MLB Power Rankings: Can Pirates ‘hang for a bit’?

The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming off a 2-2 split with the NL Central rival St. Louis Cardinals over the weekend.

The split puts the Pirates at 9-7 on the young season, two games back of the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the division.

Despite the success, CBS Sports ranked the Pirates at No. 21 for the second consecutive week.

How long can they hang around above .500 and in contention? The talent isn’t there, but they battle on nearly a nightly basis. The rest of the April schedule isn’t too tough, either. They might well hang for a bit.

The Pirates can certainly “hang” for a bit if they continue to play the way they have as of late. All of their games in the month of April (apart from a three-game home set next week against the Los Angeles Dodgers) come against last-place teams in the National League.

The first of those series starts today with a three-game set in Denver against the Colorado Rockies.