Hey, it's a blustery, windy day in the 'Burgh and apparently all over the baseball universe; we're approaching Christmas shutdown time regarding the hardball news cycle.
And that gives GW a chance to break out the divining rod and try to figure out the direction the new Bucco suits are forging for the team, and a possible timeline for frutition.
Early on, we thought the suits were gonna take a wait-and-see attitude regarding the MLB talent on the club, and try to fill in a few pieces - a third baseman, a couple of bottom-end RHP guys for the rotation and a bench, for starters - to keep the Bucs interesting while spending the majority of its effort on building the farm system.
And while the position players were probably good enough to compete, two things happened to conspire against the double-pronged plan to keep the MLB roster competitive while building from within - the pitching staff imploded and the minors proved to be virtually void of up-and-coming difference makers.
Pirate fans hoped that the return for Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte, which netted a pretty fair payback, would be the major move of the season. But when Jay Bay went in the Manny deal, everyone faced the fact that Pittsburgh was once again in full tilt rebuilding mode.
Another "here we go again" moment was the last thing the Pirate faithful wanted to experience. It's almost as if Pirate baseball was the inspiration for "Groundhog Day."
GW agreed that blowing up the team was its best way to to move beyond borderline competitive and eventually contend, even knowing how painful the next couple of season will be in the meantime.
As we see the Pirate plan, step #1 now consists of moving everyone that's on the wrong side of 30 for whatever talent can be amassed, simply because it'll take longer than the older guys have for Buc baseball to click on all cylinders again, and the management has no other chips to fill the farm other than dealing the vets.
The Pittsburgh feeder system under Ed Creech and Dave Littlefield deteriorated so badly that it wasn't a matter of filling in a position, but of bringing in anyone who looked like they could play the game.
They've done pretty well for one season's work in that regard. Andrew McCutchen, Steve Pearce, Brad Lincoln, Brian Bixler, and Neil Walker were virtually all the likely MLB talent on hand, and Shelby Ford, with perhaps Jamie Romak, Danny Moskos, Steve Lerud and Brian Friday having the potential to develop someday into players.
It was a terribly weak system, overloaded with players that projected as relievers and only a handful that that had a shot at starting every fifth day or playing regularly.
They had to immediately address the pitching, which was abysmal at the MLB level and filled with AAAA arms at Indy. At great cost, they brought in Jeff Karstens, Ross Ohlendorf, Dan McCutchen, Chris Hansen and Byran Morris.
Karstens and Ohlendorf could be on the 25-man next year, while Morris and McCutchen are already two of the top three pitching prospects in the system.
It also netted Brandon Moss, Andy LaRoche, and Jeff Tabata. Moss may turn into an adequate RFer, or he may settle back into a platoon/fourth outfielder role. He's been a high strikeout guy throughout his career at every level, and that will keep his batting average down.
LaRoche has some demons to overcome. Although the team that knows him best, the Dodgers, couldn't find a spot for him, it's hard to believe so many scouts could be that wrong on his potential.
The new suits can't be faulted for giving him third base. On paper, he's all that. They can be faulted for not trying to light a fire under him with a little accountability, competition, and well-deserved pine time. Handing someone a position didn't work out so well with the pitchers; it's no different with LaRoche.
Tabata is a welcome addition to a minor league outfield that needed big-time help. Some believe that he's among the Pirate's top three positional prospects.
The draft has helped the system, too. Besides Pedro, Neal Huntington brought in a bevy of shortstops than can hit and inked some high school talent. But those guys, with the exception of Alvarez, are at best three years away from the show.
The new gang has also brought a previously unseen commitment to entering the international player pool. They've made strides in Latin America, have an Asian scout, and made a couple of high-profile signings in non-traditional territories that may not have any short-term effect but should pay off down the road by announcing the Pirate's presence to world baseball.
And they're still in a position to scan the waiver wires - Evan Meek joined the Indy after a post Rule 5 deal, and Jimmy Barthmaier has shown some promise.
Also, for better or worse, they've taken the former seat-of-pants teaching of players out of the hands of the minor-league managers and coaches and put together a system that's to be adhered to, covering everything from pitch counts, selection, and innings for their arms to patience in the box for hitters. And they mean it; ignore the book and your coaching career or player advancement will hit a wall.
Hopefully, they're trying to install some discipline and a team plan to help keep everyone on the same page, and will work out individual plans with some flexibility once the playbook is absorbed system-wide.
Now, don't mistake the Pirates' moves as having made the farm system even average yet. But it is obvious that the suits are obsessing over it, and they've taken strides to get it back to snuff. But they need at least two, maybe three, more solid drafts to stock the organization to respectability at all levels.
The minors are the first and overriding concern of the current management team. Almost without exception, every move the new suits have made is to benefit the farm system and infuse the organization with prospects, which is the hand they have to play if the team is to reach any sort of consistent competitive niche.
So if you wonder what the odds of Jack Wilson, John Grabow, Adam LaRoche and Freddy Sanchez finishing out their years in Pittsburgh are, well, don't bet the ranch. The team may not be truly competitive again until 2011-12, and that's too long and too expensive a gap to hang on to the older guys.
The good news is that Huntington is a pretty fair poker player, and plays his hand to the limit instead of just throwing the cards in as his predecessor so often did. The new crew likes to let the pot build and get value for its chips.
One other point, often raised by GW collaborator Will Pellas, is the American League approach of the new suits. The Pirates under Littlefield/Creech looked for gloves in the infield and cutesy pitching. The Huntington/Greg Smith preference is for power arms and infielders that can smack the ball.
Whether that is a long-term trend or just an attempt to counter skills lacking in the current player lineup is yet to be seen. But we think it's something that's a goal of the new management team and will become a benchmark of sorts for future players in the organization.
The Pirate plan, as far as we can see, is to focus all its energy on building a minor league system that will replenish itself, much like Oakland, Minnesota, Cleveland, Tampa Bay and Atlanta. Load it up with power options, and the MLB team will take care of itself with a little bit of tinkering.
The plan seems logical enough, but it does beg a couple of hard questions because of the time frame it sets for talent to percolate through the system to Pittsburgh.
Will the long-suffering fans be able to stand the inevitable wait that's required for a Pirate makeover before finally seeing on-the-field success? And will Bob Nutting be willing to stay the course if the attendance drops along with the on-field product? The competitive future of the franchise depends on the answers.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Weekend Bits
> Dock Ellis died today. The 63-year old was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver after Thanksgiving last year, and was waiting for a transplant that never came.
He'll be remembered forever in Pittsburgh for his curlers and no-hitter on acid. And those images are valid; a saint he wasn't, at least during his highly-publicized playing days. Still, he was a fierce competitor and popular locker room guy, by virtually all accounts.
Ellis admitted publicly in several forums that he was hooked on booze and chemicals during his career. And we'll add self-promotion to his list of addictions.
But he was clean since 1980, motivated, he said, by fatherhood. Ellis worked with prisoners both in SCI and California as a drug counselor. He also fronted a Sickle Cell group to help fight the disease, and never shrunk from supporting black equality issues.
Rather than eulogize or worse, editorialize, GW is just gonna post a couple of links to cover his flamboyant career and later real life.
"Pirates Saddened By Ellis' Passing", Pirates.com;
"Ex-Pitcher Ellis Dies Of Liver Disease", ESPN;
"Ellis Is Trying To Strike Back At A Tough Foe", LA Times;
"Dock Phillip Ellis, Jr.", The Baseball Reliquary;
"Did Dock Ellis Throw A No-Hitter Under The Influence Of LSD?" Urban Legends;
"Dock Ellis Statistics", Baseball Reference.
> The Bucs won't get their paws on Daniel Cabrera. The left-handed wild child was signed by the Nats, according to Bill Ladson of MLB's Hot Stove Blog.
> The Pirates are also the darkest of horses in their chase of Derrick Turnbow and Ty Wigginton. Not only are several teams in the hunt, but Turnbow has suitors that could possibly return him to a closer role, while there are teams that see Wigginton as an everyday player, and will bid accordingly. Neither scenario is a fit for Pittsburgh.
> The Phils are shopping C Chris Conte now that they have Ronny Paulino on the roster. Paulino is younger and cheaper, and Philadelphia believes he can be a capable MLB catcher, which is more than the Pirate suits did.
