Two In A Row For the Buccos...

* In front of 7,900+ fans at the City of Palms Field, the Pirates scored three times in the ninth to squeeze out a 3-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox in Grapefruit League play today.

The pitching again looked strong. Ian Snell walked a couple in the first, and they both scored thanks to a two-out bobble by Brian Bixler, who tried to reverse direction on a ball hit to his left and lost his footing.

The miscue juiced the sacks, and the next batter hit a Texas Leaguer into center, just in front of Andrew McCutchen, bringing home a pair.

Snell gave up a single to open the second, and then struck out the side. It'll be his last Pirate appearance for awhile, as he now heads off to represent Puerto Rico in the WBC.

Ross Ohlendorf pitched the next two frames and was el fuego, striking out three BoSox. Jimmy Barthmaier, Denny Bautista, Sean Burnett, Tyler Yates, and Daniel Haigwood sealed the deal.

Yates gave up a one-out single, and Haigwood walked a batter in the ninth; otherwise the staff was untouched, retiring 18 in a row at one point. Yates got the W and Haigwood earned the save.

Someone buy Joe Kerrigan a beer.

Pedro Alvarez got his first big bang of his career after Neil Walker and Jose Tabata walked, plating Walker. The first round pick shot a 3-1 pitch the opposite way for a double. Andy Phillips took one for the team, loading the bases.

A Steve Lerud bouncer to first tied it, and in a bit of sweet irony, Brian Bixler's grounder to short was booted, scoring Alvarez with the winning run.

It was a nice day for the youngsters at the dish. Besides Alvarez's big bop, Walker went 1-for-1 with a walk and run, while Shelby Ford went 1-for-2 with a steal.

Pittsburgh is home against the Braves tomorrow afternoon at McKechnie Field, with Tom Gorzelanny starting against Japanese right-hander Kenshin Kawakami.

* Doug Mientkiewicz signed a minor league deal with the LA Dodgers today. Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review said that Neal Huntington's story is:

"We offered Doug a minor league contract with a chance to come to major league spring training to make our club and showcase himself for other clubs. Doug chose the Dodgers because he felt he had a better chance to make that club."

Whatever; the Dirt Dog era is officially over.

* Biertempfel also noted yesterday that Steve Blass has been with the Pirates as a player, staff member and broadcaster for 50 seasons now. And he's done the organization proud during every one of them, whether the year was up or down for him personally.

* Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports tells us that:

"(Will) Ohman, 31, has offers from the Pirates, Marlins and Padres, as first reported by ESPN.com, and is waiting for possible interest to develop from the Phillies, Mets and Dodgers."

Tick, tick, tick...

Break 'Em Up...

* The Bucs rocked the Phils 8-2 today to open the Grapefruit League. Nine guys got an inning each on the hill, and the good news is the Pirate wild children all found the plate in their brief stints: Donnie Veal got the win, giving up a single, while Chris Hansen struck out two and Evan Meek one in perfect innings.

Chris Bootcheck also had a perfect frame with a K, and Ron Uviedo retire all three of his batters. Juan Mateo gave up a double and whiffed one. But not everyone was sharp quite yet.

Matt Capps took a walk on the wild side and issued three free passes on twelve straight pitches, but a K and DP ball cleaned up his mess. Romulo Sanchez wasn't that lucky; he got nicked for a couple of hits and a run. Jesse Chavez gave up three consecutive singles and a run to start the ninth, but got the next two hitters to strike out and ended the game with a come-backer.

Not much to take to school from the first outing, but one sign to watch for in the future: the pitchers threw a lot of change-ups. That philosophy may finally be taking hold.

The hitting heroes were Shelby Ford, who smacked a three-run shot over the right field wall, Freddy Sanchez, who went 2-for-2 with a double, and Steve Pearce, who played some first and went 1-for-1 with a two-bagger and a walk. The Bucs drew seven walks; whether that's Philly rust or a sign of a little plate discipline will be seen.

Oh, and don't expect Pedro to be in the opening day lineup this year. Alvarez was called on to pinch hit - against a lefty, yet - and swung and missed three breaking balls, the last a 55-footer. Welcome to the show, kid, and take a seat.

The opening lineup was: 1. Nyjer Morgan LF, 2. Freddy Sanchez 2B, 3. Nate McLouth CF, 4. Ryan Doumit C, 5. Adam LaRoche 1B, 6. Craig Monroe DH (NL teams can agree to use a DH up to two weeks before the end of spring ball), 7. Brandon Moss RF, 8. Ramon Vazquez 3B, 9. Jack Wilson SS.

