Pedro Alvarez homers onto boat, might be taking this Pirate thing too seriously

Pedro Alvarez has been a member of the Pittsburgh organization for his entire career -- he was drafted by them in 2008, made his PNC Park debut in 2010 and has been a dinger-dropping mainstay ever since. And while it's been a mutually beneficial partnership, it might be time for a change of scenery -- because if Tuesday's Twins-Pirates game is any indication, the man they call El Toro might be letting all that pirate talk go to his head:

"I claim this vessel in the name of the Buccos. Come, Buccaneer, raise the Jolly Roger, that all who traverse these waters may witness my -- wait, what? You mean I'm not actually a pirate? But there's a very lifelike parrot and everything!"

It's also worth mentioning that this isn't a San Francisco/McCovey Cove situation, where the possibility of a home run is accounted for and even encouraged. Alvarez's 446-foot blast reached the Allegheny River on the fly, something that only three players have done in the history of PNC Park -- and something that no Pirate had done until Garrett Jones pulled it off just two years ago. Simply put: Baseballs do not end up there.

Just, uh, parley, Pedro. Parley! Have mercy on our flotation devices!