Pirates insist adversity they dealt with in 2011 will help them win in 2012

The Pirates have assured themselves of another losing season.

That, of course, is nothing new. The Pirates have had 19 of them in a row, extending their record for most consecutive sub-.500 seasons by a major North American professional sports franchise.

The Pirates broke the record two years ago of 16that had been set by the 1933-48 Phillies. Things got so bad for the Phillies during that span that they went into the witness protection program for a while and were known as the Blue Jays for two seasons in the late 1930s. However, the Pirates have no plans to change their name. In fact, there is a feeling of optimism that the streak of losing seasons will end soon.

"It's going to happen," right-hander Charlie Morton said.