* OK, the CHONE and PECOTA projections are out. Looks like a long year for Pittsburgh. The CHONE Central Division picks, by Sean Smith:

Chicago Cubs 88-74
Saint Louis Cardinals 83-79
Cincinnati Reds 82-80
Milwaukee Brewers 81-81
Pittsburgh Pirates 73-89
Houston Astros 72-90

And PECOTA, from Baseball Prospectus:

Chicago Cubs 96-66
Milwaukee Brewers 86-76
St. Louis Cardinals 81-81
Cincinnati Reds 79-83
Houston Astros 66-96
Pittsburgh Pirates 64-98 *ouch*

* Those globe-trotting Pirates have nine players on final WBC rosters, two from the big team: RHP Ian Snell and IF Ramon Vazquez (Puerto Rico). The farmhands are: LHP Dave Davidson (Canada), RHP Josh Hill and LHP Paul Mildren (Australia), IF Ray Chang (China), LHP Chi-Hung Cheng (Chinese Taipei), LHP Eliecer Navarro (Panama), and SS Gift Ngoepe (South Africa).

All The News Fit To Print

* Baseball America has released its Top 100 Prospects for 2009, and no surprises for the Pirates. They rank Pedro Alvarez #12, Andrew McCutchen 33#, and Jose Tabata #75.

They have Pedro and Andrew landing in Pittsburgh this year, and Jose in 2010.

* Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette says the Bucs still have an iron in the Will Ohman fire, eyeing the LHP as an insurance policy as they grease the skids to move John Grabow during his free agent season.

* John Perrotto of the Pirates Report does a piece on the Buc's Barber of the Bullpen, ex-Indian RHP Brian Slocum.

* Rob Beirtempfel of the Tribune Review checks out the achy Bucs: Luis Cruz pulled a hip flexor and will miss a week, while Freddy Sanchez is still long-tossing.

* Chuck Finder of the Post Gazette clues us into Jason Davis' second career - as a taxidermist. Maybe he can go into business stuffing Adam LaRoche's trophies.

* Jen Langosch of MLB.com takes a look at the eight baby Bucs that landed in PNC at the trade deadline. She thinks that "It's quite possible that by the end of the season six of the eight players acquired last July will be making contributions in Pittsburgh."

* Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe discusses the Jay Bay quest for a long-term Red Sox contract during his walk year.

He writes that "...factoring in age, defense and mobility, there may not be a more desirable free agent outfielder on the market next November than the man who currently plays left field for the Red Sox."

Oh, and they very much like his glove in Beantown, a facet of his game that was greatly underappreciated in Pittsburgh because he played 2007 more or less on one leg.

Another AAA Infielder

The suits signed Ruben Gotay, a 27-year old utility infielder, to a minor league contract today. In parts of four seasons, he's a lifetime .255 hitter, and about a league average second baseman, where he's spent the vast majority of his playing time.

Gotay has a couple of tenuous Pirate ties - he was traded in 2006 to the Mets by KC for old Bucco farmhand Jeff Keppinger, now a Red, and his uncle Julio Gotay had a couple cups of coffee with Pittsburgh in 1963-64. He'll report to the minor league camp in Bradenton, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Post Gazette.

Our question is whassup with this move? The Bucs have really stocked up on infielders: holdovers Brian Bixler and Luis Cruz from Indy, to be joined by Shelby Ford, shortstops Pedro Lopez and Anderson Machado, plus Andy Phillips, who plays every infield spot but short. And we expect Brian Friday to start at Altoona.

That's a lot of guys to man the middle of the diamond at Indy and Altoona, even if one of the above lands a utility role behind Ramon Vazquez, and suggests a couple of things to us.

One, and most obvious, is that they want some upper level depth in anticipation of moving the major league infielders, Jack Wilson and/or Freddy Sanchez. That would certainly break up the current logjam.

Two, with all the middle-of-the-infield talent stacked up in Class A and still seasons away from hitting the show, they may just want to strengthen their hand in the minors for competitive reasons.

All that's left behind Bixler and Cruz on the depth chart are Friday and Ford for the short term. That's the state of the Pirate minor league system today.

So it's another small move today to stock the cupboard that Dave Littlefield left so bare. We'll know the new dawn has arrived when the Pirates can promote their own talent from within instead of digging through other people's dumpsters and hoping for the best.

