Bucco Notebook 8-25- Great Homestand

After a miserable road trip, the young Bucs returned to PNC Park for a six game home stand and played great baseball. Unfortunately, I didn't get to go to any games because I had a long brutal home stand of my own to work, but I did get to watch the games for the most part and liked what I saw. It was a shame that Homer Bailey shut us down yesterday, but it was a very good home stand, showing exactly what this team could potentially do.

Good pitching, timely hitting, some power, some speed. Who were those masked guys pretending to be our Buccos? Instead of breaking down the baseball like I always do, I want to comment about the best part of the home stand. No, it wasn't the 5 straight wins, but instead it was the 1979 throwback uniforms worn Friday and Saturday.

Boy, did they look sharp or what. Brought back memories of the good old days (i was 4 in 79) of Pirates baseball. I would like to see them wear one of the throwbacks for every Friday game next season. It was also great seeing the cast from 1979 at PNC Park.

This is going to be short, so I will pose a question to you and let you discuss it. A friend of mine actually brought this up while we were watching the end of the game Saturday. But, how much pride do you think these young Bucco's had putting on that uniform? Being such a young team (very few if any were even born in 1979), do you think they finally said "We want to wear this uniform with pride."

Do you think it's possible that during this weekend that they finally realized it is now their team and they said "we aren't complete losers like the bunch before us." Do you think they felt that they could start a winning tradition, like the guys that originally wore that 1979 uniform? Or do you think it was just another day at the ball park with another gimmick for them.

I know it's a stretch, but maybe it takes something like that for young guys. This group of Pirates and the group to follow have their own Pirates tradition to start writing. The winning hopefully will begin soon. It's hard to tell because while the Bucs play looked inspired, they were playing the dreadful Reds, who are in a lot worse shape than the Bucs.

I don't know, I just figured I'd write something other than the x's and o's for a change. maybe one day in about 30 years, we can got to a 2012 or 2013 throwback uniform night, for the same reason as this last gathering of greats- A World Series Championship

Evaluating Prospects

Very interesting list on Baseball America. Top Prospects of All-Time. Check it out
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/rankings/top-100-prospects/all-time.html

Next Check out who ranks 1 & 2 on the Baseball America Prospect Hot Sheet
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/prospect-hot-sheet/2009/268713.html

First of all, I am big on rankings and evaluations of young players, but they must be taken with a grain of salt. Not all guys ranked high have gone on to become solid Major League Players, but more often than not, they do. I always say the biggest transition is from AA or AAA to the MLB. Some guys can handle it and some guys simply can not.

I have heard in the past that I have defended Neil Huntington too much. I am not necessarily a fan of his, but he has a job to do and he has stuck to the plan so far, which I commend. He had to blow this franchise up.


Why have we been losing for 17 seasons? It's a direct correlation to developing young talent. I will go all the way back to the last winning seasons in Pittsburgh. If you clicked on the first link above, you saw the Baseball America Top 100 Prospects list for every season dating back to 1990. That season, the Bucs had 3 of the top 100. They dealt 2 of those (Moises Alou and Willie Greene) to acquire Zane Smith, which helped them win two Division titles.

Taking Alou and Greene off the list, it amazed me how truly sad we have been at drafting and developing young talent. I didn't even think we were this bad. If you didn't read the list:

90 Keith Richardson #73 (never pitched for Pirates)
91 Kurt Miller #24 (never Pitched for Pirates
Carlos Garcia # 62 (average major league 2B
Mike Zimmerman #90 (never amounted to anything)
92 Steve Cooke #52 (below average mlb pitcher)
Kevin Young #100 (average mlb player)
93 None
94 Midre Cummings #33 (career was a joke)
95 "Steamin" Trey Beamon #43 (don't think he had a career)
96 Jason Kendall #26 (has had a productive career)
Chad Hermanson #54 (The savior)
97 Kris Benson #8 (arm injuries derailed a potentially good career)
Jose Guillen #24 (never really met expectations, but a serviceable career)
Aramis Rameriz #26 (the best one we had that got away)
Abraham Nunez #65 (career utility player)
Jimmy Anderson #88 (2 time opening day starter. Boy did he suck)
98 Jeff Wallace #91 (no career)
99 Warren Morris #84 (one good year in the bigs)
00 JJ Davis #97 (BUM)
01 Bobby Bradley #20 (Arm Injuries, never made it)
JR House #21 (Left to play football)
02 John Van Benschoten #88 ( Could be the worst pitcher & draft pick ever)
03 None
04 Sean Burnett #64 (under achiever)
Jason Bay #74 (very good mlb ball player)
Bryan Bullington #97 (Could have had B.J. Upton. #1 Pick that never got a win for the Pirates)
05 Zach Duke #34 (becoming a solid MLB pitcher)
Neil Walker #81 ( finally starting to hit in the minors 4 years later. Probably no future)
06 Andrew McCutchen #50 (STUD)
Tom Gorzelanny #95 (average mlb pitcher at best)
07 Brad Lincoln #69 (future staff ace?)
08 Steve Pearce #89 (has no mlb future, bench role at best)

Now for purpose of this post, I only included the players for the first season they cracked the top 100. Some players have made the list multiple seasons. Do all guys pan out? Of course not. Do things happen along the way, like injuries? Of course they do. Do the rankings flat out miss on guys? Yes they do.