GW agrees that his situation had escalated to the point where he had to go. What we don't agree with is the heavy-handed way the new management has treated some of Littlefield's guys. It smells to us like there's still a ways to go before communication and especially motivation is dealt with professionally by the front office.
It's understandable that the new sheriff in town would want to put a couple notches on the six-shooter, but the Pirates aren't in a position to fritter away talent. Some guys need tough love; others need stroked. The suits need to approach each player individually and dump their cookie-cutter, hard-guy philosophy.
> Jody Gerut agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.1775M with the Padres, thus avoiding salary arbitration, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com.
As you may recall, Gerut was the return for Matt Lawton in 2005, and blew out his wheel after 18 Pirate at-bats. He was out of baseball for two years before returning to hit .296 with 14 home runs and 48 RBIs in 100 games last season.
He'll be remembered forever in Pittsburgh for his curlers and no-hitter on acid. And those images are valid; a saint he wasn't, at least during his highly-publicized playing days. Still, he was a fierce competitor and popular locker room guy, by virtually all accounts.
Ellis admitted publicly in several forums that he was hooked on booze and chemicals during his career. And we'll add self-promotion to his list of addictions.
But he was clean since 1980, motivated, he said, by fatherhood. Ellis worked with prisoners both in SCI and California as a drug counselor. He also fronted a Sickle Cell group to help fight the disease, and never shrunk from supporting black equality issues.
Rather than eulogize or worse, editorialize, GW is just gonna post a couple of links to cover his flamboyant career and later real life.
"Pirates Saddened By Ellis' Passing", Pirates.com;
"Ex-Pitcher Ellis Dies Of Liver Disease", ESPN;
"Ellis Is Trying To Strike Back At A Tough Foe", LA Times;
"Dock Phillip Ellis, Jr.", The Baseball Reliquary;
"Did Dock Ellis Throw A No-Hitter Under The Influence Of LSD?" Urban Legends;
"Dock Ellis Statistics", Baseball Reference.
> The Bucs won't get their paws on Daniel Cabrera. The left-handed wild child was signed by the Nats, according to Bill Ladson of MLB's Hot Stove Blog.
> The Pirates are also the darkest of horses in their chase of Derrick Turnbow and Ty Wigginton. Not only are several teams in the hunt, but Turnbow has suitors that could possibly return him to a closer role, while there are teams that see Wigginton as an everyday player, and will bid accordingly. Neither scenario is a fit for Pittsburgh.
> The Phils are shopping C Chris Conte now that they have Ronny Paulino on the roster. Paulino is younger and cheaper, and Philadelphia believes he can be a capable MLB catcher, which is more than the Pirate suits did.
GW agrees that his situation had escalated to the point where he had to go. What we don't agree with is the heavy-handed way the new management has treated some of Littlefield's guys. It smells to us like there's still a ways to go before communication and especially motivation is dealt with professionally by the front office.
It's understandable that the new sheriff in town would want to put a couple notches on the six-shooter, but the Pirates aren't in a position to fritter away talent. Some guys need tough love; others need stroked. The suits need to approach each player individually and dump their cookie-cutter, hard-guy philosophy.
> Jody Gerut agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.1775M with the Padres, thus avoiding salary arbitration, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com.
As you may recall, Gerut was the return for Matt Lawton in 2005, and blew out his wheel after 18 Pirate at-bats. He was out of baseball for two years before returning to hit .296 with 14 home runs and 48 RBIs in 100 games last season.
Friday, December 19, 2008
The Frank Kremblas Storyboard
The Bucs announced Trent Jewett's replacement at AAA Indy today, the Brew Crew's recently deposed AAA Nashville Sound manager, Frank Kremblas.
Kremblas comes complete with a couple of storylines that should keep Pirate bloggers in their glory. First, he's the son of Frank Kremblas, Sr., who QB'ed Ohio State to the national championship in 1957 and shared the backfield with Steeler coaching legend Dick LeBeau, who was a two-way player for the Buckeyes back in the day.
Next, in a not-so-illustrious minor league career, he played catcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, outfielder, and pitcher. Talk about a one man band! But Kremblas' biggest asset as a player, unfortunately, was that he was smart and scrappy. Danged by faint praise, indeed.
In 661 minor league games - he topped out as a AAA utility guy at, surprise, Indianapolis, then a Cincy farm team - Kremblas hit .233 with 20 HRs and 201 RBI. So it's a no-brainer why he ended up coaching instead of playing. That's where smart, scrappy, versatile, and no stick players gravitate to in baseball.
He hung up the spikes in 1996, and in 1998 began his career as skipper with the Gulf Coast Expos. In 2000, Kremblas made the move to the Milwaukee organization, first at the helm of the A Mudville Nine (no, that was really their name - even GW couldn't make that one up. Now they're known as the Stockton Port.)
The 42-year old soldiered his way through the ranks, spending the last four years at AAA Nashville, where in a bit of karmic foreshadowing, he replaced Trent Jewett in 2005. He led the team to the PCL crown in his first go-around, and in 2006 and 2007, the Sound won the American North Division title but lost the championship series.
After the 2007 season, Kremblas was named the PCL Manager of the Year. While with the Sound, he helped developed guys like Tony Gwynn, Jr., Prince Fielder, Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy, Rickie Weeks and Manny Parra. And that's a pretty sweet list.
He was canned as Nashville's manager after a 59–81 season in 2008; the good times can't roll on forever. Kremblas was told that Brewers officials didn't see him getting an opportunity to coach in the big leagues, so they decided to let him seek that opportunity elsewhere. Sounds kinda flimsy to us.
It was no secret, though, that he had an eye on a spot with the MLB club. But he was passed over in 2006 for Nick Leyva and in 2007 for Ted Simmons. GW took a quick survey of Brewer blogs, and they seemed split between the "he deserved a shot at the show" and "don't let the door hit you in the butt" camps. C'est la vie.
Another little bit on his coaching career - he sharpened up his skills in the Latin winter leagues, managing twice in Venezuela and once in Mexico. In fact, he's now the skipper of Leones de Caracas. Kremblas also served stints coaching in the Arizona Fall League and the Futures game.
So Pittsburgh landed a young guy with ambition, success at the AAA level, a track record of handling and developing talent, an appreciation of versatility, and some hands-on experience with Latino players, both as a manager and evaluator.
On first blush, it's just what the doctor ordered. But as with all things currently Pirate-related, only time will tell.
The Bucs also finally connected the dots for their minor staffs today. Here's the complete coaching lineup.
Kremblas comes complete with a couple of storylines that should keep Pirate bloggers in their glory. First, he's the son of Frank Kremblas, Sr., who QB'ed Ohio State to the national championship in 1957 and shared the backfield with Steeler coaching legend Dick LeBeau, who was a two-way player for the Buckeyes back in the day.
Next, in a not-so-illustrious minor league career, he played catcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, outfielder, and pitcher. Talk about a one man band! But Kremblas' biggest asset as a player, unfortunately, was that he was smart and scrappy. Danged by faint praise, indeed.
In 661 minor league games - he topped out as a AAA utility guy at, surprise, Indianapolis, then a Cincy farm team - Kremblas hit .233 with 20 HRs and 201 RBI. So it's a no-brainer why he ended up coaching instead of playing. That's where smart, scrappy, versatile, and no stick players gravitate to in baseball.
He hung up the spikes in 1996, and in 1998 began his career as skipper with the Gulf Coast Expos. In 2000, Kremblas made the move to the Milwaukee organization, first at the helm of the A Mudville Nine (no, that was really their name - even GW couldn't make that one up. Now they're known as the Stockton Port.)
The 42-year old soldiered his way through the ranks, spending the last four years at AAA Nashville, where in a bit of karmic foreshadowing, he replaced Trent Jewett in 2005. He led the team to the PCL crown in his first go-around, and in 2006 and 2007, the Sound won the American North Division title but lost the championship series.
After the 2007 season, Kremblas was named the PCL Manager of the Year. While with the Sound, he helped developed guys like Tony Gwynn, Jr., Prince Fielder, Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy, Rickie Weeks and Manny Parra. And that's a pretty sweet list.
