Interesting that the Cubbies go after a 1B to start their rebuild, Epstein and Hoyer believe Rizzo has the bat to build around, even as a first baseman, which should keep him healthy and in the lineup when they are ready to compete. The Pirates seem to have started at the other end of the diamond with Pedro, though I guess both teams have their stars, Cutch and Castro. Sounds like a very familiar scenario as we can count one more team in the rebuild mode. Would still like the Bucs to talk to the Padres on one of their other extra 1B.

See artcile here Cubs acquire Rizzon

He's a big lefty (6 foot 4) and he's only 26. What's not to like. He has battled injuries (muscle in his side last year) but last year came up with a 2 seamer to use instead of his cutter, which had become a predictable pitch. His SIERA, an ERA estimator , was 3.42. He's not an elite pitcher but are any of the Bucco pitchers right now. If I were the FO, I would be jumping on this one. You can never have enough pitching, especially big left-handed ones that keep the hitters away from the short porch in RF. If the price is right, bring him to Pittsburgh.

Ryan Theriot was also cut by the Cards. He became their backup SS when Furcal took over. Astros, Reds, and KC kicking the tires on Theriot, so far.

KC trades Melky Cabrera to the Giants for Sanchez and Double-A pitcher Ryan Verdugo.  I'm not sure Melky didn't have one of  Garrett Jones'  years, but who knows.  Maybe Sanchez's left arm will fall off.  Seems like a deal that the Pirates could have made with all their surplus center fielders.   Gotta think KC got the better end of the deal on this one. 

I loved watching Matty Alou drag a bunt or slap a pitch past the 3rd baseman.  He was always a tough out.  You will be missed as the memories of those winning days are missed by all of us today.

With 34 games left, 20 away and 14 at home, the Bucs are 30-31 on the road, so this should be an advantage for them (30-37 at home) with a little over a month to play. Last year, the Pirates won 40 games at home and only 17 on the road.  Below are the good and the not so good teams left on the schedule.  With the added rosters coming, it will be interesting to see if this can somehow turn this team around and possibly to play winning ball again in September.  Some are definitely playing for roster space next year.

    The winning record teams are:                                My Prediction of Wins

Milwalkee- (4 games left- 3 away to end the season)                  0

St Louis (7 games - 4 away)                                                       4                             

Arizona (3 games away)                                                             1

   Losing record teams:

Reds (3 games - all home)                                                        2

Houston (6 games - 3 away)                                                     4

Cubs ( 3 games - all away)                                                       2

LA Dodgers (5 games - 4 away)                                               2

Florida (3 games - all home)                                                     1

Final record     76 - 86   4th place (Reds have 17 games left at home and they only have 10 games against winning record teams)
2010 record     57 - 105 6th place

Successful season that not many predicted.  What do you think?

So looking at Walker's first half and seeing the comments on this site, it seems to be the consensus that Walker is having a bad year.  I'm somewhat confused by the fact that he has 59 RBI's which is tops on the team and only 7 from his total of last year.  I know his other stats are all below last year's by a good amount.  So, is he having a bad year or good year.  Is it good to hit 30 HRs and strke out a lot, just as is it good to drive in runs but not have good overall stats.  Or will this catch up with him if it doesn't change over the 2nd half?   Thanks for your opinions.

The Pirates are very thin at first base and could use some depth.  Paul Goldschmidt is a sleeper that the Arizona front office has finally noticed, but are they totally convinced that he can hit in the majors and if not, would he be someone the Bucs would want to include in a package with the Dbacks?

Goldschmidt bats right handed and is 6'3'' at 245 lbs. and is 23 yrs. old. In A ball last year, albeit in the CA league, he hit 35 HRs, had 108 RBIs and an average of .314 but struck out 161 times in 525 at-bats.  He won the Cal League player of the year in 2010.  This year, Goldschmidt leads the Southern League (AA) in home runs (22), RBIs (61) and IBB (11) with an average of .328 . His strikeout-to-walk ratio for 2011 is 53:55, a vast improvement over 2010 .  Could he be just another "Big Country" Brad  Eldred?  In 10 ML season, Brad's avg was .264.  Goldschmidt is also a member of the  2011 All Star Futures Game.  Many feel he will be in the majors sometime next year, if he continues hitting AA like he has been.

So do the Bucs have a package (vets and low ML players) to go after this powerhouse from the Dbacks or are the scouts that doubt his skills for the major leagues correct?  The kid so far has proven them wrong and he would look good in a Bucs uniform.  What do you think?
 

I really just wanted to write that and see it after so many painful years, near the All Star break, and only 1 game out of first place.  While I certainly didn't see this coming, whether it has been just over achieving or not, it sure beats the opposite of under achieving.  Will the starters cool off the second half or will the bullpen run out of gas, I don't know, but I can say great job to the front office for sticking with the plan, to Hurdle for choosing Pittsburgh, for the upbeat in Pirate fever, and to Charlie who always keeps up living in reality.  Here's to the team of 2011 who have shown that Pittsburgh is the City of Champions and it will be sooner than later that baseball in Pittsburgh will be once again back where it belongs, winning divisions and  playing in World Series.  Pops and The Great One have to be smiling just a little bit today.

So management loves big  tall pitchers and that is what they now draft or trade for.  But the rest of the team is realy different, especially the callups of late.  I live in CA so I don't get to see the games, but most of the newbies coming up from the minors on the highlight films look like tiny little bees that can fly really fast and have a quick sting to them.  Cutch started this thing, and now your have Pressley, Harrison, McKenry and others.  Even Tabata and Walker do not appear to be huge by first glance either.  Not that I have a problem as speed is fun to watch and Cutch and Pressley seem to be able to jack some long balls with their quick compact swings.  Just wondered if anyone thinks this is just coincidental or has the scouts stumbled onto something here. 

I, like so many other Bucco fans, am ecstatic over the Buc's play this year.  If they finish .500 that would be a great feat and if they somehow win their division, that would be fabulous.  But really, this division is a weak division and to expect them to go any further would be a large leap of faith.  Thus, the talk that if the Bucs stay close the rest of the way, they have to go get a bat is just not a good decision IMO.  The 5 year plan by NH and Co. was to build a contender that would compete year in and year out.  Trading veterans is one thing that NH has done along the way to build up the vast hole that was left in the minors and that is a great plan.  Signing high ceiling draft picks is also part of the plan and I'm all for that too along with youngsters from the DR or anywhere else in the world.  But please DO NOT deviate from the plan just to finish at .500 or to win a weak division (highly unlikely, I know).  Stay the course and trade when it makes since like a Maholm, Karstens, Correia, relievers (even named Hanrahan), and veterans like Overbay, or Jones.  We've come too far now to just throw away the plan - Stay the Course and start marketing to those free agents that this is the place to be in the future if you want to be part of the Championship Hall of Fame called Pittsburgh. 

Great article on Ryan and his tough road at the majors, minors, and Japan leagues.  It looks like he has finally figured it all out at the age of 33.  It's a great story on perseverence and believing in yourself.  I am sure he may come down to earth, but for now just ride the wave dude.   With that starting rotation, not much is expected, so not much pressure.  Congrats to him.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=caple_jim&id=6674444Vogelsong

Pads dropped Cantu yesterday so I'm not sure if this has been discussed, but with interleague games coming up, Cantu would fit nicely as the Buc's DH, instead of the current limited options.  He' played in both Leagues and he is still under 30 years old.  Who knows, maybe he just needs someone to make him uhderstand his swing, ala Jose Bautista.  Another project, is Scott Kazmir at AAA, DA'd by the Angels, who is still only 27 and is a lefty who has lost his way and needs some direction.  Why not take a chance on 1 or both of these guys.  They both have been around and may bring back something in return if the Pirates can resurrect a wreck.

Jack Wilson is in hot water with the M's.  According to the article at ESPN, Jack who is learning a new position at 2nd this year, made back to back errors trying to turn an inning ending DP with Seattle's ace on the hill in the home opener.  He said/she said Jack was pulled out of the game.  Jack said the manger (Eric Wedge) pulled him, Wedge said no way-Jack pulled himself.  Needless, to say, Jumpin Jack Flash is now sitting the bench and may be done in Seattle.

I predict the Bucs will win the rest of their games and end the season with a 26 game win streak.  This will give them a 74-98 record for the year and will drop them to the 6th spot in the next year's draft, whereupon, they pick Anthony Rendon, who had dropped down from number one pick because of injury concerns during his last season.  Though they still finish last in their division, all the yinzers have hopped on the Bucco train and all the FA want to come to Pittsburgh to ride that train.   When asked, Russell said, "the reason of the winning streak was playing Doumit every day and of course a lot of over confidence by the opposition.  Hell, half the time, I just threw darts on a list to pick the lineup.  Ha Ha Ha."  The Pirates of old are all smiling, even Bondstoid.....  What a great time to be a Pirate fan.

   Matt Kemp's agent wants Kemp traded:

According to this source (the LA Times), Matt Kemp's agent wants to have Matt Kemp find a new team.  This has been a very rocky relationship between Kemp and Colletti.  Kemp's agent stresses the unfair criticisms of veteran coaches Bob Schaefer and Larry Bowa as the reason that Kemp should go....  Colletti says no way but I would love to see Kemp in a Pirate uniform.

According to the San Jose Mercury News, the Giants plan to start platooning Freddie Sanchez with left handed hitting Fontenot.  The reason they state is that Freddie is wilting under the strain of a pennant race and Fontenot isn’t.  Go figure.  He certainly didn't play under any pressure with the Bucs.

    Does changing a manager help during the season:

Accordinging to this article, “Since 1969, major-league teams have a .470 winning percentage after the in-season departure of their initial manager, compared to .452 before.”  The article does state exceptions such as Buck Showalter’s 8-1 record with the O’s thus far and our very own Jim Tracy’s 74-42 finish last year and also Cito Gaston’s 51-37 finish in 2008, with the Blue Jay’s.<!-- .entry-content -->

I was curious how other teams learn to win on the road.  I know that it has been stated that young teams find it difficult to record wins on the road.  If that is true, why?   Is it commom for most young teams to lose a lot more away from home than a more veteran team?   Is it the lack of familiarity of the stadiums, road wear and tear, home team getting the close calls, or is it the difference in pitcher's mounds (or none of the aforementioned)?  How can the Bucs take that 26-30 home record and make it happen on the road next year?

The teams with the most away losses (none have winning records )--

Pittsburgh      13-46

Baltimore       17-41

Washington   20-40

Seattle            16-39

Arizona           18-39

Kansas City  24-38

About a month ago, I questioned whether the hiring of Buck Showalter would cause the O's the number one draft pick.  Well thus far, they are undefeated in 4 games and leading tonight.  So how can the same team that couldn't win a game all of a sudden be unbeatable (4 games are not many games- I know).  It still begs the question, how much of a difference does a manager make with a team and why. 

In an article by Peter Schmuck, O's: What's going on here? there was a quote from Showalter that stated, "I am managing to win, not managing to keep from losing". But don't all good managers have that attitude.  Another suggestion from a commenter about this article and I think may strike a chord with Russell and the Bucs is that "They know that their performance will determine if they play and how they will be used, unlike the past when lineups changed daily, often for no discernible reason."   (I added the bold)

How many different lineups have there been this year and last year with this team.  I understand that there are many question marks that need to be determined with AAA players but at what cost.  How will chemistry ever be built with a constant flow of players coming in and out? 

Lastly in this same article, is the subject of respect of the players of a very successful manager.  Do the Buccos respect Russell as a manager and does this affect how they play?  I know they are professional ball players but I believe that human nature also takes part in sports. 

In summation, I believe that a winner such as Showalter will make a difference in how the players play because of the respect, consistency in the lineups and moves, and the presssure that such a manager takes off the rest of the staff.  What are your thoughts?

If Buck Showater becomes the new manager at Baltimore, will he be able to turn them around the second half, consequently costing them the number 1 pick next year.  If so, I believe this will make Russell the hero as he causes the Bucs to get the number 1 pick (if he retains his job this year- see next paragraph).  Baltimore is 29-59 and the Bucs 30-58 at the break and Baltimore is on a 4 game win streak; the Bucs have lost 6 in a row.  Showalter has won Manager of the Year twice, in 1994 with the New York Yankees and in 2004 with the Texas Rangers.

Both teams may unload some major players (and I use that term "major players" loosely) so this should equal that out, but which team tanks the 2nd half.  Does this put pressure on the Pirate management to fire Russell?  I suppose Cleveland or Seattle might also head for the bottom as they unload more players, especially star players like Lee. 

The Bucs early success of winning one-run games has definitely gone the other way and then some of late, despite this, it seems to me that they have been competitive in each game since Pedro arrived, which should go a long way when better pitching comes up in the next few years.  The second half of this year, I expect more of the same, unfortunately.

So what do you think, will this potential manager change at Baltimore make a difference in who gets the #1 pick in next year's draft?  Let's go Bucs.

I know it is early and its only ST, but Meek seems to be the man.  Anyone see a trade in the future of Capps?  It appears that Meek has really found the strike zone and can bring the heat.  Not that Capps doesn't throw heat and he certainly has great control, but do you really need two closers?  I would also presume Capps would bring a decent return even if he was slightly injured last year, plus some money could be saved with his salary gone.

If the article by Jason Stark is accurate (see below) regarding what the Bucs want, among others, for Jason Bay and the X-Man, I can see why they are still here.

Bay: The Pirates are asking for four players back -- two sure-thing young players, one good prospect and a fourth prospect with upside.

Nady: A similar package, except they want three players instead of four -- one sure thing, one good prospect and a third, more iffy, prospect.

With all due respect for J-Bay, whom I have always liked, just last year, many on this site was playing the past the prime card (bat speed decreased, power gone, etc.).  Nevertheless, his numbers so far in his career have been very good and he is still relatively young, but is he really worth 4 players????  Why not, as they say desperated people do desparate things especially as they become even more desparate.  May the most desparate team, please make a bid....

Again tonight, Tracy allowed another starting pitcher the chance to let the game get away after a galiant effort to give the Bucs a chance to win.  Am I the only one that thinks Tracy knows nothing about pitchers.  How many Pirate pitchers have pitched past 6 innings lately?  Not very many.  With the score 3-0 after 6, why not shake Maholm's hand and depend on your bullpen to hold the lead.  This has happened too many times this year, I attribute at least 10-15 losses to Tracy in this fashion.  Maybe it doesn't matter, but I think it does (36-42 (10-losses) or 41-37 (15-losses)sounds better than 26-52 and don't get me started on the 1-run games that he has lost because he has no clue what reliever to bring in.

Since it appears that the new manager's philosophy is to forget the youth movement for a year, why not sign Richard Hidalgo for 5 mil for 1 year.  Though probably not an upgrade in right, we might get lucky and Hidalgo might have a great 06 and then we can dump him for some minor league players.  Same with Casey after a year.  The "new philosophy" appears to be - try to get lucky for a year.  Though it has been so long ago, I believe in the golden years, when the bucs won consistently, you had mostly a complete team of homegrown talent and then management would bring in a special player from the outside like a Madlock to put them over the top.  Why can't we learn from history?

What happened to the youth movement?  Last time I checked 30 and 40 somethings were not considered youthful in baseball.  There are great players in their early to mid 20s, such as Miguel Cabrera (a 3rd baseman by nature) that I am sure Florida would give up for the right package (Kip Wells, Craig Wilson, and a Grabow or Snell).  Otherwise, Bautista is it, especially if Jack Wilson never reaches his all star gear again, which means Castillo would move to short and Sanchez to 2nd.  I have been a Pirate fan since the Forbes Field days and this is a sad time for bucco fans.  What happened to playing hard and giving it everything you had, like Mackowiak and Wiggington always did?  Nice reward for them.  It's better to keep a Craig Wilson who strikes out a thousand times and shows no emotion, like he could care less.