Andrew McCutchen: Pittsburgh’s Permanent Pirate

If it was up to Andrew McCutchen, he’d be in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform for his entire career.

“I plan on being here, that’s the mindset. This is where I want to be, ” he said. “I don’t want to go anywhere, and I’m going to be here for as long as they want me to be here.”

After the Pirates’ selected McCutchen with the 11th overall pick of the 2005 draft, he got familiar with professional baseball by appearing in 58 minor league games that year. After that, he was considered one of the top 50 prospects in baseball every year that he played.

After posting a career .286/.362/.423 slash line and 75% stolen base success rate in parts of five minor league seasons, the Pirates decided to call their prized prospect up to the big leagues in 2009, and McCutchen responded by finishing fourth in Rookie of the Year voting after playing only 108 games.

The accolades continued to roll in for the young center fielder as he trudged through his sophomore Major League campaign, managing 163 hits – 56 for extra bases – and a .365 on-base percentage, while establishing himself as one of the most exciting players to watch in the National League.

Needless to say, McCutchen has become quite attached to the Pirates, an organization that he has been a part of since he was 18 years old.

“Coming up through the system and being drafted by the Pirates, everyone here cares about you. They take care of you – that’s the biggest thing – they make you feel at home,” McCutchen told The Good Point. “Every time you show up to the field you want to be here and you’re excited to be here, just because of how you’re treated.”

His praise for the organization didn’t stop there.

“Everything is ‘A’ class, top of the line. That’s what I really enjoyed, coming up through the system and now that I’m here in the big leagues, nothing’s changed. People still treat you great and we’re all treated the same. There’s not one person getting treated one way and another treated a different way.”

Despite recent rumblings of the Pirates attempting to work out a contract extension with McCutchen, many fans are of the mindset that it’s only a matter of time until he, like countless other Pirates players before him, will either be shipped out of town through the trade route prior to becoming a free agent, or ultimately left to depart via free agency.

Any scenario involving McCutchen leaving would be a bitter pill for Pirates fans to swallow, given the fact they’ve seen quality players break out at the Major League level in Pittsburgh - Jason Bay, Jason Kendall and Aramis Ramirez come to mind, among others – only to be sent packing for another organization.

For McCutchen, though, the fact he has come up through the Pirates organization is special to him, and it’s certainly not his desire to head to a different organization.

“I don’t believe anyone, when they get drafted by a team and they’re a homegrown talent, they don’t want to get traded. It’s a business, but at the same time, you’re at home, and you feel like there’s really no place like home.”

McCutchen’s fondness of the Pirates organization and genuine interest in remaining with the team for his whole career is refreshing, and will ultimately come down to whether or not the Pirates decide to pay him the money he’ll be looking for to stay. He is, however, under team control until the end of the 2015 season, regardless.

Non-Pirates fans question any player’s willingness to stay in Pittsburgh, given the fact the Pirates have endured 18 consecutive losing seasons – the longest streak in the history of professional sports – and traditionally operate on a small-market payroll, but Pittsburgh loves its baseball team and the Pirates have one of the nicest ballparks to entertain their loyal fans in.

Given the success rate of the Pirates in recent years, it could even be said that players’ individual achievements aren’t as publicized around the league as a result. To a selfless McCutchen, that notion doesn’t even register in his brain.

“It doesn’t matter what I do individually, what matters to me is what I do to help this team,” McCutchen said. “It’d be very selfish of me to say I’m not getting a lot of notoriety because we might not have as many wins, that’s not the person I am. I’m all about helping my team out and doing what I can to help the ball club win games.”

After seeing the Pirates liquidate the majority of their roster during his first Major League season, McCutchen now fits right in on a young, talented roster that has a lot of players in their mid-20s, players that he played with in the minor leagues.

The infusion of youth to the team – not to mention a refreshing policy instilled by new manager Clint Hurdle - has brought a sense of optimism to an otherwise dismal franchise for close to two decades. The young players are competitive, but can also let loose and enjoy being baseball players again and coming to the ballpark every day.

“Very optimistic, very positive,” McCutchen said of the mood in the Pirates’ clubhouse overall. ” It’s definitely fun. It’s very exciting playing alongside a lot of young guys, just being in the nucleus of the team is great, and I’m very excited for everyone here. We’ve got some great guys on the team and we’re going to be able to help each other out.”

“Set the standards high, keep them there, and just go out and play ball.”