He was canned as Nashville's manager after a 59–81 season in 2008; the good times can't roll on forever. Kremblas was told that Brewers officials didn't see him getting an opportunity to coach in the big leagues, so they decided to let him seek that opportunity elsewhere. Sounds kinda flimsy to us.
It was no secret, though, that he had an eye on a spot with the MLB club. But he was passed over in 2006 for Nick Leyva and in 2007 for Ted Simmons. GW took a quick survey of Brewer blogs, and they seemed split between the "he deserved a shot at the show" and "don't let the door hit you in the butt" camps. C'est la vie.
Another little bit on his coaching career - he sharpened up his skills in the Latin winter leagues, managing twice in Venezuela and once in Mexico. In fact, he's now the skipper of Leones de Caracas. Kremblas also served stints coaching in the Arizona Fall League and the Futures game.
So Pittsburgh landed a young guy with ambition, success at the AAA level, a track record of handling and developing talent, an appreciation of versatility, and some hands-on experience with Latino players, both as a manager and evaluator.
On first blush, it's just what the doctor ordered. But as with all things currently Pirate-related, only time will tell.
The Bucs also finally connected the dots for their minor staffs today. Here's the complete coaching lineup.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Ghosts of Christmas Past...
OK, the Pirates are going into 2009 with a roster of, well...Pittsburgh will have a roster. GW took a look back just to see what a difference a couple of decades make, to the one-away season of 1989.
The team would finish fifth, with a 74-88 record, but was just a year away from 95 wins and first place in the East. It was the kind of team Pirate fans have been lighting candles to see.
The 1989 Pittsburgh Pirates:
C - Junior Ortiz, about to be phased out by Spanky Lavalierre
1B - Gary Redus, holding down the fort for Sid Bream, who had a bum knee
2B - Chico Lind
SS - Jay Bell
3B - Bobby Bonilla, who would take over RF in 1990 and be replaced by Jeff King
LF - Barry Bonds
CF - Andy Van Slyke
RF - Glen Wilson & RJ Reynolds platooned; Bobby Bo manned the spot next season
PH - Rey Quinones, Jeff King, Spanky, John Cangelosi, Rafael Belliard and Benny DiStefano. Wally Backman and Don Slaught would replace Quinones, Ortiz, and DiStefano the following year.
SP - Doug Drabek, Bob Walk, John Smiley, Jeff Robinson, Neal Heaton, and Randy Kramer. Robinson and Kramer were gone in 1990, and pitching in their stead were Walt Terrell, Randy Tomlin, Zane Smith and Rick Reed.
BP - Bill Landrum closed, Bob Kipper, Doug Bair, and swingmen Robinson, Walk, and Heaton. Stan Belinda and Scott Ruskin would join the mix in 1990.
Does the 2009 PBC have any similarities with the 1989 club? Well, it depends how you look at the glass.
In the field and at bat, they were built around AVS, Bobby Bo, Barry Bonds, Jeff King, Jay Bell and Chico Lind. Next year's team will be centered around the abilities of Nate McLouth, Ryan Doumit, Adam LaRoche, Freddy Sanchez, Brandon Moss, and possibly Jack Wilson or Andrew McCutchen.
The rest were mix-and-match, the way that Jimmy Leyland, master of the platoon system, liked to manage the game. John Russell will get plenty of opportunity to use his bench, too, but for different reasons.
The pitching counted on Doug Drabek, Bob Walk, and John Smiley to pile up the innings and take the ball every turn, plus a handful of guys that could work out of the pen or start. Pittsburgh in 2009 will call on Paul Maholm, Ian Snell...and, well, a lot of guys that will fight for the next start.
The bullpen? Well, both teams took a pitch-by-committee attitude into the season. The Bucs may be better off in that regard with Matt Capps on hand. Landrum drew most of the work in 1989, but closing was pretty well spread out in the championship season the following year.
Do they match up? Nah. The 1989 Pirates had a couple of young guys that would become legitimate stars scattered amongst a pretty solid veteran core. Bonds and Bonilla could carry a team; McLouth and Doumit aren't there. Neither is the experience factor. The suits aren't adding to this team; they're still busy blowing it up.
The pitching is where the teams really veer. Drabek would become a Cy Young guy, and he's who the staff was built around. The Pirates may have someone of that physical ability with Ian Snell, but he's a far cry from the consistency of DD. And the 1989 version had great depth, something that the 2009 team is striving to add. All you have to do is look at the team ERAs - 3.64 in '89, 5.10 in '08.
Offensively, today's Bucs scored 735 runs, and the 1989 edition only put up 637. But if you take away the 122 runs scored by Jay Bay and Xavier Nady, it matches up fairly evenly, especially as the replacements, Nyjer Morgan, Andy LaRoche, and Brandon Moss, only put up 49 tallies.
So hey - if things fall right, maybe by late 2010 or 2011, the Pirates might be the equal to the 1989 team. We can only hope; God know's Pittsburgh fans have been waiting long enough (since they broke the 1989 Bucs up in 1993) for a team that plays like there's a light at the end of the tunnel.
* For the rumor de jour and other Bucco stuff, Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette has it all pretty well covered in one post or another at the PBC Blog.
* The Pirates just hired a new play-by-play guy, Tim Neverett, formerly of FSN Rocky Mountain, to replace Lanny.
The team would finish fifth, with a 74-88 record, but was just a year away from 95 wins and first place in the East. It was the kind of team Pirate fans have been lighting candles to see.
The 1989 Pittsburgh Pirates:
C - Junior Ortiz, about to be phased out by Spanky Lavalierre
1B - Gary Redus, holding down the fort for Sid Bream, who had a bum knee
2B - Chico Lind
SS - Jay Bell
3B - Bobby Bonilla, who would take over RF in 1990 and be replaced by Jeff King
LF - Barry Bonds
CF - Andy Van Slyke
RF - Glen Wilson & RJ Reynolds platooned; Bobby Bo manned the spot next season
PH - Rey Quinones, Jeff King, Spanky, John Cangelosi, Rafael Belliard and Benny DiStefano. Wally Backman and Don Slaught would replace Quinones, Ortiz, and DiStefano the following year.
SP - Doug Drabek, Bob Walk, John Smiley, Jeff Robinson, Neal Heaton, and Randy Kramer. Robinson and Kramer were gone in 1990, and pitching in their stead were Walt Terrell, Randy Tomlin, Zane Smith and Rick Reed.
BP - Bill Landrum closed, Bob Kipper, Doug Bair, and swingmen Robinson, Walk, and Heaton. Stan Belinda and Scott Ruskin would join the mix in 1990.
Does the 2009 PBC have any similarities with the 1989 club? Well, it depends how you look at the glass.
In the field and at bat, they were built around AVS, Bobby Bo, Barry Bonds, Jeff King, Jay Bell and Chico Lind. Next year's team will be centered around the abilities of Nate McLouth, Ryan Doumit, Adam LaRoche, Freddy Sanchez, Brandon Moss, and possibly Jack Wilson or Andrew McCutchen.
The rest were mix-and-match, the way that Jimmy Leyland, master of the platoon system, liked to manage the game. John Russell will get plenty of opportunity to use his bench, too, but for different reasons.
The pitching counted on Doug Drabek, Bob Walk, and John Smiley to pile up the innings and take the ball every turn, plus a handful of guys that could work out of the pen or start. Pittsburgh in 2009 will call on Paul Maholm, Ian Snell...and, well, a lot of guys that will fight for the next start.
The bullpen? Well, both teams took a pitch-by-committee attitude into the season. The Bucs may be better off in that regard with Matt Capps on hand. Landrum drew most of the work in 1989, but closing was pretty well spread out in the championship season the following year.
Do they match up? Nah. The 1989 Pirates had a couple of young guys that would become legitimate stars scattered amongst a pretty solid veteran core. Bonds and Bonilla could carry a team; McLouth and Doumit aren't there. Neither is the experience factor. The suits aren't adding to this team; they're still busy blowing it up.
The pitching is where the teams really veer. Drabek would become a Cy Young guy, and he's who the staff was built around. The Pirates may have someone of that physical ability with Ian Snell, but he's a far cry from the consistency of DD. And the 1989 version had great depth, something that the 2009 team is striving to add. All you have to do is look at the team ERAs - 3.64 in '89, 5.10 in '08.