For this illustration however, take a look at the complete list and they tend to get it right most of the time. My list is primarily just to illustrate the pure lack of homegrown young talent in the Pirates system for the last 17 years. Folks, it's plain and simple why we can't win. We had to make the moves we did. We had to get talent in this system somehow.

We gave away Aramis Rameriz, but in 17 seasons, only Rameriz, Kendall, Duke, Bay and most recently McCutchen have had legit major league talent. That's 5 guys in 17 seasons and it's not acceptable. The two highest rated prospect on this list that the Bucs have ever had were Kris Benson in 1998 and McCutchen at #13 In 2007.

There is a correlation to winning with these list. Every team that has had many of these prospects have been legit winning organizations. Even look at the Tampa rays of 08, who in the 2 season prior had 24 names on that list. No reason the Bucs should have had 1 guy here and another one there. That's not doing your homework on young players and that's not how you win.

So Huntington had to blow up the team and in the last calender year, look at the potential talent he has added. On the 2008 top 100, there were 10 current Buccos represented. Only 4 were in the organization prior to Huntington's arrival: McCutchen, Lincoln, Pearce and Walker. The new 6 on the list include: Laroche, Tabata, Clement, Alderson, Hernandez and Milledge.

Now that list doesn't include guys who will be on the 2009 list like Alvarez, Sanchez, Owens, etc. Nor does it include any members of the last two drafts, in which the franchise has gone out and spent money on their future. that list will include another 10-15 young, future Pirates So it's almost impossible for me to argue that Huntington hasn't been taking the right approach to this organization.

Next click on the second link and read Baseball America's Prospect Hot Sheet, ranking the Mid-Season Prospects. Numbers 1 & 2 on the list are Tony Sanchez and Pedro Alvarez. Again, will all of the youngster become solid major leaguers? No, but it gives hope. Even if a third of them do, it's far more talent than we have had in 17 seasons, so it's impossible again to knock the approach.

Want a little more proof that Neil Huntington is doing the right thing? Would you rather watch Ross Ohlendorff, Charlie Morton and Kevin Hart pitch or last years solid rotation including Yoslan Herrara, John Van Benschoten, Matt Morris, etc. The facts are we are slowly getting better.

The final thing I am sick and tired of people telling me is that as soon as these guys get good, then Huntington will trade them. That's absurd to begin with. All of the guys dealt this year were unlikely to be back anyways. Huntington acquired guys with right he can control through 2015 and 2016 in most cases. Again, it shows that the guy seems to have a baseball head about him.

So if it sounds like I'm being a mark for Neil Huntington, so be it. The facts are that there is more talent in this organization than at any point in the last 17 seasons. Will the plan work? Only time will tell, but it's a good time to get excited about Pirates baseball. This thing could finally turn around in a couple of seasons.

NOTEBOOK
- since I brought up Chad Hermansen, made me think of one of my favorite lines of all time. One scout said about Hermansen " Chad Hermansen can walk on water. He just can't hit."

- Steven Jackson been throwing well lately. Last 14 appearances, his era is under 2.00

-Matt Capps fastball had life to it on the home stand. Deal him now. While I'm at it, will anyone take Ryan Doumit

-Lastings Milledge is starting to play well once he got taken out of the 2 hole.

-I really like these group of guys, one challenge for Huntington is to find a power bat next season. I don't think Alvarez will be up and as much as I like Andy Laroche, I can't have him hitting cleanup next season. Although I think he has done fine there in his couple starts.

- Cedeno is nursing a hurt pinkie finger so I'd like to see Bixler play. He has no pressure on him now. Just see what he really is.

- Here is where young teams struggle. Consistent Offense production and winning on the road. We have seen both big time. We know about the struggles offensively, but look at the home and road splits. Home record is five games over .500 at 33-28. Road record is an atrocious 25 games under .500 at 18-43. Once they can learn to play near .500 away from PNC Park, they can start putting winning streaks together

Where is the O?

During this rain delay I had time to do a lot of writing and thinking about this team. It's not a real good time for casual Pirates fans, but the real baseball fans need to just stick with it. I will be the first to admit that the last six games had me frustrated as hell watching the now feeble offense. Getting shut down by Gorzelanny yesterday was just as bad as the 17-2 beat down the day before. Leaving me with the question of, Where is the offense?

The answer is easy, it is mostly all at West Virginia and Altoona, but in the meantime, it would be nice to see these guys go out and at least battle. What happened to the patience and the solid approaches they had been taking at the plate all season? It's now become a collection of light hitting guys that are swinging for the fences and that approach simply never works. Remember that they are the youngest team in baseball and bad swings like this will happen. Better to happen now while they have nothing to play for. However, to me, these are the times when these guys can gain valuable experience and become major league hitters.

