Don Kelly Sends Heartfelt Message to Pirates Fans Amid Impressive Start

(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)

There's something to be said about what the Pittsburgh Pirates have done on both sides of the baseball this season, sitting at 19-16 and winners of three straight.

It's been an impressive start to the campaign for the Pirates, something not everybody expected.

Unfortunately, because the Pirates haven't proven throughout much of their existence that they can be a competent team, or at least a squad that even makes the playoffs, a lot of fans wanted to watch the team do what was needed on both sides of the baseball before they had any thoughts about this team being a contender in the National League Central.

It's also awesome to see that the city has embraced the Pirates a ton, as it's been dying for a baseball team that makes them proud. From the sound of things, that's something that guys on the roster are really taking to heart, including skipper Don Kelly, who really wants the city to be proud of his guys.

“For me personally, that’s what drives me,” said Kelly, now in his first full season as the skipper of his hometown Pirates, per MSN. “I love the game, I love the guys in the clubhouse, and I love the city of Pittsburgh.”

It's a rather simple reason for the Pirates playing a lot better on both sides of the ball, especially offensively. Everybody already knew that this team's pitching staff was going to be one of the best in baseball, as long as it was able to stay healthy, but the additions they made on the offensive side of things have been very impressive, and they were able to do so because guys like Ryan O'Hearn really thought that they were building something special.

“I saw potential for a team that was ready to break out,” O’Hearn says of why he picked Pittsburgh. “I thought that I could add to the offense and potentially do something special here.”

“I’ve heard a lot of people who have been around in this organization for years saying, like, ‘It’s different this year. It’s different this year.’ And that’s cool to hear. For me, it’s pretty simple: We have a good team, and fans want to come out and see a good product on the field,” O’Hearn says.