Offensively, today's Bucs scored 735 runs, and the 1989 edition only put up 637. But if you take away the 122 runs scored by Jay Bay and Xavier Nady, it matches up fairly evenly, especially as the replacements, Nyjer Morgan, Andy LaRoche, and Brandon Moss, only put up 49 tallies.
So hey - if things fall right, maybe by late 2010 or 2011, the Pirates might be the equal to the 1989 team. We can only hope; God know's Pittsburgh fans have been waiting long enough (since they broke the 1989 Bucs up in 1993) for a team that plays like there's a light at the end of the tunnel.
* For the rumor de jour and other Bucco stuff, Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette has it all pretty well covered in one post or another at the PBC Blog.
* The Pirates just hired a new play-by-play guy, Tim Neverett, formerly of FSN Rocky Mountain, to replace Lanny.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
"These Men Are The Game"
An ABC Of Baseball Immortals
by Ogden Nash ©
Published: Sport Magazine (01-1949)
A is for Alex
The great Alexander;
More Goose eggs he pitched
Than a popular gander.
B is for Bresnahan
Back of the plate;
The Cubs were his love,
and McGraw his hate.
C is for Cobb,
Who grew spikes and not corn,
And made all the basemen
Wish they weren't born.
D is for Dean,
The grammatical Diz,
When they asked, Who's the tops?
Said correctly, I is.
E is for Evers,
His jaw in advance;
Never afraid
To Tinker with Chance.
F is for Fordham
And Frankie and Frisch;
I wish he were back
With the Giants, I wish.
G is for Gehrig,
The Pride of the Stadium;
His record pure gold,
His courage, pure radium.
H is for Hornsby;
When pitching to Rog,
The pitcher would pitch,
Then the pitcher would dodge.
I is for Me,
Not a hard-hitting man,
But an outstanding all-time
Incurable fan.
J is for Johnson
The Big Train in his prime
Was so fast he could throw
Three strikes at a time.
K is for Keeler,
As fresh as green paint,
The fastest and mostest
To hit where they ain't.
L is for Lajoie
Whom Clevelanders love,
Napolean himself,
With glue in his glove.
M is for Matty,
Who carried a charm
In the form of an extra
brain in his arm.
N is for Newsom,
Bobo's favorite kin.
You ask how he's here,
He talked himself in.
O is for Ott
Of the restless right foot.
When he leaned on the pellet,
The pellet stayed put.
P is for Plank,
The arm of the A's;
When he tangled with Matty
Games lasted for days.
Q is for Don Quixote
Cornelius Mack;
Neither Yankees nor years
Can halt his attack.
R is for Ruth.
To tell you the truth,
There's just no more to be said,
Just R is for Ruth.
S is for Speaker,
Swift center-field tender,
When the ball saw him coming,
It yelled, "I surrender."
T is for Terry
The Giant from Memphis
Whose .400 average
You can't overemphis.
U would be 'Ubell
if Carl were a cockney;
We say Hubbell and Baseball
Like Football and Rockne.
V is for Vance
The Dodger's very own Dazzy;
None of his rivals
Could throw as fast as he.
W is for Wagner,
The bowlegged beauty;
Short was closed to all traffic
With Honus on duty.
X is the first
of two x's in Foxx
Who was right behind Ruth
with his powerful soxx.
Y is for Young
The magnificent Cy;
People battled against him,
But I never knew why.
Z is for Zenith
The summit of fame.
These men are up there.
These men are the game.
from Baseball Almanac's Baseball Poetry
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
I'm Walking, Yes Indeed...
Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette applied Occam's Razor to the Pirate staff's problem with walks today. Simply stated, old William of Occam said way back in the day that "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best."
Do Buc hurlers suffer from bad mechanics? Lousy coaching? A nibbler pitching philosophy? Naw. As DK says "If the Pirates are going to be anything other than the worst pitching staff in the league in terms of walks, part of the process has to involve acquiring pitchers who have a history of throwing strikes."
Let's look at who the new suits have added to the Pirate pitching corp. First, there was Phil Dumatrait. In 753-2/3 innings of minor league ball, he walked 340 guys, or 4.2 men per nine innings. In the pros, the average grows to 5.0 per 9 innings.
Next came Tyler Yates. He issued 4.1 free passes per nine in the bushes, and 4.85 in the bigs. Denny Bautista? The wild child walked 4.0 men per game on the farm and 5.0 hitters per game in the MLB. Craig Hansen of the Jay Bay deal couldn't find the plate in the minors, tossing four balls to 4.3 batters every nine innings. He bettered (if better is the word) that in the show, walking 6.0 guys per game.
Ross Ohlendorf has the biggest split. The Big O only issued 2.3 free passes per nine in the minors, but let 4.3 hitters work him for a walk per game in the majors. He's the only example of a guy blowing up by more than a walk per game, so his problem may actually be correctable to a degree.
Other Yankee pitchers have held up OK, though. TJ Beam was the only one who actually sharpened his control in the big leagues, going from 2.7 walks/nine in the minors to just 2.45 in the majors. Jeff Karstens was a strike thrower down on the farm, walking only 2.25 guys every game, and he's OK in a MLB hill, too, issuing just 2.7 walks per nine.
The latest pick-up, Donnie Veal, hasn't had a shot at the show yet. But his 4.6 walks per nine in the minors doesn't bode well for poor Joe Kerrigan, tasked with showing him where the dish is at PNC.
And the Bucs are rumored to be sniffing around Daniel Cabrera, who has walked 5.1 batters per nine in his five year MLB career. Aye carumba!
What this all means is that the odds are stacked. If you're wild in the minors, you'll be wilder in the majors. Every pitcher the Pirates have brought aboard this year, except for TJ Beam, has walked an extra batter per nine innings when they got the call to the show, and some more than that.
And the extra walks beget the dreaded "counts" conundrum - pitch counts, hitter's counts, run counts...
Pitching style is part of the mix, too. The Green Weenie corollary to Occam is that the harder you throw, the less likely you are to know where the dang ball is going. So as long as the Pirates are enamored of power arms scavenged off the waiver wires, that's how long they'll have to learn to live with the walks.
And there ain't much Joe Kerrigan can do about that.
Do Buc hurlers suffer from bad mechanics? Lousy coaching? A nibbler pitching philosophy? Naw. As DK says "If the Pirates are going to be anything other than the worst pitching staff in the league in terms of walks, part of the process has to involve acquiring pitchers who have a history of throwing strikes."
Let's look at who the new suits have added to the Pirate pitching corp. First, there was Phil Dumatrait. In 753-2/3 innings of minor league ball, he walked 340 guys, or 4.2 men per nine innings. In the pros, the average grows to 5.0 per 9 innings.
Next came Tyler Yates. He issued 4.1 free passes per nine in the bushes, and 4.85 in the bigs. Denny Bautista? The wild child walked 4.0 men per game on the farm and 5.0 hitters per game in the MLB. Craig Hansen of the Jay Bay deal couldn't find the plate in the minors, tossing four balls to 4.3 batters every nine innings. He bettered (if better is the word) that in the show, walking 6.0 guys per game.
Ross Ohlendorf has the biggest split. The Big O only issued 2.3 free passes per nine in the minors, but let 4.3 hitters work him for a walk per game in the majors. He's the only example of a guy blowing up by more than a walk per game, so his problem may actually be correctable to a degree.
Other Yankee pitchers have held up OK, though. TJ Beam was the only one who actually sharpened his control in the big leagues, going from 2.7 walks/nine in the minors to just 2.45 in the majors. Jeff Karstens was a strike thrower down on the farm, walking only 2.25 guys every game, and he's OK in a MLB hill, too, issuing just 2.7 walks per nine.
The latest pick-up, Donnie Veal, hasn't had a shot at the show yet. But his 4.6 walks per nine in the minors doesn't bode well for poor Joe Kerrigan, tasked with showing him where the dish is at PNC.
And the Bucs are rumored to be sniffing around Daniel Cabrera, who has walked 5.1 batters per nine in his five year MLB career. Aye carumba!
What this all means is that the odds are stacked. If you're wild in the minors, you'll be wilder in the majors. Every pitcher the Pirates have brought aboard this year, except for TJ Beam, has walked an extra batter per nine innings when they got the call to the show, and some more than that.