The Tabata Tale

While we were reading the news about Pedro cracking the ball into the Florida stratosphere, a quote about a different hotshot caught our eye:

"You should watch Tabata hit. Jose Tabata is kind of going under the radar here, but this kid has a special bat as well," John Russell told the scribes gathered around the batting cage yesterday.

Jose Tabata was born August 12, 1988 in Anzoategui, Venezuela, and is a 20-year old OF'er who's probably going to start the year in Altoona. He signed with the Yankees in 2004, and promptly starting playing in the Dominican Summer League at 16.

In his first year of pro ball, Tabata led the entire Yankees farm system in batting average when he hit .314 for the Gulf Coast Yankees in 2005. He added 3 homers, 25 RBI, and 22 stolen bases.

In 2006, he batted .298 for the Low Class A Charleston RiverDogs. Tabata had 5 HRs, 56 RBI, and the young outfielder looked like he had smooth sailing ahead on his journey to the bigs. But he would soon encounter some rough seas.

The Buc fans got their first look at him when he was selected to participate in the Futures Game as a member of the World Team. The event was part of the festivities for the 2006 All-Star Game at PNC Park, and Tabata played center field while going 1-for-3 with a single off fellow Yankees prospect Phil Hughes.

Ah, but that first squall was about to pop up. He was hit on the right wrist in 2006, cutting short his season. The injury bothered him throughout 2007, and he finally had the hamate bone removed in August.

He was still having problems with it in early 2008; it's not unusual to have lingering effects from the surgery for months afterwards. Pedro Alvarez had the same operation. Can't anyone get to Pittsburgh with all their body parts intact?

In 2007, he played for the Class A Tampa Yankees. Besides the bum hand, he hurt his cause by reporting to camp overweight and out of shape. Tabata hit .307, but his slugging percentage dropped under .400 for the first time in his pro career.

Still, he got back into condition, and continued his steady climb, reporting to the Class AA Trenton Thunder in 2008. It would be quite a season for the Venezuelan teen. First, he was a star of a couple of soap opera prima donna episodes.

The first incident happened in late April when Tabata, frustrated after a striking out, left the team in the seventh inning. He was suspended three games for the boneheaded move. He said it had nothing to do with his mates; he was just feeling pressure, as only a highly-touted Yankee prospect can, and lost it.

A month later, it was deja vu all over again. He was either asked to leave the game after failing to back up Austin Jackson in the outfield, or got into a shoving match inside the dugout with infielder Reegie Corona, leading to Tabata being dragged into the clubhouse tunnel by his teammates. Maybe it was a little of both; it just depends who you ask. At any rate, he was suspended again.

Tabata served his time once more and returned, just in time to severely pull his hammy. To top it all off, he was hitting .248 and showed no power to speak of at the dish. Tired of his act - and probably performance - the Yankees acted.

On July 26, 2008, he was dealt to the Pirates with Ross Ohlendorf, Jeff Karstens, and Dan McCutchen for Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte. Bye-bye, problem child. The Pirates saw it differently.

The Bucs said Tabata was the key to the deal. GM Neal Huntington told Jen Langosch of MLB.com that "Quite frankly, if we had the opportunity to trade two players of the caliber of Damaso Marte and Xavier Nady [for Tabata] last December, I think we would have done that in a heartbeat."

They sent Tabata to Altoona after some GCL rehab time, and the change of scene seemed to do him good. Away from the prying eyes and poisoned pens of the New York press, he put together a .348/.402/.562 line with 3 dingers and 36 RBI in 89 at-bats. His behavior, by all accounts, was angelic.

At age 20, we expect the Pirates to start him off with the Curve, and probably pencil him in at Indy when Andrew McCutchen gets his inevitable call to the show.

What's the outlook for Jose Tabata? First, his disposition is what it is. He's been described as extremely confident in his abilities, bordering on cocky. And that's OK, if his butt can back up his mouth. Humility isn't exactly a MLB virtue that's widely practiced in today's game.

The Yankees were grooming him to take Bobby Abreu's place in right field, and that seems about right. His wheels are OK, his arm is a rifle, and he played center at Altoona. But he's packed on 40 pounds since the Evil Empire inked him, and Tabata's a 5-11, 215 pound fireplug now. So he'll fit into a corner OF spot in the show.

Now for the bat. He was described as a five tool player, but nothing in his resume suggests he'll ever hit for power. Tabata has 21 long balls in 1,280 minor-league at bats, so we can forget clean-up.

