A.J. Burnett hopes to return in mid-September

The Pittsburgh Pirates own the second-best record in Major League Baseball, and they might be getting better come September. On Sunday, veteran starting pitcher A.J. Burnett took a bullpen session and it went well, giving him hope that a return during September would not be out of the question, according to the Associated Press.

"“It was good, better than expected,” Burnett said of the bullpen session. “The pain is gone and I feel good.”"

Burnett is likely in his last campaign. The 38-year-old is still producing at a high level, pitching to a 3.06 earned run average with an 8-5 record over 21 starts. However, his ERA is north of 10 since the All-Star break, pitching in three games before going on the disabled list on July 31 with a strained flexor tendon in his elbow.

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At 79-50, the Pirates are trailing the St. Louis Cardinals by 4.5 games in the National League Central. St. Louis has all but led the division wire-to-wire, rolling toward 100 wins with a 84-46 mark. If the season were to end today, the Pirates would be in the NL Wild Card game and hosting it for the third consecutive season, winning in 2013 over the Cincinnati Reds before losing to the San Francisco Giants last year.

The last time Pittsburgh won an extended playoff series was in 1979, when the Pirates and their “We are Family” team won the World Series in seven games over the Baltimore Orioles. Since then, Pittsburgh made the playoffs three straight seasons from 1990-92 with Andy Van Slyke and Barry Bonds, but could not get past the Reds and Atlanta Braves. Pittsburgh then went 20 seasons without cracking a .500 record.