Let's take a look at the last 5 games. Tuesday started with a 7-3 win at Colorado and they had a good approach as a team. They had 11 hits, while drawing 9 walks. Seven of the hits went for extra bases and they stole 6 bases. They still struck out seven times, but on six of them the batters worked a full count. After that, you see the results drastically change, as did the teams approach at the plate. Wednesday's 8-0 loss to the Rockies saw the Bucs get only 4 hits and 5 bb's. No extra base hits, while fanning 8 times. Thursday the Rocks hammered the Bucs 10-1. The Bucs garnered only 3H and 3BB's. One extra base hit and 9k's.

Onto Chicago they went Friday and a 17-2 beating occurred. Offensively, they had 7 H and only 3bb's. Again only 1 extra base hit while 7 k's. Yesterday's 3-1 defeat, they showed even less patience, swinging at everything. Only 5 hits and 3bb's. One extra base hit and a whopping 13k's. You can see a theme and a pattern going on here. The Pirates are awful when they are a free swinging team. Including their win this week, they are batting .178 as a team. In the 4 straight losses, the have had a total of 21 hits and only drew 14 bb. Only 3 extra base hits, while striking out 37 times. They haven't stole a base in the 4 losses, after stealing 6 in the win. You can't be aggressive on the bases when guys aren't getting on base frequently.

I will address the power problem first. I have heard all the time lately that the guys brought over in deals aren't hitting for power. Mostly people are talking about Moss, Milledge and Laroche. I'm not worried about the home runs. Any hitting coachin the majors will tell you that the power will come. Young hitters have alot to do when they get to the majors. They basically have to learn how to hit. The biggest jump is between AAA and MLB. They have a lot to worry about at the plate. Picking out pitches to hit, picking out pitches to lay off, recognizing what the pitcher is doing to them, learning to go the other way, situational hitting, etc. Basically, learning how to have quality MLB at bats every time to the plate. Major league pitching can't be duplicated in the minors. Only the real special players can make a flawless transition to the majors. I'm confident the homers will come, especially from Laroche and possibly Milledge.

My problem is none of those 3 guys, or anyone else in the lineup is having consistent quality at bats right now. No one on the team is driving the ball, using the gaps. Everyone in the lineup has become pull happy. That's not a good approach for young hitters to take, ever. That's not the approach for veteran hitters either. I don't know if hitting coach Don Long isn't getting the message through, which I doubt, because when things are going good, everyone shows what they can do at the plate. I feel the pressure of losing is getting to these guys.

I also feel changes are needed although i wouldn't panic to make them since this team isn't going anywhere. Steve Pearce is not any everyday big league player. Bring up Clement and get him some at bats. He has nothing more to offer a AAA team and from what I hear, his defense hasn't been that bad. Keep Pearce up though, there are worse bench players around. Another option that could be considered is to bring Pedro Alvarez up. Get him some at bats at the MLB level. He has put it together at AA. He is hitting .350 at Altoona, hitting with power and drawing walks. I'd leave Young and Cedeno where they are. They are beginning to look solid up the middle. I'm also still a fan of Laroche at third.

In the outfield, I pretty much leave it the same. Milledge will be fine, but has to learn how to play left field. On a side note, Why do the Pirates continue to play defensively on the road like they are at PNC Park. I hate having the left fielder play well in the left center field gap all the time. They get killed on balls down the line. Milledge doesn't cover as much ground as Nyjer Morgan did, you would think they would adjust the outfield alignment. especially with the amount of ground McCutchen can cover in center. Suddenly we can't catch a cold in the outfield.

I would drop Milledge down to sixth in the order though. Put him in a spot where he can succeed and possibly some RBI spots. Cedeno would be a much better 2 hole hitter. He just handles the bat better. Not everyone can hit in the second spot of the order. Drop Milledge down now.

Starting today it would be nice to see the Bucs battle everyday at the plate. Go down fighting at least. Being aggressive doesn't mean swinging at everything. They have a much better team than they have shown this month. it would be nice to be able to go out and play spoiler for teams like the Cubs and Brewers. No more tanking it, it's getting painful to watch.

Notes
-Not to many since we haven't done anything of note lately, but you have to feel a little bad for Duke. He could easily have 15 wins this season. Every year though there is a guy who doesn't get run support and this year it's Zach.

- Have you noticed that Ohlendorff velocity has been back his last couple of starts. Having Joe Kerrigan around has been valuable to some of these guys. Tweaking the wind up and Ross's fastball has been backup to the 94-96mph range. He still has to find a way to be able to pitch the 3rd time through the order. He needs a second out pitch.

- I'm about tired of watching Moss come out of his shoes swinging for the fence. He is one guy that needs to simplify his approach.

- Not much good can come out of a 17-2 loss, but give Steven Jackson some credit for taking one for the team. He tossed 4.1 innings of scoreless relief, saving the bullpen.

-Give Pirates management credit for applying the resources they have in the right places. They have signed all top 10 of their draft picks and their aggressive approach has been noticed around baseball. They have drawn several compliments around baseball. It's a very good sign for the franchise's future.