But except for that bummer of a season at Trenton last year, he's had a .370-.400 OBP, and has terrific line-drive gap power. So he looks like he'll be a natural for the three hole. Scouting reports say that the AA pitchers found a hole in his swing and pounded him inside last year; hopefully he and Don Long will solve that problem.

Signs to watch out for are his maturity and attitude - he was widely thought to take some plays off while a member of the Yankee system - and his weight. If Tabata keeps those in check, he should turn into a heck of a ballplayer.

Along with McCutchen, he's as close to a can't-miss prospect as the Pirate system has. Here's how Baseball America has rated him over the years:

2006 - #3 ranked for NYY
2007 - #27 ranked MLB
2007 - #2 ranked for NYY
2008 - #37 ranked MLB
2008 - #3 ranked for NYY
2009 - #75 ranked for MLB
2009 - #3 ranked for Pittsburgh

And the final word, from Scouting Book, with his report just before he was traded:

"Tabata is a polished fielder who's almost major-league ready, despite his young age. A natural right fielder with excellent patience, many see him as a natural fit to replace Bobby Abreu. He needs another year or two of mental development, but other than that and a place to play, there's not much holding him back.

Tabata is likely to be sought after in trades by teams who have more immediate needs than New York, and if one of those teams gets a hold of the young line-drive hitter, the likelihood of a debut in the near future will go up sharply.

(Jose Tabata has been traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates as the headliner in a four prospect package for veterans Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte. Tabata will fall down a notch or two, as Pittsburgh has much more outfield depth, but he should benefit long-term. The future Pirate outfield of McCutchen, McLouth, Tabata could be one of the league's best.)"

Let's hope they're right.

Russell Hot, Nady Frozen

A week in camp, and here's what happened:

* John Russell's option for 2010 was picked up. Seems only fair; he did a good enough job when he had a team, and the post-deal Bucco results can be credited much more to on-field talent, or lack thereof, than coaching.

According to Cot's Contracts, his 2008 deal was worth $1.6M. Chuck Finder of the Post Gazette says he has an option for 2011, too, which wasn't listed by Cot's. The financial details weren't available.

We like his quiet demeanor, which probably wears on a team much more easily than a fireball whose act gets old in a hurry. That said, he could stroll out on the field a little more often, if for no reason than to assure the players that he has their backs and to introduce himself to the umping crew.

The only other question we have is how he'll handle a staff when he gets one. Russell kept guys in the game when it was obvious they didn't have anything left in the tank, but his bullpen was worked to a frazzle, too. Danged if you do, danged if you don't.

Russell is the fifth manager since Gene Lamont took over from Jim Leyland in 1997, and the 38th in Bucco history.

Oh yah, they signed that Nate McLouth guy, too.

* Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reports that Xavier Nady has had his money frozen as part of the newest financial scandal involving Allan Stanford. The account is handled by a Scott Boras' business arm, the Personal Management Consultants. He joins Johnny Damon and Mike Pelfrey as New York rich guys that can't get to their cash, at least for the time being.

* The report from a so far quiet camp: weather's a little chilly, by Sunshine State standards, everyone is present and in shape, Brandon Moss, Phil Dumatrait, and Jeff Karstens are all recovered or on track; only a couple of minor aches, pains and sniffles reported so far; Pedro Alvarez can hit a baseball; and Manny Sanguillen, Billy Mazeroski, Kent Tekulve, and Bill Virdon are in Florida again, passing on the wisdom of the ages.

There are 57 players in camp, and that seems like a very manageable number to work with. No one should be passed over, especially with the extra week of work thanks to the WBC.

The first spring game is Wednesday against the Phillies, and Joe Kerrigan plans to throw nine relievers, an inning at a time. Thursday brings in the Red Sox, and Ian Snell will work the first two innings of that match. Snell will leave on the 28th to join the Puerto Rican squad for the World Baseball Classic.

* How powerful a tool is arbitration for young players? Ron Blum of the Associated Press reports that the guys that filed saw their paycheck jump from an average of $1.13M to $3.07, a 172% increase. Fourteen also signed long-term deals, including McLouth, Ryan Doumit, and Paul Maholm.

The tables surely do turn after the teams get to low-ball their youngsters for the first three years of their career. And the raises were by and large negotiated; only three guys actually had hearings.

* And finally, before GW shovels off his walk and heads to church, RHP Kris Benson, the first pick in the 1996 draft of the Pirates, signed a minor league contract Saturday with the Texas Rangers. Hope springs eternal in the spring...

