PITTSBURGH — The game is the same. Where he's playing it is a whole lot different.

Last year at this time, Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Nate McLouth was toiling away at Triple-A Indianapolis.

This year, the 24-year-old left-handed hitter was opening the season in Miller Park in Milwaukee.

The difference in scenery was striking to him.

"This year, I went from Milwaukee to Cincinnati as opposed to Pawtucket to Ottawa," McLouth said. "That's what I kind of skipped out on. I was happy about that."

McLouth is quickly becoming a fan favorite in Pittsburgh because of his blue-collar work ethic.

He rose quickly through the Pirates organization after he was selected in the 25th round of the 2000 draft.

In 2004, he hit .322 with Altoona and led the Eastern League in runs scored (93), hits (166) and doubles (40).

Last year, he was hitting .297 in Indianapolis before the Pirates called him up, and he batted .257 with five home runs in 109 at-bats with the big club.

McLouth savored as much as he could before the home opener against Los Angeles on Monday. It was his first home opener with a major league team.

"It's kind of weird at first, but you have to get over it," McLouth said. "That first opening day, that first home game is pretty special. This is the first time I've done that, and I'm trying to get over that awe and get ready to play.

"I was thinking about it when I woke up this morning and looked out the window," he added. "Beautiful day. Beautiful ballpark. Playing the Dodgers. Sold-out crowd. It doesn't get much better than that."

McLouth was sent out to pinch-hit for pitcher Ryan Vogelsong Monday, but he was called back when the Dodgers brought in a left-handed reliever to face him.

Life might be like that for McLouth this season as he's competing with Chris Duffy for playing time.

McLouth and Duffy came up through the Pirates organization together and have developed a close friendship.

But does that make competing for playing time with Duffy difficult?

"Not really, because we've been together and we're there for each other," McLouth said. "We know what type of player each of us are. To tell you the truth, I'm rooting for him and I'm sure he is routing for me just as much. Whoever is starting that day, the other guy can contribute in his own way."

McLouth sees a lot of familiar faces in the clubhouse because many of the young Bucs have risen through the ranks together.

"A lot of us have played together all the way up," he said. "There are guys I have played with at every single level in this clubhouse, and that's special to have had success down there and bring it up here and hopefully have it translate to this level."

But losing, no matter what the level, is never fun, and the Pirates are losing now.

Pittsburgh opened the season 0-6 and are 3-7 after beating the Dodgers 9-5 Wednesday.

"When that zero keeps lingering in the win column, it's kind of tough to look at it," McLouth said. "But when you think about it, baseball is a game you can recover from a streak like that. In football, if you start 0-6, you're done. But baseball, with the length of schedule, you can bounce back."