The way I see it, all the Pirates have to do to cop the NL Central title is stay a step ahead of the “experts.” In both 2013 and 2014, the legions of preseason prognosticators picked them to finish middle-down in the division. This time, forecasters seem unanimous in their belief that the Pirates are a second-place team, to the Cardinals.

Go one better than expected, again, and go straight to the Division Series (no “play-in” game, as Clint Hurdle steadfastly refers to the Wild Card Game). … 

Is there a theseaurus in which “Pittsburgh” is listed as a synonym for “regression”?

A year ago, it was the Pirates as a whole. This time around, the individual leader of the regression squad appears to be Josh Harrison. Everybody is trying to run him down. That’s cool … we know how Harrison handles rundowns. … 

Only two Major Leaguers will be starting 2015 carrying over hitting streaks of 10-plus games from 2014.

One is a current Pirate, Starling Marte, who has a 13-game streak.

The other is a former Pirate — Rob Grossman, who has a 10-gamer with the Astros. Grossman was one of three prospects packaged for Wandy Rodriguez in July 2012. …

You always hear about catchers making the best managers. Among those who believe that are the GMs who make the hires: 15 ex-receivers, or half of all managers, are calling the shots this season. …