A Long Road From Gibsonia To Pittsburgh

Hey, Neil Walker could do it all back not so long ago when he was an AP All-State receiver for the WPIAL champion Pine-Richland Rams, toolsy All-America catcher, and solid hoops forward in 2004. In fact, he was twice named the Pittsburgh Post Gazette's "Male Athlete of the Year" for his derring-do on the field.

He hit .657 with 13 home runs and 42 RBIs his senior go-round, and his nine won a WPIAL baseball title to go with the football crown. Walker was named to Baseball America's 2004 All-American High School team as the top catcher in the country and the USA Today's 10-player All-American team.

Walker was rated the #1 high school backstop by some other national gurus, and had accepted a baseball scholarship from Clemson in 2003, his junior year, hoping in the back of his mind that he'd hit the gridiron there, too.

But baseball was the road he chose; it was in his genes. His dad Tom was a MLB reliever, pitching six seasons for four teams, and uncle Chip Lang made 30 appearances in a couple of years with the Expos. His brother Matt was drafted by the Tigers, and made it as far as AAA in the Baltimore system before hanging the spikes up in 2004. His brother Sean played college hardball.

Even his sister Carrie got into the act - she played international pro hoops, and married into baseball, being the better half of Wexford's (now Mt. Lebanon's) Don Kelly, currently an infielder working for a spot on the Detroit Tiger's roster.

The Pirates made it academic when they nabbed Walker in the first round of 2004 draft with the 11th overall pick. Walker netted a signing bonus of $1,950,000, with an extra $100,000 on tap to pay for college. He was the third non-pitcher selected.

Walker was shipped to the GCL Bradenton Pirates and put together a line of .271/.313/.427, and was named the 5th-best prospect in the Gulf Coast League. Later in the season, he moved up to short season Williamsport and hit .313/.343/.406.

Promoted to the Class A Hickory Crawdads in 2005, Walker had a .301/.332/.452 line with 12 homers, 33 doubles, and 68 RBI, earning a spot on the South Atlantic League All-Star team at catcher after overcoming a slow start at the plate. He got a cup of coffee at High A Lynchburg, going .262/.244/.357 during his nine game stint.

While he showed good contact ability and extra-base gap power with the bat, he only drew 20 walks and allowed 22 passed balls in 79 games. The suits had their work cut out for him regarding his plate discipline and pitch recognition, weaknesses for the free-swinger, but they chose another road to cure his catching woes.

The Pirates decided to convert Walker to third base, partially because of all the balls bouncing off of the backstop, but mainly because Ryan Doumit and Ronny Paulino were in the system and had him blocked behind the plate, a theme that would recur again a couple of seasons down the road.

He began the transition to the hot corner during the 2005 Arizona Fall League as a member of the Peoria Saguaros, but it was a fairly short-lived try-out. Walker injured a ligament in his left wrist in early November in the AFL and required surgery, missing the early part of the 2006 campaign.

He still wasn't at full strength when he finally returned to action at Lynchburg as a catcher in late May of 2006.

He picked up the pace in late July and August and overall hit .284/.345/.409 for the Lynchburg Hillcats, then was promoted in mid-August to the Altoona Curve, where he hit just .161 in 10 games while battling illness. Worse yet, his power had almost entirely been sapped, as he hit just five bombs for the two clubs.

In February of 2007, Pirate management announced that Walker would be converted full-time to third base. He also got his first call to camp, and it was a family affair of sorts. Infielder Don Kelly, signed as a non-roster invitee to Pirate spring ball, had just married Walker's sister, making the two of them brothers-in-law as they entered camp.

After Bradenton, he headed to Altoona and hit .288/.362/.462 with 13 home runs, 30 doubles, 77 runs, and 66 RBI for the Curve. Walker alos led the team with 25 boots at his new position on the corner. But his stick got him sent to AAA Indy in mid-August, where he rejoined his utility man in-law briefly, hitting .203 in 16 games.

He went to camp in 2008 with an outside chance at making the roster, but it wasn't to be. He was shipped back to Indy, where he had a terrible start - some say because he was bummed at still being in the bushes instead of the show - heated up in the dog days, and leveled off towards the end.

Walker hit .245 with a team-high 16 homers, seven triples, 25 doubles, and 79 RBI in 130 games. The good news was that he only made 19 errors, and was named the best defensive infielder in the International League. Walker was also chosen as the 2008 Indianapolis Indians Most Valuable Player.

