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Sunday, July 08, 2001

CHICAGO -- On June 14, three days after General Manager Cam Bonifay was fired, the Pirates hit bottom with a loss to Detroit. They fell below Tampa Bay with the worst record in baseball.

Since then, there have been some bumps -- such as losing five of six games to Montreal -- but the Pirates twice won four games in a row and last week took three games from the Reds to win their first series on the road since the opening weekend of the season. They even nudged past the Reds to escape the National League Central Division cellar.

Three weeks of winning baseball is encouraging for the players after two months of poor play.

Playing hard and winning a little sure beats playing hard and losing a lot. Manager Lloyd McClendon sees a difference on the field and a difference in clubhouse spirits.

"We're playing better," he said. "I think our pitching's in a position to give us quality starts, night in and night out. I think the defense is starting to come around somewhat. Offensively, we're swinging the bats as well as we have all year. If a couple more guys get it going, I think we'll really be clicking offensively. We're really starting to come alive. I think we have a much better bench."

Winning remedies a lot of ills, especially for a team that was ravaged by injuries and, with seven rookies on the roster, is being forced to rely on so many young players.

"We're starting to win baseball games. That helps in a lot of respects," McClendon said. "We're enjoying the game. We're clicking as a team. The young kids have come up and played well. They've done the job. They've done good for themselves."

No looking ahead

The conventional wisdom is that the Pirates will take a long look at younger players in the second half -- the better to get a jump on next season. At times, McClendon has hinted at a change in philosophy, such as when shortstop Jack Wilson was recalled from the minors June 12.

But McClendon insists he isn't going to redefine the team's goals for the second half.

"I'm not going to sit here and say I'm thinking about next year. Because that tells the players in the locker room that I don't give a darn about this year. And that's not the case. I'll deal with next year when next year gets here. Heck, I may be dead by then. We all may be dead. I have to get through this year. If Tike Redman comes here and plays center field, it has nothing to do with next year. It's because we think Tike Redman's the best center fielder to do the job.

"I think we're going to have a heck of a second half. If the guys in the locker room aren't committed to that, then they won't be here."

For the children

For those not going to Seattle, the three-day All-Star break is a chance to recharge midway through the 162-game schedule.

McClendon will devote part of the break to something that has been close to his heart when he was playing 10 years ago -- going back to his hometown to conduct a baseball clinic for youth in Gary and Merrillville, Ind.

Tomorrow, he will join his old college coach, Valparaiso University's Paul Twenge, to kick off a five-day baseball camp.

Originally set up as a way to reduce racial tensions between the two communities, the clinic has been expanded to two sites for the first time this year. The event, run by McClendon's Athletes Against Crime, will draw 150 participants ages 15-18.

In addition to teaching baseball fundamentals, the clinic includes a different speaker every day who will take about topics such as health, nutrition, drugs and race.

"The kids have to write an essay on what they learned in the camp, but it can't have anything to do with baseball," McClendon said. "It teaches people skills."

He started the clinic as a way to give something back to Gary, where he was a Little League hero, and Merrillville, where he lives with his wife and two children. Part of it is financed through a grant from the city of Gary.

He has considered expanding the program to Pittsburgh.

"If you're not interested in the good of our youth, there's something wrong with you," McClendon said.