A Tale of Two Teams

I haven't had a chance to post in a week, but I have some time now and what I watched the last two nights wasn't close to the same team. On Tuesday, we saw a young, energetic, aggressive team that was fun to watch. Patient at the plate, aggressive on the base paths, taking advantage of opportunities, timely hitting and good defense. Good pitching, (even the bullpen) and an overall team performance that was fun to watch. The Bucs broke their losing streak and even manged to win a game on the road. I was happy going to bed on Tuesday.

Last night, however; my mood changed totally after watching the miserable performance the Bucs displayed. Pretty much the same line up, but a totally different team. Granted, Ubaldo Jimenez was very good, but the Bucs made it easy on him. Let's start offensively, where was the approach from the night before? The same team that worked the count all game was gone. The same team that had a good opposite field approach was gone. The same team that utilizes both gaps was gone. Yes, a mere 24 hours later, we saw a free swinging, swing for the fences type of team that hasn't been winning lately. When the Bucs offense struggles, they are a very boring team to watch.

It's truly nothing to panic about though. They are a young team. They are going to be very inconsistent. Unfortunately, that tends to show on the offensive end of things. The don't have much power so to score runs, they rely on several guys having to hit well in the same day. The important thing is that these guys that are going to be around keep getting their at bats and get a whole season under their belt.

NOTES

- I thought Hart threw well last night, at least through 5. He has good enough stuff and the pitches he got beat on were actually good pitches. He seems to have the mental make up of a top of the rotation guy, which is always a good thing. I would like to see him get strike one more often though,

-Meek lands on 15 day DL. Probably a good thing. I like Meek's arm a lot, but suddenly with Meek, Chavez, Hanrahan, Capps, etc., the Bucs suddenly have too many of the same style of pitcher in their pen. Power arm, live fastball, suspect breaking stuff.

-With the Pirates, Lastings Milledge is hitting around .280, which is fine. I need some power and speed though. That seems to be a problem with many of the younger acquisitions of late. The power just hasn't come out. I will break down Milledge tomorrow in a new post.

- Why can't Jones seem to hit with guys on base? He tears the cover off the ball with the bases empty. His 12 Hr is a nice number, but I would like to see more than the 20 RBI's. I believe he has driven in only 4 runs that haven't come by the long ball and 9 of his 12Hr's have been solo shots. I like Jones a ton, but if he is going to be a middle of the order type hitter, he has to perform like it. Middle of the order guys drive in runs.

- Is anyone else tired of watching Ryan No-Mitt catch. I am. I hate how he calls a game. He doesn't block balls well and he has a below average arm. How many more times do I have to watch him call 3 straight fastballs in the same location then seeing the third one blistered. If that's not bad enough, where has that bat been. I have never been convinced that Doumit is an everyday player, especially behind the dish. he is a middle of the order rally killer and I would hope they consider dealing him in the off season. he has shown me nothing in the last 4 seasons to warrant sticking around.

- Piraes Fans have to love Cedeno at short. The right side of the infield in still excellent defensively. Cedeno and Laroche are fabulous with the glove and Young is looking more comfortable at second. I also like Pearce's glove at first.......BUT

- Let's end the Steve Pearce experiment. Keep him as a bench player though. Either make Jones the everyday first baseman or let's get a look at Clement, who is hitting very well at Indy.

-McCutchen is a flat out stud. I like what I saw on Tuesday. The only thing I have wanted to see more out of him is for Cutch to be more aggressive on the base paths. he picked his spots and stole 3 bases easily. He is improving in every aspect of his game every day. It just means he is becoming a complete ball player, one day at a time.

- What this team lacks is a leader. No disrespect to Ramon Vasquez or even No-Mitt, but they need a leader, or several; especially when things are going bad.

-Check back tomorrow for a story on Milledge and this weekend I will have my minor league report. Let's Go Bucs

My Thoughts on the Neil Huntington Rebuild

Many have asked about my overall opinion of Neil Huntington's rebuild of the Pittsburgh Pirates or for my letter grade of it, so here we go. This may be long so bear with me. First of all we are going to look at this as a 2 year rebuild, not just at the current trades of this season.

First I want to look at the guys that we dealt, since opening day 2008. In no particular order, they were: John Grabow, Jose Bautista, Tom Gorzelanny, Freddy Sanchez, Ian Snell, Jack Wilson, Adam Laroche, Nyjer Morgan, Sean Burnett, Nate Mclouth, Jason Bay, Damaso Marte, Xavier Nady, Soloman Torres and Ronny Paulino. A total of 15 guys that had spent time on the big league club the last two seasons.

For the most part, everyone on this list was under 28 and contributed somewhat at the MLB level. I will argue that we really didn't part with much at all. Aside from Bay, who went into an ideal situation, with a stacked lineup, where he will see a ton of fastballs; what did we give up? Maybe you can argue about Mclouth, but I still view him as a very good player, not a superstar. I would rather have Andrew McCutchen in center field than Mclouth, and that is no knock on Nate.

The rest of the list are just simply average to above average major leaguers. Most were upcoming free agents who weren't going to be here anyway. We really didn't give up anything other than a collection of guys who simply were not getting the job done in Pittsburgh. Most of these guys really had no value here and that includes Sanchez and Wilson. A total rebuild was necessary and that's what Neil Huntington did different than his predecessors. You can't rebuild a franchise like the Pirates by dealing one or two guys. The farm system needed replenished. Aside from Bay, none of the guys will be impact players for their new clubs. We really didn't give up anything of value. I thought Huntington said it best when he said, "It's not like we broke up the '27 Yankees."

