Here's who to keep an eye on during spring training in Bradenton.
As the Pittsburgh Pirates assemble Saturday in Bradenton for their first full-squad workout, it's time to take a closer look at the team. Here are five players to watch this spring, from budding superstars to promising prospects. These are the guys you'll want to keep your camera focused on and try to target for autographs: 1. CF Andrew McCutchen: The youngster is just 24 but was recently picked as MLB Network's best center fielder in the game. If his trademark dreadlocks didn't already make him stand out on the field, his raw talent would still be easy to spot. McCutchen, Pittsburgh's version of former Tampa Bay Ray Carl Crawford, may have the best shot at being the team's All-Star representative in 2011. 2. 3B Pedro Alvarez: As a rookie …
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Pirate City
1701 27th St E, Bradenton, FL
/articles/5-pirates-players-to-watch-this-spring
1760163
/locations/3438954
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-82.57122
McKechnie Field
1611 9th St W, Bradenton, FL
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/locations/3438955
Pittsburgh, led by new manager Hurdle, brings renewed optimism to first spring workout at Pirate City.
Clint Hurdle isn't afraid to go where others have gone -- and failed. Hurdle, taking over as the new Pittsburgh Pirates manager this spring, is the latest to be tasked with getting the franchise back to the winning ways that once defined it. He got his first in-person look at a portion of his new squad Monday as the Pirates returned to Bradenton for training camp at Pirate City. "Many good men have gone before me," said Hurdle, hired by the Pirates in November. Those men couldn't save Pittsburgh from 18 straight losing seasons, the longest such streak in North American pro sports. But Hurdle, the former Colorado manager who led the Rockies to the 2007 World Series, said he thinks there's something to build upon in Pittsburgh, and he …
27.48357
-82.53025
Pirate City
1701 27th St E, Bradenton, FL
/articles/big-leaguers-in-bradenton-for-pirates-training-camp
1760163
/locations/3009826