And the extra walks beget the dreaded "counts" conundrum - pitch counts, hitter's counts, run counts...
Pitching style is part of the mix, too. The Green Weenie corollary to Occam is that the harder you throw, the less likely you are to know where the dang ball is going. So as long as the Pirates are enamored of power arms scavenged off the waiver wires, that's how long they'll have to learn to live with the walks.
And there ain't much Joe Kerrigan can do about that.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Throw Another Log On...
> The Bucs are supposed to be one of the teams in play to sign Ty Wigginton, who Dave Littlefield dumped in 2005. He'd provide another third base/OF option for the Pirates, and also has experience at first and second. Wigginton would be a good fit, and Devan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette confirmed Pittsburgh's interest.
So far the Indians, Giants and Reds are kicking his tires, and the Twins are known to be looking for a thirdbaseman. The going price is guesstimated by Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors to be $5-6M/year, based on Casey Blake's recent contract.
We don't see him returning. Not only does his cost seem high, but the Bucs aren't in a position to offer him a starting position unless other guys - namely, Andy LaRoche and Brandon Moss - flounder. Still, he and Juan Rivera look like the only right-handed OF options left with some pop in their sticks, and Wigginton's versatility is a huge plus considering the many Pirate question marks going into 2009.
> In a related note, Alyson Footer writes in MLB Hot Stove Blog: "Chris Gomez could be an attractive option (for the Astros). The 37-year-old veteran of 16 Major League seasons played in 90 games in 2008 for the Pirates, batting .273 with eight doubles and 20 RBIs in a backup role. He also earned only $1 million, which suggests he may be affordable for a team like the Astros, who are attempting to fill out their roster under extremely frugal guidelines."
> Rob Beirtempfel of the Tribune Review writes that "(Daniel) Cabrera's agent, Mike Powers, exchanged several e-mails over the weekend with a Pirates official. The Pirates have not yet made an offer for Cabrera, a right-hander who last season went 8-10 with a 5.25 ERA in 30 starts for the Baltimore Orioles.
Powers said he already has gotten two firm offers for Cabrera and expects a few more this week. Pirates management is very interested in Cabrera, and almost assuredly will make an offer."
There'll be a line, we think. The Baltimore Sun's Dan Connolly reports in Peter Schmuck's column that eleven teams have called Powers and "expressed interest" in Cabrera.
> Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com has some kind words about RHP Bryan Morris, an often forgotten piece of the Jay Bay deal. She says: "Those who have scouted Morris and watched him pitch project him as being a mid-to-upper rotation starter down the road. Morris could very well be the best piece to come out of that (Bay) deal.
Morris has a fastball in the mid-90s and a power breaking ball and is probably one of the best pitching prospects the Pirates now have in their farm system."
> Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle reports that Jason Michaels has signed with the Astros. The deal was for a year, with a base of $750,000 plus incentives. Despite a .224 batting average in 2008, the career .271 hitter drove in 53 runs over 286 at-bats. So much for the Pirate suits wanting to bring Michaels back, hey?
So far the Indians, Giants and Reds are kicking his tires, and the Twins are known to be looking for a thirdbaseman. The going price is guesstimated by Tim Dierkes at MLB Trade Rumors to be $5-6M/year, based on Casey Blake's recent contract.
We don't see him returning. Not only does his cost seem high, but the Bucs aren't in a position to offer him a starting position unless other guys - namely, Andy LaRoche and Brandon Moss - flounder. Still, he and Juan Rivera look like the only right-handed OF options left with some pop in their sticks, and Wigginton's versatility is a huge plus considering the many Pirate question marks going into 2009.
> In a related note, Alyson Footer writes in MLB Hot Stove Blog: "Chris Gomez could be an attractive option (for the Astros). The 37-year-old veteran of 16 Major League seasons played in 90 games in 2008 for the Pirates, batting .273 with eight doubles and 20 RBIs in a backup role. He also earned only $1 million, which suggests he may be affordable for a team like the Astros, who are attempting to fill out their roster under extremely frugal guidelines."
> Rob Beirtempfel of the Tribune Review writes that "(Daniel) Cabrera's agent, Mike Powers, exchanged several e-mails over the weekend with a Pirates official. The Pirates have not yet made an offer for Cabrera, a right-hander who last season went 8-10 with a 5.25 ERA in 30 starts for the Baltimore Orioles.
Powers said he already has gotten two firm offers for Cabrera and expects a few more this week. Pirates management is very interested in Cabrera, and almost assuredly will make an offer."
There'll be a line, we think. The Baltimore Sun's Dan Connolly reports in Peter Schmuck's column that eleven teams have called Powers and "expressed interest" in Cabrera.
> Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com has some kind words about RHP Bryan Morris, an often forgotten piece of the Jay Bay deal. She says: "Those who have scouted Morris and watched him pitch project him as being a mid-to-upper rotation starter down the road. Morris could very well be the best piece to come out of that (Bay) deal.
Morris has a fastball in the mid-90s and a power breaking ball and is probably one of the best pitching prospects the Pirates now have in their farm system."
> Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle reports that Jason Michaels has signed with the Astros. The deal was for a year, with a base of $750,000 plus incentives. Despite a .224 batting average in 2008, the career .271 hitter drove in 53 runs over 286 at-bats. So much for the Pirate suits wanting to bring Michaels back, hey?
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Ramon Vazquez
Hey, a couple of days late, but now that the Bucs have a lull after the action of the winter meetings, as it was, it seemed like a good time to take a look at the newest Pirate, Ramon Vazquez.
Here's the short version of his baseball trek, from Mahalo:
*June 1, 1995: Drafted in the 27th round of the 1995 amateur draft by the Seattle Mariners.
*December 11, 2001: Traded with Tom Lampkin, Brett Tomko, and cash to the San Diego Padres for Ben Davis, Alex Arias, and Wascar Serrano.
*December 20, 2004: Traded with David Pauley, Jay Payton, and cash to the Boston Red Sox for Dave Roberts.
*July 7, 2005: Traded to the Cleveland Indians for Alex Cora.
*November 17, 2006: Signed with the Texas Rangers as a Free Agent.
*December 12, 2008: Signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a Free Agent.
The Pirates were on the 32-year old Puerto Rican early in the process, according to reports, and he was pretty well known to the suits from his 2005-06 stint with the Indians. They liked his professionalism, left-handed stick and the infield flexibility he offered.
"The Pirates were interested in me from the beginning, and they put an offer on the table really early," Vazquez told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review. "This is where I want to be."
Of course, seeing his salary get jacked from $800,000 to $2,000,000 made Pittsburgh a pretty straightforward sell, too. They easily outbid cash-strapped Arizona for his services. Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette reported that the deal consisted of a $250,000 signing bonus, a $1.75M salary for 2009 and a $2M salary for 2010.
"He's a nice Major League option for us," GM Neal Huntington told Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. "He can play second, short and third as a backup man or potentially as a regular if one of our guys were to get hurt or if we were to make a move."
"He certainly is more than capable of hitting right-handed pitching and if we complement him with the right guy we could have a pretty good platoon there. For the immediate future, we think he supplies us with some quality Major League depth, and that's important."
There's no doubt that Vazquez is a super-utility man, although scouts think that shortstop is his natural position. In his career, he's played 247 games at short, 198 at the hot corner, and 143 at second, with 11 more games at first. Lately, he's been logging a lot of time at third, but that had more to do with injuries at Texas than anything else.
He's not a great range guy, according to Baseball Reference, and his lifetime fielding percentage is at the league norm. But after watching a parade of wanna-bes filling in at short when Jack Splat went down, the ability to pencil in a major-league caliber fielder on the lineup card sure looks like up to us.
Vazquez hasn't had a 400 at-bat season since his early years at San Diego, and has stepped up to the plate 300 times in both 2007 and 2008. His line last year, which was a career season, was .290/6/40; lifetime, he's .257/21/160.
His biggest problem is with his pitcher splits. During his career, he's hit a pretty solid .273 against righties, but just .195 against lefties. He continued the trend last year, with .310/.188 splits.
Still, he offers a nice bat off of the bench if John Russell can favorably match him up; he's generally overmatched against a LOOGY, or any southpaw, for that matter. He's spent most of his time at the top or bottom of the order. Vasquez's ability to hit righties could earn him a couple of shots at the two hole in the right situation; otherwise he'll hit eighth. Sounds like the current SS, no?