He's in camp, but the odds are heavily stacked for a return trip to Indy in April. At 23-years old, he's not exactly at a make-or-break point, but he has to start showing the suits something, and fairly soon.

After all, Walker was rated by Baseball America as the Pirates number two prospect entering 2008, and ranked by them as one of the top 100 MLB prospects in 2005 (81), 2006 (43), 2007 (74), and 2008 (61). But his play last year puts him at serious risk of losing his prospect with a bullet status. Walker was just added to the 40-man roster, and that will start the team clock ticking.

What to do with young Mr. Walker? Well, start by finding a position for him. First he was buried behind a logjam of catchers; now he has Andy LaRoche above him and Pedro Alvarez behind him.

But in the long run, his athleticism and versatility should only help his cause. He can catch in a pinch, he can play third, and it wouldn't take much to assume that with a little work, he could play a corner outfield spot or first base. Heck, it's even been suggested that he's capable of playing second.

So on first blush, if a regular position with Pittsburgh isn't in the cards, Walker could become a super-utility man in the show. Being a switch-hitter only adds to his value off the bench.

The other option is to use him, like Mike Gonzalez or Brent Lillibridge, as bait to lure some more talent into the Pirate system. Just because you amass ballplayers doesn't mean they're all going to end up at PNC one day. There's a lot of stadiums looking for players.

It's too soon to pull the plug on Walker, especially with a team in transition like Pittsburgh. The third base mash-up could just as easily become a black hole in a heartbeat if young LaRoche continues to flame, his big brother jumps into the free agent melee, and Alvarez snacks his way to first base.

And who knows if Ryan Doumit can stand up to the everyday pounding behind the plate? He only played 116 games last year, and the catching spot, at least for the number two position, could be up for grabs. Jason Jaramillo and Robinzon Diaz are unproven reserves, just like Walker, and neither was as highly touted.

If nothing else shakes loose, Walker could provide John Russell some much needed flexibility off the pine, and that looks like the direction the Pirates are taking in putting together a bench.

Hey, from the North Hills to Pittsburgh's North Side is just a fifteen minute trip by car. It's a heck of a lot longer, with many more twists, turns, and potholes, on the baseball trail.

The Meek Shall Inherit The Hill

Evan Meek was born in Bellevue, Washington, and is a 2002 graduate of the Inglemoor Vikings. He was a classmate of White Sox wild child Bobby Jenks, who was a couple of years ahead of him (they weren't teammates, though - Jenks didn't have the grades to play, and probably couldn't have gotten out of detention hall even if he did.)

He was drafted by the Twins in the 11th round that same year, but didn't sign right away. Instead, Meek went to Bellevue (WA) Community College, where he was named the top starting pitcher in the NWACC as a "draft and follow" player.

In 2003, he did sign on the dotted line, and went 7-1 with a 2.47 ERA for the Twin's short-season club, the Elizabethton Twins. In 51 innings, he walked 24 and struck out 47, allowing 33 hits. Baseball America rated him as the Appalachian League's #11 prospect, for what that's worth.

But in 2004, the right-hander suddenly lost all semblance of control, for no discernible reason. Meek walked 15 batters in only six innings at Class A Quad City before returning to extended spring training.

Hoping he was straightened out, the Twin Cities sent him back to Elizabethton, where he walked 25 more in 22 innings with an 8.06 ERA.

In 2005, the Twins gave him one more shot in the A Midwest League with Beloit, but he walked 36 more batters in 18 innings with a 10.00 ERA. Meek threw 23 wild pitches in 46 innings over two seasons.

He was, not too surprisingly, released by Minnesota midway through the year. Meek took the time off and tried to get his head together. That fall, the San Diego Padres signed him as a free agent and diligently worked side sessions with him, and his control improved significantly.

Meek went 6-6 with a 4.98 ERA for the high A Lake Elsinore Storm in the hitter's California League. Still, he walked 62 in 119 innings of work as a starter, better, but not enough to keep him in the Padre organization.

He was traded with Dale Thayer to Tampa Bay for Russell Branyan. The Rays did their homework, and they deleted two of his starts in which he gave up 17 runs in 2/3 of an inning. Meeks pitched 118-1/3 innings, striking out 113 and compiling a 3.72 ERA without those two stinkers.

They had one other trick up their sleeve. TB switched him to the pen, where he could rear back and fire without pacing himself. Meek was 0-1 with a 9.00 ERA after joining the Visalia Oaks at season's end, but the best was yet to come.

