Pirates' Corey Dickerson waiting for his chance to be a hero again

In the “Toy Story” movie series, Buzz Lightyear is often the hero.

Corey Dickerson borrowed that persona Thursday when the Pittsburgh Pirates players and staff dressed as superheroes for the trip to Milwaukee.

When he arrives, he hopes to get off the injury list he has been on since April 4 and be a hero to his teammates again.

Dickerson, who had a shoulder strain, returned from a rehab stint in Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday and was on the plane. When or if he plays during the three-city, 10-game road trip hasn’t been decided, he said.

“Play baseball, whenever they tell me to play,” Dickerson said when asked about his plans. “Clint (Hurdle) and I are still talking. We’ll figure it out and go from there.”

Dickerson, who hit .300 and won a Gold Glove in left field last year, had only six hits in 33 at-bats in Indianapolis, but he said it took some days to regain his batting eye and timing.

“It’s fun going down there, seeing the guys down there, get my work in, put my body through what I need to to get back to where I need to be,” he said. “The last three, four days, the last three or four games, I hit the ball really hard a couple times, walked a couple times, got some RBIs, felt really good at the plate.

“A lot of things were coming together. At the beginning, my body was trying to get broken in, used to playing again. Also, all I’ve done was hit BP for two months and then go down there and hit live pitching out of the gate, it was tough.”

Dickerson arrived in the Pirates clubhouse just in time to join teammates for their dress-up trip. Serendipitously, a teammate had an extra costume and it was Buzz Lightyear, one of his 4-year-old son Davis’ favorite characters.

“I remember having to do this stuff when I was a rookie,” he said. “To step out of your comfort zone with all your teammates and have fun with it, it’s a chance to grow together.”