Also, perhaps as an unintended consequence, but probably not, his signing pretty much assures Neil Walker of another year at Indy, now that there's a veteran left handed bat that can step in at third if little LaRoche continues his freefall.
But there's more to him than his stats and versatility on the diamond. Vazquez, who's been around the major league block (Pittsburgh is his fifth team in eight years), brings a professional attitude and a little spark with him.
He had a telling interview with DK, in the article cited above. Vazquez first brought up the Roberto Clemente - Puerto Rican - Pittsburgh link, a connection that will never die as long as kids swat stuffed socks with broomsticks on the Island and look to their heroes for inspiration. Never underestimate the staying power of a baseball legend.
He then told Kovacevic that he takes his role seriously: "Look, I've been a utility guy for five or six years now, and I'm a guy who can play any position, from first to third," he said.
"If a guy goes down for a month or two, I can perform for you there. If I go out there for just a couple days to take the place of a guy who's struggling, maybe I'll open that player's eyes. Maybe I'll show him what he should be doing." And the Lord knows this squad can use an old head to show the way.
Here's a tale that Wikipedia tells of him from last season:
On July 29, after his third error of the game allowed the Seattle to take a 10-9 lead in the top of the 9th, Vazquez doubled to right-center field off Mariners closer J. J. Putz, just out of Ichiro's reach, to drive in the tying and winning runs.
In a postgame interview, broadcast over the stadium speakers, Vazquez thanked all the fans that were cheering him on despite his three errors, and then told those who booed him to "Take that, *BLEEP*!" (Vazquez didn't cuss aloud, but lip-synced the bleep).
Now we don't recommend flipping a verbal bird at the fans as the best way to win friends. But it shows that he plays with heart and emotion, and if you remember how the Pirates showed all the spunk of George Romero zombies through the final few weeks of 2008, Vazquez should provide a welcome sparkplug to a team badly in need of a jolt.
And hey, with Vazquez on the roster, wouldn't it be sweet if Dirt Dog signed on for a return engagement? With a middle infielder inked, DM is a perfect piece of the bench again. The ball may not be much better, but it sure would keep the summer interesting.
Here's the short version of his baseball trek, from Mahalo:
*June 1, 1995: Drafted in the 27th round of the 1995 amateur draft by the Seattle Mariners.
*December 11, 2001: Traded with Tom Lampkin, Brett Tomko, and cash to the San Diego Padres for Ben Davis, Alex Arias, and Wascar Serrano.
*December 20, 2004: Traded with David Pauley, Jay Payton, and cash to the Boston Red Sox for Dave Roberts.
*July 7, 2005: Traded to the Cleveland Indians for Alex Cora.
*November 17, 2006: Signed with the Texas Rangers as a Free Agent.
*December 12, 2008: Signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates as a Free Agent.
The Pirates were on the 32-year old Puerto Rican early in the process, according to reports, and he was pretty well known to the suits from his 2005-06 stint with the Indians. They liked his professionalism, left-handed stick and the infield flexibility he offered.
"The Pirates were interested in me from the beginning, and they put an offer on the table really early," Vazquez told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review. "This is where I want to be."
Of course, seeing his salary get jacked from $800,000 to $2,000,000 made Pittsburgh a pretty straightforward sell, too. They easily outbid cash-strapped Arizona for his services. Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette reported that the deal consisted of a $250,000 signing bonus, a $1.75M salary for 2009 and a $2M salary for 2010.
"He's a nice Major League option for us," GM Neal Huntington told Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. "He can play second, short and third as a backup man or potentially as a regular if one of our guys were to get hurt or if we were to make a move."
"He certainly is more than capable of hitting right-handed pitching and if we complement him with the right guy we could have a pretty good platoon there. For the immediate future, we think he supplies us with some quality Major League depth, and that's important."
There's no doubt that Vazquez is a super-utility man, although scouts think that shortstop is his natural position. In his career, he's played 247 games at short, 198 at the hot corner, and 143 at second, with 11 more games at first. Lately, he's been logging a lot of time at third, but that had more to do with injuries at Texas than anything else.
He's not a great range guy, according to Baseball Reference, and his lifetime fielding percentage is at the league norm. But after watching a parade of wanna-bes filling in at short when Jack Splat went down, the ability to pencil in a major-league caliber fielder on the lineup card sure looks like up to us.
Vazquez hasn't had a 400 at-bat season since his early years at San Diego, and has stepped up to the plate 300 times in both 2007 and 2008. His line last year, which was a career season, was .290/6/40; lifetime, he's .257/21/160.
His biggest problem is with his pitcher splits. During his career, he's hit a pretty solid .273 against righties, but just .195 against lefties. He continued the trend last year, with .310/.188 splits.
Still, he offers a nice bat off of the bench if John Russell can favorably match him up; he's generally overmatched against a LOOGY, or any southpaw, for that matter. He's spent most of his time at the top or bottom of the order. Vasquez's ability to hit righties could earn him a couple of shots at the two hole in the right situation; otherwise he'll hit eighth. Sounds like the current SS, no?
Also, perhaps as an unintended consequence, but probably not, his signing pretty much assures Neil Walker of another year at Indy, now that there's a veteran left handed bat that can step in at third if little LaRoche continues his freefall.
But there's more to him than his stats and versatility on the diamond. Vazquez, who's been around the major league block (Pittsburgh is his fifth team in eight years), brings a professional attitude and a little spark with him.
He had a telling interview with DK, in the article cited above. Vazquez first brought up the Roberto Clemente - Puerto Rican - Pittsburgh link, a connection that will never die as long as kids swat stuffed socks with broomsticks on the Island and look to their heroes for inspiration. Never underestimate the staying power of a baseball legend.
He then told Kovacevic that he takes his role seriously: "Look, I've been a utility guy for five or six years now, and I'm a guy who can play any position, from first to third," he said.
"If a guy goes down for a month or two, I can perform for you there. If I go out there for just a couple days to take the place of a guy who's struggling, maybe I'll open that player's eyes. Maybe I'll show him what he should be doing." And the Lord knows this squad can use an old head to show the way.
Here's a tale that Wikipedia tells of him from last season:
On July 29, after his third error of the game allowed the Seattle to take a 10-9 lead in the top of the 9th, Vazquez doubled to right-center field off Mariners closer J. J. Putz, just out of Ichiro's reach, to drive in the tying and winning runs.
In a postgame interview, broadcast over the stadium speakers, Vazquez thanked all the fans that were cheering him on despite his three errors, and then told those who booed him to "Take that, *BLEEP*!" (Vazquez didn't cuss aloud, but lip-synced the bleep).
Now we don't recommend flipping a verbal bird at the fans as the best way to win friends. But it shows that he plays with heart and emotion, and if you remember how the Pirates showed all the spunk of George Romero zombies through the final few weeks of 2008, Vazquez should provide a welcome sparkplug to a team badly in need of a jolt.
And hey, with Vazquez on the roster, wouldn't it be sweet if Dirt Dog signed on for a return engagement? With a middle infielder inked, DM is a perfect piece of the bench again. The ball may not be much better, but it sure would keep the summer interesting.
Saturday, December 13, 2008
Love Me Tender...
Midnight was the deadline to tender contracts to the arbitration eligible Pirates, who numbered ten going into the off-season, and the Bucs pared another one off the list, Denny Bautista.
Bautista, you may recall, did a Frankie Osario imitation, pitching lights out early and then completely losing it as the innings piled up, finishing with a 6.10 ERA.
He might be a candidate for a minor-league deal. Bautista made $395,000 last year, and the suits feared that amount would double in arbitration. And for a guy that walked 28 batters in 35 appearances and was iffy to make the team, that's a lot of loot.
Buatista's cause wasn't helped when he qualified for arbitration a year early as a "Super Two" player. In fact, it may have cost him his spot on the 40-man roster.
Two more arb guys, Jason Davis and Raul Chavez, were also given their walking papers earlier.
We considered Davis to be a solid veteran insurance policy, but a combo of a potentially high sticker price and the influx of arms that came during the trading deadline frenzy made him expendable.
