BASEBALL DAILY REPORT : NATIONAL LEAGUE : Pirates’ Jackson Recalls Hard Time

During a pregame news conference, Danny Jackson, who will start Game 2 for the Pirates today, showed some emotion when talking about his return to the playoffs after two years of injuries and failures with the Chicago Cubs.

“I’ve learned a lot,” said Jackson, who was traded by the Cubs at midseason for Steve Buechele. “I’ve been through hard times, it got to be a real mental thing for me. Thanks to my wife (Jody), I made it. She kept me from giving up.”

When asked if he had mellowed while experiencing more injuries than victories, five, for the Cubs during 1 1/2 seasons there, Jackson snarled.

“I’ve still got the same attitude,” he said. “I can still be a jerk.”

The Pirates need both his attitude and his postseason experience. He is 2-0 with a 1.27 ERA in two championship series, and 1-1 with a 2.89 ERA in two World Series.

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Steve Avery, today’s Atlanta starter who has experienced some criticism this season while going 11-11 with a 3.20 ERA, acknowledged that he has been been burdened by expectations.

“Yeah, at times, I have,” Avery said. “Everyone sees what happened last year, and they expect it to happen every time I go out there this year.

“It’s tough when people say I’ve had an off year. People close to the game and close to me know I haven’t.”