Still a fan despite McCutchen’s woes
I have been an Andrew McCutchen fan since Day One!
I was a fan when he got drafted out of Fort Meade High School. I was a fan when I watched him in Altoona with the Curve and when he won the National League MVP in 2013.
And, yes, I’m still a fan of McCutchen despite a really bad and unexpected 2016 season.
Going into Wednesday’s contest against the Seattle Mariners (by the way, aren’t West Coast games the worst?!), all of McCutchen’s numbers are well-below his career average with a .243 batting clip at the plate and 12 home runs, 32 RBIs and an OPS of only .736.
Those numbers aren’t good and are a little bit worrisome. But I’m not going to panic, and nor should any Pirates’ fan.
You can point to a number of excuses for McCutchen’s struggles this season (an injured thumb, batting second to start the year or maybe he is pressing too much for power because of a lack of power in the line-up), but he is a notorious slow starter.
Ok, maybe not this slow of a start, but there’s still plenty of season left to turn it around. McCutchen usually goes on a torrid stretch at the plate at the end of July to early August, and I expect (and hope) the same will happen in 2016.
This notion that McCutchen is past his prime and that the Pirates should look to deal him as soon as possible is ridiculous and baffling.
He is the face of your franchise, a first class player off the field, a highly marketable talent for the league and any ball club would die to have him in their dugout.
I don’t know if sports fans are so desensitized or cynical nowadays, but why on earth would you want to get rid of a talent like him? Do fans just assume that’s the Pirates’ way? Trade their big talent or that sooner or later all good ball players are going to leave Pittsburgh?
McCutchen still has a couple of years left on his contract (a contract that was and still is a bargain for the Pirates) and I truly hope that he can finish out his career in the Black & Gold.
Do fans remember life without McCutchen? Do you remember when guys like Kevin Young or Brian Giles or Jason Bay or Nate McLouth were the face of the franchise? Don’t take McCutchen for granted!
Trade talks have been spurred by the subpar play of McCutchen plus the rise of outfield prospect Austin Meadows in the minor leagues. Meadows seem like a great prospect, but let’s remember his batting average is still .000 in the majors and it’s a whole different ball game in the bigs.
McCutchen might be one of the many reasons why the Buccos have struggled this year, but for me, he is the only reason why the Pirates can ride the ship and turn their season around in ’16!
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The sporting world lost a coaching legend this week when former University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt lost her battle with Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 64.
Her numbers speak for themselves, 1,098 career wins in 38 seasons with eight national champions, 16 conference titles and countless All-Americans. She led her team to 31-straight NCAA tournament appearances and never had a losing season in 38 years.
When Summitt became head coach of the Lady Vols at 24 years old, the NCAA did not even formally recognize women’s basketball. She had to drive the team van to road games.
Three-plus decades later, the sport and the game of basketball has changed because of Summitt’s passion and influence.
She molded her players, her coaching staff and all women at any level of basketball to be better. She left her mark on the game and on women’s sports. Her impact is ever-lasting.
I was fortunate enough to meet Coach Summitt in 2007 at the Final Four in Cleveland. I was there with a group of journalism and communication majors, and got to go behind the scenes of Final Four weekend.
It was truly an unforgettable moment for me, both on a professional and personal level, and perhaps the biggest moment that weekend was when my group ran into coach Summitt in the locker room area.
She could have just said hello and politely passed us by, but instead she talked to us for like 45 minutes about sports, women’s sports, the Northeast and life in general.
Very gracious and very humble person, and that is and will forever be a conversation that I will never forget. It blew me away that a high-level college coach would give us the time, while she prepared for the Final Four.
A couple of days after meeting her, I got to see her in action as she led the Lady Vols to their seventh NCAA title.
What a coach, what a person and what an iconic figure not just in women’s basketball, but in women’s sports, the game of basketball and in the sporting world! RIP Coach Summitt!