BRADENTON, Fla. -- You ask Eric Hinske, these Pirates remind him of the Tampa Bay Rays for whom he toiled last season, when they were American League East champions and World Series participants.

Seriously.

Stop laughing.

"I see a lot of comparisons," Hinske, the Pirates' top-billed offseason acquisition, said yesterday on the second full-squad day and fifth overall. "A lot of talent. And not a lot of winning.

"Tampa had lost for what, 10 straight years? They had talent. They had to learn to win. Luckily, we got on a roll. It's contagious."

The question remains: Can Hinske bring that same sickness to the Pirates, another of baseball's low-budget, long-time losers who retained this corner outfielder-infielder for much the same reasons as did the Rays?

"Yeah, right, I'd like to believe that it was all me," he joked. "But I definitely had a hand in it. I think [veteran leadership] can help out. With the Rays it was myself and Cliff Floyd."

Hinske, having just won a World Series with the Boston Red Sox the year before, responded to Tampa Bay's needs with 20 homers, 60 RBIs and guidance from a cool, energetic seven-year vet. Rays third baseman Evan Longoria credited Hinske with an assist in what became his AL Rookie of the Year season. The Rays wrested the AL East pennant away from the New York Yankees and Red Sox before losing to the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series.

Comparisons? The Rays went 66-96 a year earlier. The Pirates went 67-95 last season. The Rays had two first-round draftees and one second-rounder play key roles: B.J. Upton (selected second overall in 2002 after the Pirates picked Bryan Bullington), Rocco Baldelli and Carl Crawford. The Pirates have two first-rounders, Paul Maholm and Sean Burnett, plus two second-rounders, Tom Gorzelanny and Ryan Doumit. The Rays had nine draftees play last year. The Pirates had 10.

True, the pieces must fit, the ball must bounce just so, and the

kids (the Rays averaged 27 years, the Pirates 28.4) must play far better than all right, but Hinske knows what he's getting into. He had first-hand knowledge of the Pirates from last season, when Tampa Bay won two of three games at PNC Park in late June -- and Hinske went 4 for 7 overall, including a three-run homer off Jimmy Barthmaier.

"I got to see these guys, Maholm and Doumit, and how talented those guys are," said Hinske, 31, who had 381 at-bats in 133 games last season as a. utilityman and designated hitter. The infield is all established guys. They're not far away at all."

Having Hinske contribute his career averages of 15 homers, 57 RBIs in roughly 400 at-bats and serve as an upstanding role model is part of the Pirates' plan. Last month, when signing the one-year, $1.5 million free-agent contract that could pay him another $1 million in performance bonuses, he was told to expect regular playing time at the corner positions and a vital role.

"It's something you evolve into," Hinske said of his persona. "You're not young anymore. It's fun. I think it's cool. I'm here to be the backup. I'm going to play. That's why I signed here."

"He's going to help," manager John Russell said. "He's been around. He was with obviously a very good team last year. That presence of knowing how to do things right ... our younger players can see how [vets] work, see how they prepare daily. But it's like I told the players, they can't rely just solely on the veteran presence, they have to step up and do things on their own, too."