Now, I will agree that a rebuild like this, requires taking on some risk. It requires an excellent job from the scouting department all the way up to the GM. This time they can't miss with their decisions. Do we know what we got with all the acquisitions? Not at all, and don't expect all these guys to pan out. Out of the 30 guys brought in since opening day 2008, if 15 prove to be solid major leaguers, then it was a great job by Huntington.

Now realize one thing, when Huntington took over the team, the cupboard was bare. Entirely empty. At the minor league level, there was McCutchen and Neil Walker. That's sad. The Pirates farm system was drained completely, by years of mismanagement. In Huntington's two seasons, he has tried to completely give the farm system a make over. You don't think he's doing it? Take a look a the current list of top 10 prospects. Only Brad Lincoln remains on that list from the Littlefield era. Now after the job Huntington did, Walker isn't viewed as a top 15 prospect. I'd say the makeover of the system is working.

The 30 guys brought in, in no particular order: Robinson Diaz, Jeff Clement, Andy Laroche, Lastings Milledge, Gorkys Hernandez, Jose Tabata, Tim Alderson, Brandon Moss, Craig Hansen, Jeff Locke, Argenis Diaz, Ross Ohlendorf, Delwyn Young, Nathan Adcock, Bryan Morris, Kevin Hart, Mariano Salas, Josh Harrison, Brett Lorin, Aaron Pribanic, Jeff Karstens, Daniel McCutchen, Kevin Roberts, Jose Ascaino, Hunter Strickland, Ronny Cedeno, Tyler Yates, Charlie Morton, Joel Hanrahan and Jason Jaramillo (I hope I didn't leave anyone out). that list doesn't include finally having a couple of good drafts and even signing a guy like Garrett Jones. On paper, it looks like quite the haul in exchange for a bunch of guys who simply weren't in the plans.

It's entirely about value and how you value a certain player. All I hear is complaining that all we got was minor leaguers. Well, that's the point. The idea is to be able to compete for years to come, not just take a shot at .500 one season. While I see value in what we got in return, it is a hard thing to figure out how these guys will do at the MLB level. Could I be over valuing some of these guys? Sure. However, the Pirates fan base definitely is guilty of over valuing guys like Wilson, Sanchez Gorzo,etc. Like it or not, none of those guys brought anything to the table for the future. Take your blinders off and realize that we really didn't part with much during the last two years. Again, the goal is winning, not taking a run at.500.

Now from here on, everything is based on projections and how these guys do at the minor league level. I expect Clement, Milledge,Hernandez, Tabata and Alderson to be solid major leaguers with upside. That's five more than currently on the roster. Mostly everyone else projects into the next tier of guys that should get to the big leagues, especially the 3 arms acquired from Seattle. If a good portion of these guys succeed, then it was a good rebuild.

Now to the question on why we are just getting good prospects in return and not great ones. To start, I thought we did well with Alderson and Clement this week. First part of the answer is that top tier, home grown guys just aren't available anymore, especially arms. Secondly, we didn't have any talent to trade worthy enough of teams shelling out top prospects. We traded average guys with no upside. Which is why I was shocked the Giants parted with Alderson for Sanchez and that we got a guy like Clement in a deal for Wilson and Snell. I thought the whole process of Huntington worked. In each case he sold low and bought high. No longer did we trade trash for trash. We traded trash for upside and I am fine with it. I do feel it was important to rid itself of the losing culture that spreads throughout that locker room like a cancer.

Therefore, we really only brought in 2 big time prospects, but not by lack of trying. So as far as a letter grade, I give the whole process a solid B. Everyone brought in has some upside and something to offer this team in the future. Just look at the organization from March 2008 until today. We had zero power and now we have a few guys with major league power in the system, We had zero arms and now we have a ton of guys with not only potential, but serious arms strength. We are stacked at a few positions, most notably outfield and corner infielders.

I also feel it's important to create competition throughout the organization. We haven't had that in a long, long time. We have more talent all through the organization now, than at any point in the past. The guys currently on the MLB roster now get a chance to prove they belong. They can secure a job for years, by simply producing. If not, there are now guys behind them to push them for jobs. Healthy competition is always good.

Part two of the rebuild is soon to begin. I still expect Duke and Capps to be shipped out, either in August or in the off-season. Now the goal is to start filling in at the MLB level. Spring training will be fun to watch, as many of these guys will be given opportunities to win jobs. Some of the outfield prospects can now possibly be dealt to sure up other positions. So, Neil Huntington's work is no where near done.

Part 3 of the rebuild is on Bob Nutting and I don't know if that's a good thing. He absolutely has to start spending some money on the product on the field. In the next two seasons, we should be able to add quality on the free agent market (I say quality because I know superstars are out of the question). By 2011, there is no reason, a team like the Brewers, in a smaller market should have double the payroll as the Pirates. Fans got the worst news possible today, when Nutting announced that ownership will not change anytime in the near future.