He spent 2007 with the AA Montgomery Biscuits and was 2-1 with a save and 4.30 ERA in 44 games. In 67 innings, he struck out 69 and walked 34 while registering 95 mph on the radar gun regularly.

A concussion and stiff shoulder early in the year hurt his line, but Meek finished strong, not allowing a run from August 9th on. He followed that with a stint in the Arizona Fall League, allowing one run and three hits while whiffing nine and walking five in 9-2/3 innings. His ERA was 0.93.

But the Rays, brimming with talent, had no room for Meek on their 40-man roster. Pittsburgh did, and selected him in the Rule 5 draft after the 2007 season.

Meek looked a little shaky at camp. He failed to top 91 MPH in spring training, claiming that he was taking something off of his stuff to improve his control. That's never good.

He made his MLB debut on April 2nd. His first warmup pitch went to the backstop and the next two hopped in the dirt. It didn't get any better; he gave up a two-run gopher ball to the Braves in his first frame in the show.

Meek walked 12 in 13 innings while striking out 7, and was 0-1 with a 6.92 ERA in nine games. Meek's most infamous performance came in the Bucs home lid-lifter against the Cubs, when the 25-year old picked up the loss after walking five in one inning of work. He allowed multiple runs in five of his first six April appearances.

Guess what? The Bucs waived him, and after he cleared, they offered him back to Tampa Bay. Guess what? They didn't want him back! Pittsburgh worked out a cash deal to keep Meek, who they liked but was obviously in need of the kind of tune-up only the coaching mechanics tinkering in the minors can provide.

They sent him kicking and screaming to Altoona to work out the kinks. Meek beefed, wanting to drop no lower than AAA Indy, no doubt fearing that he'd dropped completely out of the Pirate future. Neal Huntington gave him a choice - his way or the highway.

Meek took off a few days and finally came to the conclusion that Altoona was OK with him.

"I thought about the fact that Neal had made a deal to keep me," Meek recalled for Jen Langosch of MLB.com. "He obviously believed in me. He stuck with me, and the Pirates stuck with me. That's what helped me make my decision."

"And everything worked out great," he continued. "They kept their promise, too. They said that when I got my velocity back and my control back, they'd move me up."

Now that the warm and fuzzies were firmly established, Meek did his work and was 1-1 with 2 saves and a 2.81 ERA in nine outings for Altoona. More importantly, he struck out 17 and walked just three in 16 innings.

It was on to Indy, where he had 2 saves and a 2.40 ERA in 23 games, walking 14 in 41-2/3 frames while fanning 34.

Meek followed that with a strong performance in the Mexican Winter League, pitching for the Mazatlan Deer. He had a 2.93 ERA, 8 BB, 14 Ks, and 10 saves in 15-1/3 innings, with an opposing batting average of .167. Rene Gayo watched, and was impressed that Meek was showing some control and throwing as hot as 98 MPH while consistently hitting 94 MPH.

He put himself back on the fast track, reaching #8 on the Pirate's 2009 Top Ten prospect list, according to Minor League Ball.

Ah, nothing like a career revived to warm over the spring tedium. Will Meek break camp with the team? Well, he throws hard, with a sinking heater - he gets a lot of ground outs for a power pitcher, - curve and slider, and we know how much the suits like guys that throw BBs.

But there is a numbers game in camp, and he has an option left. It would make some sense to start him out at Indy to get his motion etched into his muscle memory. And whether he starts in Pittsburgh or not, he's a solid bet to be in the show sometime in 2009.

The Old Gang of Ours

Hey, we thought we'd take a look at the old Pirate gang, and how they're making out in their new digs:

* Jay Bay is having a great time in Beantown, patrolling the hallowed grounds in front of the Green Monster in the shadows of Ted Williams, Yaz, Jim Rice, and Manny. He'll make $7.5M this year and be a free agent in 2010.

* Xavier Nady isn't feeling the love so much in New York. He signed a $6.55M contract for 2009, and promptly found his name blowin' in the trade winds, albeit at a high cost. The X-Man is in his walk year, and as of now is either the Big Apple's starting RF or fourth man, depending on who you ask.

* Damaso Marte caught a fistful of Yankee dollars, wisely signing early before the depressed reliever's market became apparent. The pin-stripers refused his $6M option, and then turned around and inked the lefty to a 3-year, $12M deal. Marte had a rough start, as Joe Girardi tried to use him as a LOOGY, but flipped it around when he returned to his more comfortable set-up slot.

