Bedard is hoping to kickstart his career with Bucs

Associated Press

Pittsburgh

The Pittsburgh Pirates were shuffling toward their dugout at PNC Park following an open workout on Wednesday afternoon when a fan yelled “we still believe.”

Yep, must be Opening Day.

How else to explain the smell of fresh paint at the picturesque stadium along the Allegheny River or the small bouquet of red and yellow flowers that adorn manager Clint Hurdle’s desk?

Today, baseball starts anew. And the Pirates — for what they hope isn’t the last time this season — have the same record as the Phillies, who they host in the season opener.

“We’re better,” Hurdle said. “We’ve got to go prove it on the field now.”

The Pirates spent the offseason insisting their four-month flirtation with success in 2011 was no fluke.

The Phillies spent it trying to recover from a painful collapse in the playoffs when a 102-win team lost in five games to eventual World Series-champion St. Louis.

The lasting image of Philadelphia’s season is slugger Ryan Howard trying to crawl toward first base after tearing the Achilles tendon in his left leg while making the final out of the season.

Nearly six months later, manager Charlie Manuel still isn’t sure who’s going to fill Howard’s spot until the 2006 MVP returns. Or at least, Manuel isn’t willing to share it.

“I’ve still got 20 hours,” Manuel said with a laugh.

It’s unlikely the Phillies would start veteran Jim Thome at first against Pittsburgh left-hander Erik Bedard, who is looking to revive his promising but injury-plagued career. Last August, the Pirates limped to the finish while enduring a 19th straight losing season.

Catcher Rod Barajas, shortstop Clint Barmes, first baseman Casey McGehee and outfielder Nate McLouth were brought in to provide depth around the young core of centerfielder Andrew McCutchen, second baseman Neil Walker and rightfielder Jose Tabata.

“I feel like we’ve got a lot of guys that can contribute,” said McCutchen, who signed a new six-year contract last month that will keep him in Pittsburgh through 2017. “There is no backtrack on what we have.”

Hurdle, however, insists pitching will determine whether the Pirates survive a brutal opening month that includes a nine-game West Coast road trip. It’s why he so quickly turned to Bedard after supposed ace A.J. Burnett went down with a fractured right orbital bone sustained during a bunting drill five weeks ago.

The 33-year-old Bedard has been limited by injuries throughout his career, including a shoulder problem that forced him to miss all of 2010. He came back to go 5-9 with a respectable 3.62 ERA while playing for Seattle and Boston last season before signing a one-year deal with Pittsburgh last December.

Bedard is as healthy as he’s been in quite some time and understands how vital it is for him to prove he can stay off the disabled list.

“I’m going to do the best I can,” Bedard said. “I know I’ve had a lot of injuries in the past and I’m trying to get over that.”