A traffic cone, the welder’s hood, hard hats and now … a bounce house.
Yes, a bounce house.
Following up on a joke from over the weekend in Milwaukee, Paul Skenes actually ordered a bounce house and had it delivered to the Pirates’ clubhouse at PNC Park, the latest bit of levity for this fun-loving group.
When players arrived Monday for the start of a series against the St. Louis Cardinals, they saw an inflatable bounce house sitting in the middle of the clubhouse, below a disco ball and in front of a basketball hoop.
It’s all white and looks like a miniature castle. There’s also a non-zero chance Griffin would pop the thing if he actually started bouncing around. Here’s an educated guess the attached slide won’t deliver much of a thrill.
But it’s still hilarious and links back to Friday night during the Pirates’ 6-0 victory over the Brewers at American Family Field, where Konnor Griffin hit his first MLB home run on his 20th birthday.
Afterward, Skenes said he and Jake Mangum had kicked around the idea of celebrating the occasion in a rather unique way.
“I had talked with Mangum about doing something for Konnor, but a bounce house would’ve been a little tough in the clubhouse,” Skenes said, trying his best to not laugh.
Skenes then proceeded to give Griffin some grief about his youth — “He turned 20. Big whoop. Who cares?” — while cracking another joke about Mangum’s birthday cake this spring, saying the outfielder did it for himself.
“I have a feeling we’ll see more cakes this year,” Skenes said. “I was more focused on pitching today than getting a cake, but that would’ve been funny.
“Chef Tony [Palatucci] will have something for him when we get home, I know that. Missed opportunity.”
With the start of an important homestand against two NL Central foes, the Pirates found the front of the line and removed their shoes for this one.
Plus, birthday gifts are better late than never, right?
We’ll see if anyone actually uses the bounce house. Perhaps it could be used to incentivize winning, like “Major League.” Let’s hope Skenes kept the receipt or purchased some sort of warranty protection.
Asked the next day what he would’ve done if players actually installed a bounce house in the clubhouse, Pirates manager Don Kelly couldn’t help but give an honest answer.
“Maybe jumped in it?” Kelly deadpanned. “Ask Konnor if I could get in.”
Well, now Kelly can. Tuck your shoes in one of those little cubbies, Skip.
It’s the latest of a series of Pirates gags this season, moves that show a much-improved and frankly very fun clubhouse culture.
“It’s been great,” Kelly said. “It goes back to Mangum getting his own birthday cake in Spring Training. That set the standard there.
“But the guys are enjoying themselves. They’re pulling for each other and showing up every single day to compete.”
Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH.