Comments on: Pirates Trade John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny

By: joser

joser — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 21:35:50 +0000

Well, if the only position for Clement is catcher, then there probably isn’t a position for Clement in Pittsburgh. I expect they wait and see, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him traded in the offseason in that case.

By: Ray

Ray — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 21:15:46 +0000

I doubt Harden is going anywhere

it seems to be the cubs’ MO to keep talented arms, especially ones with the upside of harden’s

remember, he is giving decent numbers by pitching like a rookie, i.e. throwing a fastball, a change, and nothing else

By: Edwin Nelson

Edwin Nelson — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:48:56 +0000

I think there are way more than 3 names on that list who have potential. Remember Shane Victorino was a rule 5 guy. That’s the point of organizational depth. You will always have your top of the 1st round guys that you have high expectations for, but beyond that you need lots of physically talented athletes that may or may not turn into great ball players.

Mark Reynolds was drafted in the 16th round. Albert Pujols was a 13th round pick and wasn’t considered a real prospect until he was promoted to AAA!

The Pirates have this going in the right direction. Let’s see what happens next…

By: Ryan S

Ryan S — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:45:33 +0000

Agree completely about Clement, but honestly I see Alvarez honing in on 1B by 2013. So the reality is that the only place he’ll get a chance to start at is C. Either that or he really comes into his own and forces the Pirates to keep Alvarez at 3B, but that’s a long shot to say the least. I think Nutting will give Huntington to at least 2013, especially if the Pirates show some promise in ’11/’12. After that is anyone’s guess, but if the Pirates are winning by ’13 this man deserves to have a solid gold statue put right outside the front gate. Or at the very least an extension :-)

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:52:03 +0000

only three*

By: Mike

Mike — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:51:35 +0000

There is certainly something to be said for organizational depth (I am a Mets fan after all), however I wish the Pirates would have gotten a few more high upside players. Alderson, Clement and Milledge are the only two players on that list who I would think have a chance of being above replacement level players on a major league roster.

By: joser

joser — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 17:11:41 +0000

I largely agree, though I wonder if patience will run out before enough of the kids make it up (and get good), and some other GM will take credit for finally making the Pirates successful again using mostly pieces Huntington has acquired.

BTW, I wouldn’t pencil Clement in as a C — if you’re lucky he’s a once-a-week backup. He hasn’t caught a game since his knees flared up a few weeks into the season, though he reportedly has caught some bullpen sessions recently so it’s possible his knees will heal further by next year… but that’s a dangerous thing to count on. A catcher with bad knees isn’t much of a catcher. At this point he is what the Tacoma Rainiers have been making him: a 1B/DH (and I don’t need to point out that one of those positions doesn’t exist with the Pirates). At least he has the bat to win that 1B job (though he hasn’t shown it in his few stints with Seattle, he has had runs of tearing the cover off the ball in triple A)

By: Ryan S

Ryan S — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 16:19:54 +0000

I doubt they would sign any one of those guys this offeseason. 3 years is still alot of baseball and each one of those guys has proven to be injury prone. Expect to see Huntington do exactly what he has been doing for another year or two. The money they are saving now will most likely be used in the draft and as hold over for the re-signing of the youngsters that prove their worth before 2012. But until he knows what the core of his team will truly be, spending big money on guys you’re not sure will be around at that time is much too Littlefield-esque. The Pirates are still throwing players against the wall and waiting to see what sticks and what falls to the floor. Next year will be trial by fire, with 2011 allowing the core of the team to gel together. After that if the staff needs an anchor, I could see him doing so if he felt it would be the difference in winning the division. Make no mistake about it, he’s not interested in playing .500 baseball, he wants the division.

By: Ryan S

Ryan S — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 16:11:19 +0000

It’s pretty simple. When Huntington took over he reviewed the roster realized that all he had were several complimentary guys being used as ‘winning pieces’, and a farm system completely devoid of depth and talent. So he decided the quickest, most efficient (and ultimately best) way to put the organization in a truly positive direction was to trade those ‘winning pieces’ for a ton of young depth and guys that have worn out their welcome with other organizations. The pitching depth he has accumulated through drafts and trades is remarkable considering it was done in under a year and a half. Young, cheap, effective arms is what wins games for small market teams. I applaud Huntington for having the fortitude to gut an organization that had been gutted many times before in the recent past. Littlefield never had the stomach to take the organization in a direction completely ruled by youth, though he claimed many times that’s what he was trying to do. Ultimately his reluctance to gut the organization, coupled with his feeble attempts to save his job near the end is what doomed the Pirates to this fate.

Fret not Pirate fans.

2012: C-Toby Sanchez/Jeff Clement?, 1B-Steve Pearce/Pedro Alvarez?, 2B-Josh Harrison/Delwyn Young?, 3B-Pedro Alvarez/Neil Walker?, SS-Argenis Diaz/(Brandon Wood?), RF-Lastings Milledge, CF-Andrew McCutcheon, LF-Jose Tabata, Gorkys Hernandez.
P-Kevin Hart, Tim Alderson, Hunter Strickland, Ross Ohlendorf, Jeff Karstens, Charlie Morton, (Duke, Maholm?), Brad Lincoln and Bryan Morris.

By then we will know what the core of the team will look like, and we will get to watch the youngsters come into their own over the next few years.

Simply put there’s alot to be excited about, not to mention that Huntington has shown that he rather adept at finding useful players on the cheap (Young and LaRoche), as well as proving that if there is a legit player to draft (Alvarez) he will do so. Something Littlefield was notorious for missing. ::Sigh:: LaPorta, Porcello, Wieters anyone????? There’s still 3 years for the Pirates to draft, trade and sign the remaining pieces. All in all the only true complaint I have is not getting enough for Bay, but that’s a mere footnote in my eyes. I’m just finally glad to have some direction and TRUE hope for the future.

By: Zach Piso

Zach Piso — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 15:38:10 +0000

On that note, does anyone have any guesses what they use the money toward? I think the first priority will be signing Miguel Sano, and I’m honestly starting to suspect the Pirates expect a nosedive and a signing bonus toward Bryce Harper (especially since the Nats haven’t traded anyone and are fielding a major league lineup if not rotation).

Beyond that though, Bedard, Harden, Duchscherer, Lackey, and potentially Webb will be on the market this offseason. If the Pirates went out and overspent (much like the Royal’s Gil Meche signing) on an anchor for their rotation, could Duke and Maholm plus whoever sticks allow them to contend by 2011?