BRADENTON, Fla.

This was the first workout for Pittsburgh Pirates pitchers and catchers, so full uniforms were required for the first time in spring training at Pirate City.

That meant something special to Derek Shelton, as it marked the first time he wore a black Pirates jersey and gray uniform pants with his name stitched across his shoulders above No. 17.

This was Day 1 of his first season as a major league manager, the realization of a goal he has been working toward for two decades. The 49-year-old was named the 41st manager of the Pirates on Nov. 27, but to be in uniform with all but a handful of position players made it feel “special and real” to Shelton.

No wonder he couldn’t stop smiling afterward.

“I waited a long time to be out here,” Shelton said, stretching out the ‘o’ in long for emphasis. “It was cool. I mean, it was. I think it’s a little bit emotional. You spend a lot of time throughout your career, and you wait for a day like this and an organization like this. It was a really special day.”

What made it even more memorable for Shelton was he shared it with his father, Ron, who lives nearby and watched the workout. Ron Shelton coached for three-plus decades at Warren High — where Derek’s No. 8 is retired — and is a member of the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.

“I’m sure you’ll see my dad here a lot. He lives close, and I think my dad’s probably more excited than I am,” Shelton said. “It’s really special. He was a high school coach for 35 years and knows a lot about the game. I’m very fortunate because he has thoughts about how things should go and what they should do. But it’s cool to be able to share that. Anytime you can share experiences with your family, and especially your father, it makes it a cool bonding moment.”

The signature of his first workout with the Pirates was how Shelton kept it light and loose while circling from diamond to diamond to chat with position players at backstops and pitchers before throwing bullpens. After 12 years as a hitting coach, Shelton joked he watched more bullpens than ever, so it was nice to roam around.

Shelton spoke of building relationships and setting expectations as the Pirates shift to a new front office and coaching staff. After nine years with Clint Hurdle in charge, players kept hearing there would be a different feel to this spring training. But they had no idea what that meant until they could see for themselves.

What they had in Hurdle was a man who focused on the minutaie while going through the motions, a manager whose mantras and messages were tuned out in tough times. We found out last summer how little fun baseball can be when a team is losing 24 out of 28 games after the All-Star break.

Shelton gets a fresh start to shape this team in his image.

When he squatted next to Cole Tucker while the players stretched, casually chatting before watching him take some cuts in batting practice, it spoke volumes to the rookie shortstop.

“It was just loose,” Tucker said. “It didn’t seem like anyone was being judged about anything. Obviously, we’re being judged by our play on the field. That’s the game. That’s the business, and it will never change. But just personally, the way we’re interacting with each other is laid-back and freed up, which is nice. As we know, baseball’s a really hard game. It’s even harder when you’re insecure about what people might think about you.”

Shelton made clear the importance of honesty and transparency to his approach, however, starting with an announcement. At PiratesFest last month at PNC Park, Shelton avoided giving an answer when asked about who would replace two-time All-Star Felipe Vazquez as closer. Shelton wanted to have a conversation first with Keone Kela before divulging what had been decided. It earned Kela’s immediate respect.

That’s paramount for the Pirates, projected to lose 102 games this season by USA Today. Shelton is excited about a team with a talented, young core but knows the Pirates are undergoing a rebuild — even if they refuse to say so.

“Everyone keeps saying, ‘It’s going to be different this year. It’s going to be fun. It’s going to look and sound different,’ ” Tucker said. “What does that look like? Fun can be taken a lot of different ways, but we’re seeing that show up already and we’ve been here five minutes. … It feels like he’s been here before. It doesn’t feel like he’s this new, stiff guy.”

That was the secret to Shelton’s first official practice as Pirates manager: He fit right in with a new team, which is exactly how the Pirates felt after only one pitchers and catchers workout.

“It’s a big day for him because it’s his first day of being a manager,” right-hander Mitch Keller said, “and for all of us who have been with the Pirates for a long time, it kind of feels like a new team, honestly. It’s the same group of guys, but everything else is different. That’s a good change.”

One that was a long time in the making for Shelton, who hopes it’s the start of something special with the Pirates.

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