Going to every Pittsburgh Pirates home game and getting paid for it sounds like a great way to spend the summer, but for Josh Croup his internship is a way to increase his appeal on the job market.

The 2014 Butler High School graduate and broadcast reporting major at Point Park University in Pittsburgh is putting in long hours during every Pirate homestand setting up the press box for the media, delivering game notes and lineup sheets to manager Clint Hurdle and the coaching staff, supplying the broadcasters with stats during the game and handing out the final box scores and stats to the reporters.

Croup said his favorite part of the job is giving announcers Greg Brown and Joe Block statistics and information for them to use during the game.

“We’re feeding them stats and making them look real smart on the air,” Croup said. “For instance, if Andrew McCutcheon has three hits, we look up to see when he’s had a four-hit game and pass that on.”

“Sometimes we get questions from the broadcasters,” Croup said. “Block loves interesting stats. We are thinking ahead looking up stuff to give our broadcasting team. We use stat information websites, Elias Sports Bureau.”

It helps that Croup works in the press box with a great view of the game. “Baseball moves slow enough that we can do stat work between pitches and still see about 90 percent of the games,” Croup said.

While he’s close to the broadcasters, Croup said the players are farther away.

“The players are all one level down in their clubhouse,” Croup said. “Our main goal is to get stuff to Clint Hurdle.”

“He’s very down to earth. When we started. He took a few minutes to talk to each of us to get to know us a little bit,” Croup said.

As for the players, Croup said he and his fellow interns’ interactions are limited to a nod in the hall or a quick “Hi” in passing.

Croup’s internship started on Opening Day and will continue “until we win the World Series, or whenever the last day of the season is.”

It’s a long season made up of long days.

“For a 7:05 p.m. game, we’re usually get in between 1 and 2 p.m. and stay 45 minutes to an hour after the game,” Croup said.

Events such as the major league draft, the Pirates’ June 12 purchase of catcher Erik Kratz from the Los Angeles Angels or a national Fox television broadcast make the days longer.

Croup gets paid minimum wage for his work (“I will take whatever comes my way”) but he doesn’t get class credit.

He received class credit last summer for his video production internship with the West Virginia Power, the Class A affiliate of the Pirates.

Croup said, “Right now, I am a broadcasting major, editor of the newspaper, the Globe. I do a lot with the TV and radio stations, along with the athletic department.”

“I work in athletic communications, helping the sports information director along with the Pirates internship,” said Croup.

“At this point, I am trying to make myself as marketable as possible. I don’t want to limit myself to any one career path as yet,” Croup said.

Kevin Taylor, Point Park assistant athletic director and director of athletic communications, said, “He is a student worker of mine. He has what is called an apprenticeship through the school of communications. I’m very glad to have Josh in that role.”

“One of the big things he does, he has a lot of different skill sets he brings: game highlights, recaps. He broadcasts games. He’s on-air talent,” said Taylor.

“He’s able to write, that’s a big thing. The written word is something today’s aspiring journalists are forgetting, how to write, how to use good grammar.”

Tayler said, “ The thing about Josh is he seems to be involved in everything, preparing himself for the future, He’s keeping busy. I have no problem with him doing all these things because I know he will give 100 percent. I don’t know how he finds the time.”

Croup credits his parents, Deborah and William Croup of Butler Township, with “being incredibly supportive. I can’t thank them enough.”

And he is supporting the Pirates even through their recent spate of playing below .500 baseball.

“The games are definitely more fun when they are winning. The beginning of the season was really fun when they swept the Cardinals,” said Croup.

“It all comes down to the pitching staff in a division that is really tough. The Cubs are in first place and they’re not slowing down anytime soon. But it’s not time to abandon ship yet.”