However, this is it. I bought into the plan and have liked the results so far. The payroll is down to the $25-$30 mil range. It's time to start adding and most importantly, it's time to start winning. No more rebuilds. This is the group that the organization likes, well let's start producing and winning. The goal here is 2011 and 2012.

McCutchen Makes a Statement

Andrew McCutchen made a statement last night with his 4-5, 3Hr,6 RBI & 4 runs game last night in an 11-6 victory over the Nats. The statement pretty much says that even at the young age of 22, that after the latest round of trades, this is now his team. In just 51 games at the MLB level, Cutch is batting .293 with 6 HR and 31 RBI's out of the leadoff spot, and could be well on his way to a Rookie of the Year Award.

The reason I say it's his team now is simple.......He's a stud. Over the last decade, the Bucs have had several good players and a couple very good players (Bay, Ramerez,etc.), but they haven't had a stud. That's part of the reason we don't win. Cutch is capable of doing anything on the baseball diamond. He is blessed with enormous speed which makes him a great center fielder. Most of the times, opponents will have to hit it out of the park to get it over his head. He has an above average arm as well, but that is one part of his game that needs some work.

The thing I like the most about the young stud is his approach at the plate. He is a gap to gap guy, but as he showed last night, he can hit the ball out of the ballpark. I love the approach though. He is poised and seems like he can handle any situation. The one thing I don't want to see is Cutch start trying to hit the ball over the fence. Keep the approach the same. He is also a fantastic base runner. his speed showed last night when he scored on a double to left from first base. The only thing I would like to see more out of Andrew is for him to run more. He is currently 9 for 9 stealing bases, but I would like to see him be more aggressive.

McCutchen is the difference between the past Pirates and the present/future Pirates. He is the player, the rebuild is centered around, and he is the player to start leading to Pirates to success in the future. So, why wait ? Make this Cutch's team right now. Am I jumping the gun after just 51 games? I don't believe so. You can tell when a guy is a legit major leaguer and this guy flat out is.

Face it, we haven't had many blue chip athletes around here the last 16 years. It's time for the young McCutchen to take control of this team and show what he is and what he will become. That is simply the best Bucco since a guy named Bonds.

New Look Buccos Debut with Success

Before I get into last night's game, I have to address the comments made by former Bucco Sean Burnett. He said, "We (Nyjer and him) saw this coming. They are the laughing stock of baseball." My initial reaction was "Who the F@#K are you."

Reality check to Mr. Burnett. YOU were part of the problem and the losing culture here as well. YOU were the guy that was a first round pick that never realized his potential. While not a huge part, you were still part of the problems which initiated all the moves to begin with. I will give credit when credit is due, you have become a decent lefty out of the pen, but you did nothing here except under achieve.

As far as the laughing stock comment, another reality check. Look at the name on YOUR jersey, that is if it is even spelled right. Yeah buddy, you play for the 30 win Nats and you have the balls to call out other franchises. Right now you are as low as you can be. At least the Bucs are taking the right steps to TRY and have a winning future. What have the Nats done, other than drafting Steven Strausberg, who they probably won't even sign. The future is alot brighter here then it is in Washington so you should probably keep your mouth shut.

By no means am I saying this franchise is in good shape. We will be a laughing stock until we start winning. However, for a guy like Burnett to criticize the Bucs, when he is in a far worse situation is ridiculous. He Sean, I will give you something to laugh at...........your career.

As far as the performance last night, I was excited. The lineup wasn't bad. it was no worse than it was before the deals, in fact I may like it better. Nice debut for Milledge and Cedeno. Also good for Pearce, starting to hit the ball with authority. maybe getting Clement lit a fire under him. A nice start by Ohlendorff as well. The only guy that was disappointing was Hanrahan. I think some of it was due to playing his former team.

The thing I noticed is that there was an extra step to these guys last night. A lot more energy out of the guys and they were having fun. They are definitely a more athletic team and will be fun to watch the rest of the season.

NOTES

-Andy Laroche is quietly becoming an excellent defensive third baseman.

- Fine job by Evan meek and Jessie Chavez getting big outs in big spots.

-Funny that Garrett Jones is the team leader in homers with 10, despite only being up for a month. The RBI leader is Andy Laroche with 38.

-Newly acquired Jeff Clement homered in his first two AB's at Indy.

-Tim Alderson goes tonight for Altoona

-Virgil Vasquez goes tonight for the Bucs, but expect it to be the last time. Kevin Hart will pitch on Wed.

-If you noticed, Nyjer Morgan is still a lousy base runner, getting picked off AGAIN by a right handed pitcher

Bucs Keep Dealing- Grabow Next To Go

Another day, another trade made by Neil Huntington. This time it's free agent to be John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs for right handed pitchers Kevin Hart and Jose Ascaino, along with Class A infielder Josh Harrison.

I'm not surprised, as we all expected this. As far as the return, it's fine with me. Huntington continues to add arms, which the organization desperately needs. The return doesn't have tremendous upside, but he wasn't going to get a big return for Grabow alone. I may have wanted to see Huntington try and package Grabow with either Duke, Maholm or Capps and see if he could get one more big haul before the deadline.

