The mystery surrounding Sidney Crosby’s possible return continues.

Pitt just completed another disheartening early exit from the NCAA tournament.

The NFL lockout has fans wondering when they will see their beloved Steelers again.

And, oh yeah, the Pirates open their 2011 season Friday against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Have the Pirates really become that irrelevant in the eyes of the Pittsburgh sports fan or has other local sports news simply overshadowed them?

A little bit of both, probably.

A streak of 18 losing seasons certainly can cause a team’s fans to become jaded. So can four consecutive last-place finishes in the not-so-powerful National League Central, including a 57-105 record from a year ago.

One thing the Pirates cannot be accused of is standing pat.

They have a new manager in Clint Hurdle. They have a new pitching coach in Ray Searage. They have new base coaches.

Of the 25-man Opening Day roster from last season, 15 players are no longer here. They include pitchers Brendan Donnelly, Octavio Dotel, Zach Duke, Javier Lopez, D.J. Carrasco and Jack Taschner, infielders Jeff Clement, Aki Iwamura, Bobby Crosby, Andy LaRoche and Delwyn Young, outfielders Lastings Milledge, Ryan Church and John Raynor.

The 2010 free agent signings of Iwamura, Crosby and Church proved to be disasters.

This year’s free agent signings are first baseman Lyle Overbay, outfielder Matt Diaz and starting pitcher Kevin Correia. For this season to turn into anything, none of those three can be disasters.

The Pirates still aren’t ready to win. Their lineup lacks power and their starting pitching lacks credibility.

The good news is the back end of their bullpen is solid, their defense should be improved and their play should be energetic.

Andrew McCutchen is a budding superstar in center field and it appears he’s ready to bloom. Pedro Alvarez is a power bat waiting to happen at third. Jose Tabata and Neil Walker represent the other half of the core of four expected to lead this long-suffering franchise in the right direction.

As those four mature, the Pirates will score more runs. On some nights, they will be the first four guys in the lineup. Tabata, Walker and McCutchen will hit first, second and third on a regular basis.

Compared to the beginning of last year, the Pirates are stronger defensively at catcher, first base, second base and right field.

Trying to predict a win total for this group is difficult, but the guess here is 72-90. That’s an upgrade of 15 games.

Add another upgrade of 10 games in 2012 and the streak of losing seasons ends.

There’s a better chance of that happening than Ross Ohlendorf, Charlie Morton and Jeff Karstens combining to go 6-33 again.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle.