PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – In the history of the franchise there has never been an opening to spring training where the club’s general manager and manager didn’t say they were excited. There is more confidence in that feeling this season.

Ben Cherington said it’s probably the deepest, most talented group they’ve had under his seven-year tenure as the team’s GM. They added former all-stars Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn and soon will officially announce a 40-home run hitter in Marcell Ozuna. They return Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz and have the top prospect in all of baseball, shortstop Konnor Griffin. Oh, and the Cy Young Award winner and several highly touted young pitchers.

“We actually talked about this (Tuesday) in our first staff meeting, that sort of stops mattering today,” Cherington said. “All that matters today, and from today on, is are we doing the things every day to give us the best chance to win games when we go to New York and beyond during the season. Belief in the players whatever the projections say, the prognosticators say, we got to go out and do the work that leads to winning baseball games.”

To that point, in his first spring training as manager, Donny Kelly has come up with a slogan for this season.

‘We got to own the things that lead to winning’

“If you study really good teams, elite teams around the world, whatever sport it is, you notice they don’t talk about winning,” Cherington said. “They just talk about and focus on the things that lead to winning. That’s Donny’s mantra. That’s what he is focused on. That’s where his energy is, what leads to winning.”

“Really excited about it,” Kelly said. “The guys that we’ve been able to bring in, from a playing standpoint, have had success. When you’re talking about Lowe [he’s] been in Tampa, playing in the playoffs. O’Hearn has experienced that. Ozuna won a World Series. To be able to bring in those guys that have been at that level and understand what it takes over the course of 162 to get to the playoffs.”

“And that’s the goal, is to be playing more than 162.”