, during the waning days of the season, the Buccos seemed to be preparing us for Super Russ' inevitable departure. If not Russ, then whom?

3)Will the Pirates continue to go with the Gaby Sanchez/Ike Davis platoon? With what little production this tandem produced, surely the Pirates can get more bang for their buck elsewhere. It's my guess that they will not re-tender either player. Which leads us to #4.

4)Will the Pirates bring back Pedro Alvarez? With Josh Harrison firmly ensconced at 3B, the Pirates may continue to try Pedro's hand at first. However, Alvarez has bristled regarding a permanent shift across the diamond. The Pirates are also hesitant to let Pedro go and risk another Jose Bautista, Brandon Moss-like situation where the power stroke comes shortly after departure from Pittsburgh.

5)What of the pitching staff? Both RH Edinson Volquez and LH Francisco Liriano are free agents and surely will command bigger paydays. The Pirates will also see RH Jameson Taillon returning from Tommy John surgery. The bullpen also needs reinforcements.

There you have it: 5 questions to match the Pirates 5 World Series trophies. I wish it could have been 6. The Pirates had a tremendous run the past 2 years. They need to keep pointing upward and moving forward. Time will tell if they will. Thank you for a wonderful, fun-filled season. Let's Go Bucs!!!!!