On January 31st, the Pittsburgh Pirates posted on their official Instagram page that their spring training was to start in two weeks. The Pirates have recently come under fire from fans after they traded what many believed to be their best players: Starting pitcher Garrett Cole was traded to the Houston Astros and Centerfielder Andrew McCutchen was traded to the San Francisco Giants. The Pirates are still optimistic for a winning season relying on top players like Second Baseman Josh Harrison and Pitcher Jameson Taillon.

However, longtime fans of the club have felt betrayed by these moves because McCutchen and Cole were one of the most important parts in their most recent playoff pushes back in 2013 and 2014. But know, fans feel like that recent history was just wiped away. The Pirates now only have prospects that they got from the trade to fill in the massive shoes that were left by McCutchen and Cole in their time at the club.

The Pirates have failed to reach the postseason for the last four years and fans are starting to question the effectiveness of the coaching and management staff. But there have been no major movements have been made in the Pirates’ front office.

This year, the Pirates will be on damage control to at least try to get a season without one hundred losses. It looks like this year will be a reloading year where they will try to give young prospects a shot in the show so they have experience under their belt.