* Jason Michaels inked a deal with the Astros for 1-year, $750K, and will serve his familiar role as pinch-hitter and fourth OF for Houston.

* Ronny Paulino probably landed on his feet at Philly. He's certainly cheap enough - Paulino won't be arbitration-eligible until next season - and from reports, has the upper hand on the 36-year old Chris Coste, who Philadelphia would love to move, as Carlos Ruiz's caddy.

* Jose Bautista signed a $2.4M deal with Toronto to avoid his second arbitration year, and will have his hands full leaving camp with his utility job intact now that the Blue Jays added Kevin Millar to the roster. It'll come down to Millar's bat weighed against Bautista's versatility in the field.

* Kyle Bloom was picked up by the Tigers in the Rule 5 draft, and Jim Leyland liked what he's seen so far in camp, especially the 26-year old LHP's hook.

* Todd Redmond, RHP, was the bait the Pirates used to land Tyler Yates from the Braves last spring. He was steady at AA last year, and Atlanta put him on its 40-man roster and invited him to camp. He's penciled in for their AAA rotation in 2009.

* Lotta ex-Bucs signed non-guaranteed contracts: Raul Chavez, Bryan Bullington, and TJ Beam with Toronto, Luis Rivas with the Cubs, Chris Gomez with Baltimore, Chris Duffy with the Brew Crew, Frankie Osoria with KC, and John Van Benschoten with the White Sox.

* We'll finish off with second round draft pick Tanner Scheppers, who turned down a Buc offer and signed with the indy St. Paul Saints to try to reestablish himself after suffering a stress fracture.

2011 - Time to Cut Bait

OK, we took a look at this year's payroll in the last post. Next year's shouldn't be much of a burden, either.

Nate McLouth, Paul Maholm, Ian Snell, Ryan Doumit, and Ramon Vazquez are all signed, and will earn a base pay of $18.8M among them. Jack Wilson and Freddy Sanchez have option years worth $16.4M between them. It'll probably be buy-out time for the middle of the infield, if they're not already packaged and dealt by the deadline.

Tyler Yates, Matt Capps, Zach Duke, Sean Burnett and Tom Gorzelanny will all be arbitration-eligible. Still, the payroll should be manageable next season. Ah, but 2011.

McLouth, Maholm, Snell (option year), and Doumit will bring down $24.1M. With Pedro's anticipated arrival, the bill goes up just a bit, to $24.65M.

But bringing in a pack of pups like the Pirates did this year has the downside of them all hitting arbitration at the same time.

Capps and Duke will be in their third year, Burnett and Gorzelanny their second (and maybe Karstens, depending on how long he's on the 2009 MLB roster), and Craig Hansen (if he earns a spot on the roster this season), Phil Dumatrait, and Andy LaRoche all head into their first year.

Brandon Moss will almost certainly hit Super 2 status and begin arbitration, while Ross Ohlendorf will make it if he's on the roster all year in 2009. That's ten potential arbitration cases, seven or eight almost certain to make the cut.

Will some be signed to deals? Most certainly. Will some go? Again, most certainly.

By 2011, Andrew McCutchen should be established. Pedro Alvarez will be in the bigs. Jose Tabata, if he continues on, will be a Bucco. Evan Meek, Brad Lincoln and Byran Morris should be in the show; maybe Jeff Sues, too.

Shelby Ford and Jim Negrych should be MLB ready, if not already on the roster. Brian Friday and Jarek Cunningham should be fighting it out for short to replace Vazquez. Steve Pearce and Neil Walker should be in the mix.

Are all of these guys can't-miss players? Of course not. But are some of them going to make today's irreplaceable parts replaceable? Certainly. Some will be gone, some will sputter in the minors, and others will become MLB players.

We believe that 2011 will be the telling year for the Pirates. It's the season the Pirates should have their coming-out party and start to play some serious hardball - if the suits and Bob Nutting stay the course.

The cycle the suits have started will continue; guys with value and a fat contract will be moved for guys with potential as payroll pressure will squeeze the team with every successful deal and draft class. The question to be begged is whether they can replace the parts internally or not.

2010 will be season where a couple of guys will get introduced into the mix, but without much outside influence on the roster.

2011 will be when we'll find out if the suits can carry out their plan, and if Pittsburgh will join the ranks of the Rays and Twins or remain the same ol' Bucs.