He made four starts and 10 relief outings, going 2-4 with a 5.29 ERA, earning $650,000 and expected to get bumped up to at least $750,000 in arbitration. The only way Davis comes back, as we see it, is if he takes a pay cut and minor league gig. He's rumored to be looking into Japan as his next baseball landing spot.
Chavez was caught in a numbers game. He was brought in with Michel Hernandez last year when the Pirate catching consisted of Ronny Paulino and Ryan Doumit, with Candy Maldonado being the only Plan B backstop. With Robinzon Diaz and Jason Jaramillo now in the flock, Steve Lerud at Altoona, and Andrew Walker at Lynchburg, the Bucs are adequately stocked in the upper levels of their farm.
Still, he'll almost surely be offered a minor-league deal to come back to the organization, as the Bucs liked both his performance and work ethic. Chavez's biggest asset was his defense (he threw out 48% of the runners that took off against him) and game smarts, while hitting a respectable .259. He made $550,000 in 2008, and the Pirates would like to sign him again at roughly the same cost.
So there are seven left, and they were all tendered deals - Nate McLouth, Zach Duke, Paul Maholm, John Grabow, Tyler Yates, Adam LaRoche and catcher Ryan Doumit.
Doumit, Duke, Maholm and McLouth are all in their first year of arbitration and are due for significant raises. Yates is in his second year, while Grabow and LaRoche are entering their third and final arbitration season.
Local media reports say that the Pirates plan to offer Maholm (9-9, 3.71 ERA), McLouth (.276, 26/94) and Doumit (.318, 15/69) multi-year deals, looking to buy out the remaining arbitration years and perhaps a free agent season or two, although action has been excruciatingly slow on that front.
We understand that they've made an initial offer to McLouth at the winter meetings, but we're not so sure if they've made concrete proposals to Doumit or Maholm yet.
All three will reap huge leaps in pay, as McLouth made $425,000, Maholm $424,500, and Doumit $412,000 in 2008 and all came through with break-out years. We won't guess what their ceiling may be in arbitration, and the Pirates aren't sure how high the limit will be, either.
One reason that the Bucs have been foot-dragging in contract talks is because they would love to tie up the trio's arbitration years and at least a season of free agency, as they did with Ian Snell. He signed a three year deal in 2008 with two club options afterwards, extending their control over him through the 2012 season. But coming up with numbers that satisfy both parties isn't an easy task.
That approach, of course, is also a double edged sword. The Pirates get cost certainy and control over the players, but run the risk of them becoming one-year wonders. And the players themselves need a pretty juicy carrot to give up their walk year, even with the added security of a long-term deal in their pocket.
The same dynamic came into play when the suits tried to ink Matt Capps last year. The two sides couldn't strike an agreement that met everyone's interest, and they ended up hammering out a two-year pact that covered his first pair of arbitration seasons, to be revisited in 2010 when his value is more firmly set.
So that will be the first sub-plot of arbitration. Can the Pirates ink their trio of future lynch pins, or will their contracts become the stuff of soap operas in future seasons?
Next, we have the cases of LaRoche (.270, 25/85) and Grabow (6-3-4, 2.84 ERA), both in their final arb year. Frankly, we can't see an upside from the players point of view that would make signing a deal beyond 2009 attractive.
LaRoche made $5,000,000 last year, and will be looking at $7,000,000+ in 2009. Unless the suits blow his socks off, there's no reason for him to talk - he'll have a comfy salary no matter what and just one year left to reach the promised land of free agency. As Ralph Kiner famously said: "Home run hitters drive Cadillacs."
That's bad news for the Pirates. While his infamous slow starts have helped to put the team behind the eight ball by Memorial Day, his pay will make him a difficult guy to move, even at the deadline, when he's traditionally hot.
There's also the small matter of there being nobody in the Pittsburgh system ready to take his place, unless they think Jamie Romak looks good with a first-baseman's mitt on his paw (does anyone think that Neil Walker or Steve Pearce have another position switch in their immediate future?) So the Bucs are danged if they do and danged if they don't with LaRoche.
Grabow has been one of the guys the Pirates have been aggressively pushing this winter. He made $1,135,000 last year, a reasonable salary for his performance, especially if you're with a contending team. The lefty will get a healthy jump this year.
Pittsburgh's theory, even predating Neil Huntington, is that you can build a bullpen pretty much from scratch if you have a closer. They did it last year, and look to do it again this season, as they showed by shipping Damaso Marte to the evil empire. We'd be surprised to see the 30-year old set-up guy last until camp.
That leaves Tyler Yates and Zach Duke.
Yates (6-3-1, 4.66 ERA) showed enough last year to hang around, and our guess is the Bucs will try to ink him to a one year deal for $1M and some change, up from his current $800,000.
Duke (5-14, 4.82 ERA) took a pay cut last year, to $400,000, and is probably in a make-or-break year in Pittsburgh. He may get a one-year deal, or he may end up in front of a hearing judge, unless his second half resurgence impressed the suits.
Duke won't have to worry about his salary this season; either way, he's expected to get a nice bump. His more immediate concern should be establishing a major league career.
The Pirates have until February to ink their seven. The arbitration hearings begin on the first and run until the twenty-first that month for the unsigned players.
The arbitration deadline is sort of a second free-agency period for baseball. By MLB Trade Rumors.com count, 34 players were non-tendered. Guys like Ty Wiggington and Takashi Saito should land on their feet, though almost certainly not in Pittsburgh.
But there are a couple of interesting names that may be on the Pirate radar. A thumper like Tampa Bay's Jonny Gomes, a sweet glove guy like Dodger SS Angel Berroa, Rox speedster Willie Taveras, and starters like Baltimore's Daniel Cabrera, Washington's Tim Redding, Atlanta's Chuck James, and the Brew Crew's Chris Capuano should all have their tires kicked by the Bucco mechanics.
The wheel keeps on turning.
Bautista, you may recall, did a Frankie Osario imitation, pitching lights out early and then completely losing it as the innings piled up, finishing with a 6.10 ERA.
He might be a candidate for a minor-league deal. Bautista made $395,000 last year, and the suits feared that amount would double in arbitration. And for a guy that walked 28 batters in 35 appearances and was iffy to make the team, that's a lot of loot.
Buatista's cause wasn't helped when he qualified for arbitration a year early as a "Super Two" player. In fact, it may have cost him his spot on the 40-man roster.
Two more arb guys, Jason Davis and Raul Chavez, were also given their walking papers earlier.
We considered Davis to be a solid veteran insurance policy, but a combo of a potentially high sticker price and the influx of arms that came during the trading deadline frenzy made him expendable.
He made four starts and 10 relief outings, going 2-4 with a 5.29 ERA, earning $650,000 and expected to get bumped up to at least $750,000 in arbitration. The only way Davis comes back, as we see it, is if he takes a pay cut and minor league gig. He's rumored to be looking into Japan as his next baseball landing spot.
Chavez was caught in a numbers game. He was brought in with Michel Hernandez last year when the Pirate catching consisted of Ronny Paulino and Ryan Doumit, with Candy Maldonado being the only Plan B backstop. With Robinzon Diaz and Jason Jaramillo now in the flock, Steve Lerud at Altoona, and Andrew Walker at Lynchburg, the Bucs are adequately stocked in the upper levels of their farm.
Still, he'll almost surely be offered a minor-league deal to come back to the organization, as the Bucs liked both his performance and work ethic. Chavez's biggest asset was his defense (he threw out 48% of the runners that took off against him) and game smarts, while hitting a respectable .259. He made $550,000 in 2008, and the Pirates would like to sign him again at roughly the same cost.
So there are seven left, and they were all tendered deals - Nate McLouth, Zach Duke, Paul Maholm, John Grabow, Tyler Yates, Adam LaRoche and catcher Ryan Doumit.
Doumit, Duke, Maholm and McLouth are all in their first year of arbitration and are due for significant raises. Yates is in his second year, while Grabow and LaRoche are entering their third and final arbitration season.
Local media reports say that the Pirates plan to offer Maholm (9-9, 3.71 ERA), McLouth (.276, 26/94) and Doumit (.318, 15/69) multi-year deals, looking to buy out the remaining arbitration years and perhaps a free agent season or two, although action has been excruciatingly slow on that front.
We understand that they've made an initial offer to McLouth at the winter meetings, but we're not so sure if they've made concrete proposals to Doumit or Maholm yet.