Hart threw today for the Cubs and threw pretty well. I have seen his last 3 starts with the Cubs and like what I have seen. He struggles with his command at times, but I like him. He has made 8 appearances with the Cubs this season, including 4 starts. He is 3-1 with a 2.60 era. Before his start today, he is allowing less than a hit an inning. The only problem so far has been his 18 bb to 13 k's in 27.2ip. He allowed only 1 bb in 6ip today though, looking good getting the win for the Cubs. Hart began the season as the 6th rated prospect in the Cubs system. I expect him to join the Bucs rotation, possibly replacing Virgil Vasquez.

Ascaino has also seen big league time with the Cubs this year. In 14 relief appearances with the Cubs, he was 0-1 with a 3.52era. He is a hard thrower and has struck out 18 compared to 9 bb in 15ip at the MLB level. He allowed less than a hit per inning while on the big league roster. While in AAA, he was viewed primarily as a starter, which is what I think the Bucs will do with him. At AAA Iowa, Ascaino was 2-4, with a 3.16 era in 12 starts. In 51 innings, the ratios applied there as well. Less than a hit an inning and a nice 47k's to 18bb's. He was once a highly thought of prospect in the Cubs system, but despite putting up solid minor league numbers, seemed to be forgotten about. I like his live arm, with his fastball usually touching 95-98 mph. He will probably report to AAA Indy.

As far as, Harrison. He seems like a nice player, and is considered a decent prospect. Harrison, primarily a left fielder/third baseman this season, but his primary position had been second base, has put up solid numbers during the season. He played 79 games at Class A Peroria, hitting .337 with 4 HR/33Rbi and swiped 16 bags. he was promoted to High A Dayton and has played 18 games, hitting .286 with a homer and 9 RBI's. By the way, the major league player that he is compared to the most.....Freddy Sanchez.

I don't have a problem with this deal at all. I like adding the 2 arms and if Harrison progresses, then it's a bonus. The deal does leave John Russell with only Donnie Veal as a lefty in the pen, and there really isn't one to call up. I don't expect JR to be playing many match ups the rest of the season. As far as Gorzo goes, we did kind of sell low there, but face it, he wasn't going to get another shot in Pittsburgh.

While the Bucs are younger the rest of the season, the Altoona and West Virginia teams contain pretty much the entire future of the team, which wasn't the case a season ago. i applaud Huntington for sticking to the plan and blowing the whole thing up. A total rebuild was needed and it's good to see he is committed to it, instead of dealing just one or two vets. I would still like to see Capps dealt (I just read the Dodgers are interested). Remember, the goal isn't .500. the goal is to eventually put a playoff caliber team on the field every season.

Freddy Sanchez Dealt to Giants

Another positive day for the Pirates and GM Neil Huntington. Although the team dropped a tough 1-0 loss in San Francisco, the team boarded the plane without one person. That person was second baseman Freddy Sanchez, who got left behind in San Francisco, as he was dealt to the Giants for pitcher Tim Alderson. The Sanchez deal came about six hours after Sanchez's double play partner Jack Wilson was sent to Seattle in a separate deal.

Huntington did well in the Wilson deal and I think he did just as well with the Sanchez deal. Alderson, a 20 year old right hander was listed as the fourth best prospect in the Giants organization. He is a 6"6 right hander who is considered a premium prospect. How long has it been since we have acquired guys with the upside as we have gotten in the last calender year.

This excerpt from Ben-Nicholson Smith at mlbtraderumors.com

5:51pm: Kovacevic is reporting that the minor leaguer is AA pitcher Tim Alderson. This is an impressive haul for Sanchez--Alderson was ranked the #4 prospect in the Giants' system by Baseball America. What we thought was a salary dump has turned into a pretty solid coup for the Pirates.

Sounds to me like we did well.

Alderson was currently at AA Connecticut, posting a 6-1 record (why is the Giants AA team all the way in Connecticut?). Overall, he is 7-2 with a 3.45era in 98.2 ip. He has struck out 68, compared to only 14 walks. The early report on Alderson is he is a strike throwing machine with serious stuff. Early report I hear is that Alderson has a fastball in the low to mid 90's. he has plus breaking stuff which is his out pitches and a developing change up, which scouts say has come along nicely.

Alderson was named 2008 MLB Class A Pitcher of the Year. After being selected by the Giants in the first round of the 2007 draft, Alderson has worked his way through the Giants system. After last season, Baseball America rated him the 33rd best overall prospect in baseball. Keith Law currently ranks Alderson the 26th best prospect in all of baseball. I do that deal for Sanchez easily.

At first, I would have wished we got more, but I am happy getting a guy like this. In the last year, we haven't been dealing just to deal. Huntington keeps acquiring high ceiling talent and while he will be a hated man around Pittsburgh, he is doing a great job rebuilding this organization. It needed a total rebuilding after the last two regimes and Huntington is doing it the right way.

