The Pittsburgh Pirates are right back where they started from at the beginning of the season.

The Pirates went 12-26 in their first 38 games, prompting the firing of Derek Shelton, his six-year career ending on a seven-game losing streak. Bench coach Don Kelly replaced Shelton.

Under Kelly, the Pirates have looked a lot better. They've cut down on the mental mistakes that plagued them throughout the season's first seven weeks and looked more like a major-league team and less like an adult recreation league one.

When the Pirates swept the defending World Series champion and current National League West-leading Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-game home series from Sept. 2-4, it looked like they could have a strong finish to a forgettable season.

The Pirates had won 12 of their 16 games at that point, including winning three-game series against two American League East contenders, the first-place Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox. The Pirates were just 64-77 but had gone 52-51 under Kelly.

Yet it's all fallen apart down the stretch.

The Pirates have since lost 12 of their last 13 games, including being swept in a three-game series at home by the postseason-bound Chicago Cubs. At 65-89, the Pirates are on the brink of a 90-loss season.

The Pirates play their final home series of the season beginning Friday night against the (West Sacramento) Athletics before finishing with a six-game road trip that includes three games each against the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves.

The Reds are still in the NL wild card race, but the Athletics and Braves are playing out the string. The Pirates should win a few of those games.

Jobs could be on the line.

General manager Ben Cherington has had six years to turn the Pirates into winners and hasn't done it. Kelly's future could hinge on Cherington's. Hitting coach Matt Hague is in only his first year on the job, but the Pirates are last in the major leagues in runs scored and home runs.

So, while the Pirates will miss the postseason for the 10th straight season, their last nine game still have significance.