Nutting: Pirates had ‘step back’ in ’16, but talent is there

” The Pittsburgh Pirates missed the playoffs last season for the first time in four years, but that won’t cause chairman Bob Nutting to abandon the team’s steady, build-from-within approach. “We have not embraced, as many teams have, that you have to go in cycles and you have to commit to five years of a bad team in a rebuilding cycle,” Nutting said Monday after addressing the team at spring training.

Retooled Cardinals have sights set on postseason return

It was one thing for many people to predict St. Louis would finish behind the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central Division before last season. It’s another matter entirely for the Cardinals heading into this spring training, knowing they are indeed the team doing the chasing of the defending World Series champions.