Joe Starkey: Pirates will win the World Series ... in 2027

PITTSBURGH — A depressing question keeps popping up these days: Which of our teams is next to win a championship?

I say depressing because the right answer might actually be "the Pirates."

Depressing, too, because the question itself forces us to face mortality, at least in the form of (arguably) the two greatest Pittsburgh athletes of the 21st Century nearing the end of regulation in their respective careers.

Ben Roethlisberger and Sidney Crosby— and the five championships between them — aren't finished yet. One or both might yet make a serious run at another title. Roethlisberger was a legit MVP candidate as late as Week 11 last season. Crosby remains one of the finest hockey players in the world.

On the other hand — and feel free to take a moment after this revelation — Big Ben and Sid the Kid are a combined 72 years old.

Didn't they just get here?

That's not all the bad news. There's more ...

— The Steelers haven't won a playoff game since 2016. In fact, they have won fewer playoff games (three) than the Houston Texans over the past decade, and two of the quarterbacks they beat were Matt Moore and A.J. McCarron, who combined to go 0-2 in their playoff careers (even Tim Tebow had a postseason win, and I probably don't need to remind you who it came against).

— The Penguins haven't won a playoff series in the past three years and were non-competitive in two. Their other franchise pillar (Evgeni Malkin) is 34 going on 84, or so it sometimes seems. He will miss the start of next season rehabbing a knee injury.

At best, the Steelers and Penguins are considered fringe playoff teams headed into their upcoming seasons. Again, that doesn't preclude a lengthy playoff run — I happen to believe the Steelers will be better than most expect — but who would wager anything of significance on either winning a championship anytime soon?

That leaves the Pirates.

I'll wait while you laugh (or cry).

Finished?

Good, because you're gonna need to brace yourself for this reality: The Pirates might have the brightest immediate future of our professional sports teams ... if by immediate we mean "before 2030."

It's ugly now. No denying that. People named Will Craig, Ka'ai Tom and Ildemaro Vargas have been running around PNC Park this season, one of them in a rundown between home and first. The few good players, at least the older ones, are being pushed for prospects. Gregory Polanco still starts in right field. Toddlers can count the crowd sizes.

But that's kind of the point. Or at least the hope. You know, the darkest-before-dawn thing. Only by going 6-10 were the Steelers in position to draft Roethlisberger. Only by sinking to the bottom of league with Will Craigs of their own — remember Ramzi Abid? — were the Penguins able to rebuild around Crosby and Malkin.

The Pirates might soon have the best farm system in all of baseball. It's trending that way. They don't give trophies for such things. I'm aware of that. But what general manager Ben Cherington pulled off in the draft was astounding.

Check the pre-draft rankings of Baseball America, Fan Graphs, ESPN and MLB.com combined, and the Pirates snagged three of the consensus top 30 players in catcher Henry Davis, pitcher Anthony Solemeto and pitcher/shortstop Bubba Chandler, who had a football scholarship at Clemson waiting for him.

And that was before they took a chance on 6-foot-3, 212-pound freak athlete Lonnie White Jr. — a Penn State football recruit — and signed him, too.

Former major leaguer Ben Davis, now a Phillies broadcaster, told phillyvoice.com that White is "a high school Dave Winfield," referring to the former San Diego Padres star who also was drafted by NFL and NBA teams.

That doesn't mean White will make the Hall of Fame. It does mean the Pirates are adding talent on top of talent to a farm system that soon enough should be bursting with enticing prospects nearing the majors.

And don't forget: The Pirates have the fourth-worst record in baseball this season, which means another top-five pick next year — and next year they should stink again!

Some franchises never emerge from the "promising prospects" phase. Without the development part, you have nothing. But what baseball writers Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo asserted on MLB.com is just plain true: "The most efficient way to build a winning big league club is by constructing a strong farm system, and since MLB Pipeline began ranking farm systems biannually in 2015, every organization that claimed the top spot has enjoyed plenty of on-field success."

Those organizations have included the Rays, Braves, Brewers, Cubs, Red Sox, Dodgers, White Sox and Padres.

You're now yelling: "Most of those teams spend big money on big leaguers, too!"

I hear you (although the Rays don't). The Brewers aren't breaking any payroll records. Oakland and Cleveland usually pay little and win big, too.

But I'm not just comparing the Pirates to other baseball teams. I'm comparing them to the Penguins and Steelers — and I'm saying the Pirates will be the next of our teams to win a championship.

The year 2027 sounds right.

Mark it down.