He was able to get a guy like Alderson for Sanchez straight up, without including any cash. Huge win for Huntington. Use that cash to sign Miguel Angel Sano or include it in a deal for Grabow or Capps to keep stockpiling talent. It could be a couple busy days for Huntington, but if you are keeping score at home, he went 2-0 today and he is 4-o on the season.

OTHER NOTES
One more thing to see what others are saying. this from Kovacevic.

6:19pm: Kovacevic says that no money is being exchanged in the Sanchez deal, which makes it all the more impressive for the Pirates. Keith Law (Insider) recently ranked the 20-year-old Alderson the 26th-best prospect in all of baseball.

One other thing is that right before the deal, Sanchez came to the Bucs with a 3 year/$20mil offer to stay. He has to be nuts. Naturally the Pirates declined and made what looks to be a good deal.

One final way to look at this is that the best pitching prospect dealt during the day doesn't get get dealt for Cliff Lee, he gets dealt for Freddy Sanchez? What are you doing Cleveland? Also I hear Brian Sabean is feeling some backlash for dealing Alderson for just Sanchez and no cash.

Here is a link with some good quotes from new Pirate Tim Alderson
http://www.baseballprospectus.com/unfiltered/?p=1355

Jack Wilson Traded to Seattle

A busy week for Pirates GM Niel Huntington got kick started earlier today when the Bucs shipped Jack Wilson, Ian Snell and cash to the Seattle Mariners for Jeff Clement, Ronnie Cedeno, Aaron Pribanic, Brett Lorin and Nathan Adcock. My first thought was Thank God. Anyone that knows me knows I was not a big Wilson backer. I loved his glove, but he is a an average major league player at best. With Snell, it was probably good to get rid of the baggage that comes along with him. He always has had the stuff, but he could never bring it out on a consistent basis. My second thought was "It looks like we got a lot for two average ball players."

The prize of the deal is Clement. He was the third overall pick in the 2005 draft and was rated the #1 overall prospect in the Seattle system after the 2006 and 2008 seasons. he is a catcher by trade, but has been seeing time at first base over the last two seasons. He has a nice bat and can hit for some power. In 92 games this season at AAA Tacoma, Clement hit .288 with 33 doubles, 14 homers and 68 RBI's. He has seen time with the Mariners and in a short stint hit .237 with 11 doubles, 7 homers and 26 RBI's. He has been assigned to AAA Indianapolis.

Cedeno will replace Wilson on the active roster and he is a similar player. A very solid glove guy with an below average bat and very little power. Sounds like Wilson. Cedeno is a solid professional though and will do all the little things a team needs. Pirates fans would remember him as a member of the Cubs, where it seemed the only team he could hit against was the Pirates.

Now a look at the 3 pitchers. Aaron Pribanic is a 22 year old right hander with a good fastball that hits the 93-95 mph range. He is said to have plus breaking stuff and throws a ton of ground balls. At A Clinton, he was 7-6 with a 3.21 ERA and has allowed only 1 homer all season, pitching in a hitters ball park. He represented the league in the All-Star game. He has been assigned to A West Virginia

Brett Lorin is also a 22 year old right hander. He is considered a strike out pitcher, currently with 87k to 22bb. His fastball is in the 90-92mph range, but is said to have a lot of life to it. he has an above average curve ball and also represented Clinton in the A All-Star game. He has also been assigned to West Virginia

Nathan Adcock is a 21 year old right hander who currently has a 3.31 era. Baseball America rated his curve ball as the best in the Seattle organization. He has been assigned to A Lynchburg.
It is a lot to get for a couple average at best major league players. that's why I am a fan of including cash in the deal. The return is worth it. The Bucs appear to be paying all but 400k of each players salary the rest of the season.

A couple comments on the deal include MLB's Jonathan Mayo, who says the Bucs got a "good haul" in the return and from Kevin Goldstein from baseball Prospectius who says "it's the best deal the Bucs have made in some time."


It won't be a popular move in Pittsburgh, as Wilson was one of the more popular players in this city over the last decade, but these kind of moves need to be made if this team will ever compete. You got a left handed power bat, a above average shortstop and 3 pitchers who are projected as MLB starters for Wilson and Snell. Wilson has missed over 175 games the last 4 seasons due to injury. That's over 1 full season. His production with the bat was really only there for one season and he could be a free agent at the end of the season if the Mariners don't pick up his option. it's another case of buying high and selling low. I'm all for that.

The only argument I'm hearing to the trade is that Jack is such a nice guy. I could care less how nice he is. Also remember that he was given an offer to stay. the offer was low, but it exceeded the production he has given and he rejected it. My philosophy has always been that nice guys don't win championships, talent does and Huntington is doing a fantastic job of adding talent to every level of the organization.

A fine job in my mind Huntington. Your not done yet though. You have more work to do. Make this a deadline that can help shape this team for the future. The Jack Wilson era is over and I couldn't be happier. While I will miss his glove, i won't miss him being a total baby and brat about everything. No longer do the Bucs have to cater to jack Wilson, and I bet the clubhouse will be a better place for it.

Keep doing it I say. Get rid of the losing culture entirely and turn the team over to the young guys. It's going to be a busy week for Huntington. I hear Freddy is next. maybe as early as tonight, following the game.