PITTSBURGH — A funny thing is happening on the way to a 19th consecutive losing season.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are winning.

Sure, they won’t be confused with the Phillies or Red Sox — teams the Pirates have gone 4-2 against in June — but the baseball bar has been set pretty low in the ‘Burgh.

Coasting along at a game or two above the .500 mark is good enough around here.

But not for the Pirate players, and especially not for their new manager, Clint Hurdle.

And that’s a good thing.

After the Pirates beat Boston Friday night, Hurdle and starting pitcher Paul Maholm, among others, fended off question after question about how great it was to beat, gasp, the mighty Red Sox and their vaunted lineup.

“It’s always nice to have opportunities during the season to gauge your growth,” Hurdle said, bristling at a question about how he personally felt about slaying the mighty Red Sox dragon, the one that breathed fire all over his Colorado Rockies in a World Series sweep in 2007. “This isn’t going to replace losing to a team in the World Series. C’mon,” he added.

Hurdle went on to say it was just one game and one series against just another baseball team.

Maholm said the same.

And that’s the difference this season. The Pirates think they can beat anyone. And they can.

Against good clubs last season, the Bucs were clearly outclassed and had a major league worst minus-279 run differential.

The Pirates have been outscored by a mere 12 runs this year.

Hurdle has brought a much-needed attitude adjustment. He’s added passion to a young team that has desperately needed it for years during the uninspiring tenures of John Russell and Jim Tracy.

He’s also held the players accountable, hasn’t been afraid to experiment and has guided the Pirates through a plethora of injuries.

The Bucs have started seven different players at catcher already this season and have guys like Chase d’Arnaud, Michael McKenry and Alex Presley playing key roles.

Yet they are above .500 and, more importantly, are only three games out of first place in the mediocre NL Central.

The club isn’t without flaws. The lineup is full of free swingers with not a whole lot of power. The bottom three in the order — Ronny Cedeno, whoever is healthy enough to catch on that particular day, and the pitcher — are batting a combined .203 this season.

Things, though, are not as bleak as they have been for almost two decades.

Neil Walker leads all major league second baseman in RBI and is on pace to become the first Bucco second baseman to reach 100 RBI since Lou Bierbauer in 1894. The pitching staff from top to bottom has been exceptional and Andrew McCutchen is a burgeoning star.

That’s something worth getting excited about beyond simply beating the Red Sox twice.

Mike Kilroy is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle.