tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post2624741839302698078..comments2023-10-10T12:46:47.186-04:00Comments on The Green Weenie: Pellas On The Pirates - Mea Culpa...Sort OfUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post-41855255847722105752010-01-21T14:45:02.433-05:002010-01-21T14:45:02.433-05:00Heh, sorry to frustrate you, Anonymous, but I gues...Heh, sorry to frustrate you, Anonymous, but I guess what you picked up on is the ambivalence I feel about so much of what the Pirates are doing these days. <br /><br /><br />On the one hand, a rebuild was, obviously, necessary. I just don't agree (particularly when it comes to McLouth and perhaps Morgan) that it had to be as radical as it was. In other words, my belief is that the team's competitive integrity was compromised because too many players were traded too fast when there weren't any suitable replacements for them anywhere in the organization. Now, if things were SO dire that the only way to address that was to take our lumps as we did in 2009, so be it. I don't believe that to be the case, and as I said, there's something very rotten in Denmark when a "professional" sports organization evidently believes it's perfectly okay to forget totally about performance on the field at ANY point for ANY "reason". I don't believe there is ever any excuse for that. If things were that bad, then just bring up the Triple-A roster and have them go at it. At least they'd be hungry. <br /><br /><br />So, I reject that entire line of thinking, even though the team and in fact the entire organization did have to be rebuilt. Looking at the bullpen, NH can obviously assemble a relief corps on the fly. Mark cites an interview (I didn't hear it myself) in which Huntington appeared to confirm my suspicions that the team deliberately chose to look the other way about its relievers in 2008 and 2009. The excuse that's always given by various people is that it had to be that way, ie, if you're "rebuilding" then you're somehow excused from making your best effort to win games on the field. I think that's baloney. At the same time, there's no question that current ownership and administration has a better plan and is demonstrably far more competent than the previous tragicomedy we had here. So, I try (perhaps too hard) to be even-handed, giving credit where credit is due for smart moves, while also expressing my dismay and disapproval about what I see as essentially tanking the team's performance on the field at the big league level. <br /><br /><br />Hope that makes sense, and sorry you got caught up in my hair-pulling, but thanks for reading!WilliamJPellashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12774466220683142262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post-36023210046497337022010-01-21T13:44:39.336-05:002010-01-21T13:44:39.336-05:00What a bunch of left=handed complements. I have to...What a bunch of left=handed complements. I have to admit I gave up reading after a little bit. On one hand you give a little complement then on the other hand you take it away and question the move.Take a stand one way or the other.Jeez.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post-37197414343084975572010-01-21T12:28:41.132-05:002010-01-21T12:28:41.132-05:00I do agree with you that it certainly would have b...I do agree with you that it certainly would have been nice if NH would have saved us from the pain of losing game after game in the 7th inning on last year.<br /><br />I do remember an interview he did with Rocco where he said that if he was going to try to get to 67 wins instead of 62, it probably wouldn't make sense for the Pirates to spend extra money trying to get those wins at that time, and it would be better to save the money for when it could be used in a more important situation.<br /><br />Hopefully, this is an indication he feels the Pirates will win more than 67 games in 2010.<br /><br />As for the position players he picked up, it seems he originally targeted Ankiel, but settled on Church when Ankiel insisted on being named a starter.<br /><br />On shortstop, I would have thought Khalil Green would have been a target, but NH apparently didn't like him as well as Crosby.<br /><br />On the whole, these are quite decent pickups that should at least set a floor beneath which the 2010 prospects will need to rise above.MarkInDallasnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post-25590867521322431772010-01-21T09:22:53.373-05:002010-01-21T09:22:53.373-05:00I meant not betting on the Bucs was the way to go....I meant not betting on the Bucs was the way to go...lol sorry to be so confusing, it's early for me...hahahaSnukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10873502088851702579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6207200414495313452.post-4238402182043480072010-01-21T09:19:54.223-05:002010-01-21T09:19:54.223-05:00The only possible reason they wouldn't have go...The only possible reason they wouldn't have gotten bullpen help the past two years is that they wanted to see what they already had, but come to think of it, for every Matt Capps there was a Tyler Yates. <br /><br />But you're certainly right, what they've called a bullpen the past two years has been a joke. In fact, we used to bet on whether or not the bullpen would blow a lead for us, and more times then not betting on us was the way to go. <br /><br />It's crazy how a little effort and about 7 or 8 million can make yourself one nice lil bullpen...Snukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10873502088851702579noreply@blogger.com