BOSTON -- If you're a well-balanced individual, then you've undoubtedly forgotten that Dennis Eckersley said some not-so-nice things about the Pittsburgh Pirates last year. To be precise, he called their weak roster a "hodgepodge of nothingness."
As you might imagine, the Pirates did not forget that commentary. They were insulted by it at the time, but they also lost that series two games to one. Now that they swept the Red Sox early in the 2023 season, their social media team got to work to bring those comments back to the forefront.
The Pirates' Twitter account sent out a tweet on Thursday night, one day after the team finished off a sweep at Fenway Park, which said, "A hodgepodge of victories." The accompanying video included clips of Eckersley's comments, along with footage of the Pirates racking up victories over the Red Sox.
The end of the video brought Eckersley's voice back, as he said, "It's ridiculous, it really is. Pathetic."
In fairness to Eckersley, who retired from the broadcast booth at the end of last season, the 2022 Pirates finished the year at 62-100. Only two teams in MLB had fewer wins. And of the 12 position players who took the field the night that Eckersley made those comments, only four of them were part of this year's series sweep. So the Hall of Famer was really not inaccurate at all when he said what he said last August.
Nevertheless, the Pirates haven't won a playoff series since 1979, and they've made the playoffs just three times in the 30 years since Barry Bonds left following the 1992 season, so the opportunity to strut doesn't come along too often. The organization saw this rare opportunity to gloat, and the social media team knocked it out of the park with a solid video.
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Pirates roast Red Sox, Dennis Eckersley for insulting commentary from last season
By Michael Hurley
/ CBS Boston
BOSTON -- If you're a well-balanced individual, then you've undoubtedly forgotten that Dennis Eckersley said some not-so-nice things about the Pittsburgh Pirates last year. To be precise, he called their weak roster a "hodgepodge of nothingness."
As you might imagine, the Pirates did not forget that commentary. They were insulted by it at the time, but they also lost that series two games to one. Now that they swept the Red Sox early in the 2023 season, their social media team got to work to bring those comments back to the forefront.
The Pirates' Twitter account sent out a tweet on Thursday night, one day after the team finished off a sweep at Fenway Park, which said, "A hodgepodge of victories." The accompanying video included clips of Eckersley's comments, along with footage of the Pirates racking up victories over the Red Sox.
The end of the video brought Eckersley's voice back, as he said, "It's ridiculous, it really is. Pathetic."
In fairness to Eckersley, who retired from the broadcast booth at the end of last season, the 2022 Pirates finished the year at 62-100. Only two teams in MLB had fewer wins. And of the 12 position players who took the field the night that Eckersley made those comments, only four of them were part of this year's series sweep. So the Hall of Famer was really not inaccurate at all when he said what he said last August.
Nevertheless, the Pirates haven't won a playoff series since 1979, and they've made the playoffs just three times in the 30 years since Barry Bonds left following the 1992 season, so the opportunity to strut doesn't come along too often. The organization saw this rare opportunity to gloat, and the social media team knocked it out of the park with a solid video.
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