Good to see some Pirates hopefuls out there. I am a White Sox fan, but my brother likes the Pirates, so I do pay attention to them.

Right now, it's too early to tell. I am not one of those folks that rules a team out of the playoffs. Every team has a chance.

If the starting pitching continues to perform well, I can see the Pirates do much better than the past 16 years. But they still have a long season to go, and I predict the Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, and Brewers to finish ahead of the Pirates.

But don't stop believin'!