All three will reap huge leaps in pay, as McLouth made $425,000, Maholm $424,500, and Doumit $412,000 in 2008 and all came through with break-out years. We won't guess what their ceiling may be in arbitration, and the Pirates aren't sure how high the limit will be, either.
One reason that the Bucs have been foot-dragging in contract talks is because they would love to tie up the trio's arbitration years and at least a season of free agency, as they did with Ian Snell. He signed a three year deal in 2008 with two club options afterwards, extending their control over him through the 2012 season. But coming up with numbers that satisfy both parties isn't an easy task.
That approach, of course, is also a double edged sword. The Pirates get cost certainy and control over the players, but run the risk of them becoming one-year wonders. And the players themselves need a pretty juicy carrot to give up their walk year, even with the added security of a long-term deal in their pocket.
The same dynamic came into play when the suits tried to ink Matt Capps last year. The two sides couldn't strike an agreement that met everyone's interest, and they ended up hammering out a two-year pact that covered his first pair of arbitration seasons, to be revisited in 2010 when his value is more firmly set.
So that will be the first sub-plot of arbitration. Can the Pirates ink their trio of future lynch pins, or will their contracts become the stuff of soap operas in future seasons?
Next, we have the cases of LaRoche (.270, 25/85) and Grabow (6-3-4, 2.84 ERA), both in their final arb year. Frankly, we can't see an upside from the players point of view that would make signing a deal beyond 2009 attractive.
LaRoche made $5,000,000 last year, and will be looking at $7,000,000+ in 2009. Unless the suits blow his socks off, there's no reason for him to talk - he'll have a comfy salary no matter what and just one year left to reach the promised land of free agency. As Ralph Kiner famously said: "Home run hitters drive Cadillacs."
That's bad news for the Pirates. While his infamous slow starts have helped to put the team behind the eight ball by Memorial Day, his pay will make him a difficult guy to move, even at the deadline, when he's traditionally hot.
There's also the small matter of there being nobody in the Pittsburgh system ready to take his place, unless they think Jamie Romak looks good with a first-baseman's mitt on his paw (does anyone think that Neil Walker or Steve Pearce have another position switch in their immediate future?) So the Bucs are danged if they do and danged if they don't with LaRoche.
Grabow has been one of the guys the Pirates have been aggressively pushing this winter. He made $1,135,000 last year, a reasonable salary for his performance, especially if you're with a contending team. The lefty will get a healthy jump this year.
Pittsburgh's theory, even predating Neil Huntington, is that you can build a bullpen pretty much from scratch if you have a closer. They did it last year, and look to do it again this season, as they showed by shipping Damaso Marte to the evil empire. We'd be surprised to see the 30-year old set-up guy last until camp.
That leaves Tyler Yates and Zach Duke.
Yates (6-3-1, 4.66 ERA) showed enough last year to hang around, and our guess is the Bucs will try to ink him to a one year deal for $1M and some change, up from his current $800,000.
Duke (5-14, 4.82 ERA) took a pay cut last year, to $400,000, and is probably in a make-or-break year in Pittsburgh. He may get a one-year deal, or he may end up in front of a hearing judge, unless his second half resurgence impressed the suits.
Duke won't have to worry about his salary this season; either way, he's expected to get a nice bump. His more immediate concern should be establishing a major league career.
The Pirates have until February to ink their seven. The arbitration hearings begin on the first and run until the twenty-first that month for the unsigned players.
The arbitration deadline is sort of a second free-agency period for baseball. By MLB Trade Rumors.com count, 34 players were non-tendered. Guys like Ty Wiggington and Takashi Saito should land on their feet, though almost certainly not in Pittsburgh.
But there are a couple of interesting names that may be on the Pirate radar. A thumper like Tampa Bay's Jonny Gomes, a sweet glove guy like Dodger SS Angel Berroa, Rox speedster Willie Taveras, and starters like Baltimore's Daniel Cabrera, Washington's Tim Redding, Atlanta's Chuck James, and the Brew Crew's Chris Capuano should all have their tires kicked by the Bucco mechanics.
The wheel keeps on turning.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Your 2009 Pirates...
OK, the winter meetings have come and gone, and in the ten weeks since the season has ended, Pittsburgh has done some jivin' and shuckin' in regards to the 40-man roster. If the season started tomorrow, here's what the PNC Fightin' Forty would be:
RHP: Jimmy Barthmaier, TJ Beam, Matt Capps, Jesse Chavez, Craig Hansen, Jeff Karstens, Evan Meek, Ross Ohlendorf, Romulo Sanchez, Ian Snell, Jeff Sues, Ron Uviedo, and Tyler Yates.
LHP: Sean Burnett, Dave Davidson, Zach Duke, Phil Dumatrait, Tom Gorzelanny, John Grabow, Paul Maholm, and Donnie Veal.
C: Robinzon Diaz, Ryan Doumit, Jason Jaramillo, and Steve Lerud.
INF: Pedro Alvarez, Brian Bixler, Luis Cruz, Adam LaRoche, Andy LaRoche, Freddy Sanchez, Ramon Vazquez, Neil Walker, and Jack Wilson.
OF: Nate McLouth, Nyjer Morgan, Brandon Moss, Steve Pearce, and Jose Tabata.
Since the last game, the suits have cut the bench and some deadwood pitching. The only newcomers, aside from Pedro and the Rule 5 gang that needed cover, are IF Vazquez, who can play all four infield spots, back-up C Jaramillo, and LHP Veal, a Rule 5 project.
Additions? We don't really foresee many more to fill that one spot left in the 40-man roster. They'll continue to try to move Wilson and Grabow, maybe big daddy LaRoche, Sanchez, and Snell, too, sometime between now and the trading deadline.
The team will cross their fingers and hope that an outfielder with a little pop will drop into their price range. It's likely that Andrew McCutcheon will finally get his long-awaited call to the bigs, along with perhaps Daniel McCutchen, sometime during the year.
And there's always the off-chance that Dirt Dog Doug Mientkiewicz will be back, although we wouldn't recommend holding your breath waiting on his return. Ditto for Jason Michaels, Denny Bautista, Raul Chavez and Jason Davis, unless they come back cheap.
And that, folks, will be your 2009 Pirates, a team in the early stages of a full-blown makeover. Again. Let's hope these guys get it right.
RHP: Jimmy Barthmaier, TJ Beam, Matt Capps, Jesse Chavez, Craig Hansen, Jeff Karstens, Evan Meek, Ross Ohlendorf, Romulo Sanchez, Ian Snell, Jeff Sues, Ron Uviedo, and Tyler Yates.
LHP: Sean Burnett, Dave Davidson, Zach Duke, Phil Dumatrait, Tom Gorzelanny, John Grabow, Paul Maholm, and Donnie Veal.
C: Robinzon Diaz, Ryan Doumit, Jason Jaramillo, and Steve Lerud.
INF: Pedro Alvarez, Brian Bixler, Luis Cruz, Adam LaRoche, Andy LaRoche, Freddy Sanchez, Ramon Vazquez, Neil Walker, and Jack Wilson.
OF: Nate McLouth, Nyjer Morgan, Brandon Moss, Steve Pearce, and Jose Tabata.
Since the last game, the suits have cut the bench and some deadwood pitching. The only newcomers, aside from Pedro and the Rule 5 gang that needed cover, are IF Vazquez, who can play all four infield spots, back-up C Jaramillo, and LHP Veal, a Rule 5 project.
Additions? We don't really foresee many more to fill that one spot left in the 40-man roster. They'll continue to try to move Wilson and Grabow, maybe big daddy LaRoche, Sanchez, and Snell, too, sometime between now and the trading deadline.
The team will cross their fingers and hope that an outfielder with a little pop will drop into their price range. It's likely that Andrew McCutcheon will finally get his long-awaited call to the bigs, along with perhaps Daniel McCutchen, sometime during the year.
And there's always the off-chance that Dirt Dog Doug Mientkiewicz will be back, although we wouldn't recommend holding your breath waiting on his return. Ditto for Jason Michaels, Denny Bautista, Raul Chavez and Jason Davis, unless they come back cheap.
And that, folks, will be your 2009 Pirates, a team in the early stages of a full-blown makeover. Again. Let's hope these guys get it right.
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