Stop the insanity!
It’s hard to tell which fan base is more miffed: those in Pittsburgh or Cleveland.
The Indians have traded away two Cy Young Award winners in the last two seasons. The Tribe also jettisoned Ryan Garko and Rafael Bentancourt and may move All-Star catcher Victor Martinez before tomorrow’s 4 p.m. trade deadline.
But even Indians’ fans still have legitimate major league-caliber players on the 25 man roster to root for. They still have Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner and Jhonny Peralta to build around.
Pirate fans have to come to grips with the fact that the club has traded away virtually every legit big league player.
Two more went out the door today: left-handed setup reliever John Grabow and the one-time “ace” Tom Gorzelanny.
While the Grabow trade was understandable — what Class AAA team masquerading as a major league club needs a left-handed specialist, the Gorzelanny trade was merely overkill.
The dude has struggled, but he still has potential, is young, and certainly isn’t breaking the bank.
But the Pittsburgh brass is determined to take a sledge hammer to the organization, sort through the rubble later and rebuild from there.
In many ways, I understand what Neal Huntington is trying to do. He’s trying to inject as much talent into the organization as he can. If that means trading one solid major leaguer for two or three potential stars then so be it.
I think, though, he is going overboard.
Nate McLouth was an All-Star. So was Freddy Sanchez. Those are two players, along with Ryan Doumit, to build around with prospects homegrown or shipped in.
An organization needs an anchor. There is no such player remaining in Pittsburgh.
I’m not sure the Buccos could compete in the International League, let alone the National League, with the current roster makeup.
The payroll now stands at $31 million. A-Rod makes more.
The Pirates’ slogan is “Pride, Passion: Pittsburgh Pirates.” It should read: “Packing, Parting: Pittsburgh Pirates.”
They are the eBay of baseball.
Jokes are sure to come in waves. The Bucs are fodder for PTI and Around the Horn, as well as Conan O’Brien and David Letterman. They probably should be.
The Bucs have built that as their identity.
For 16-plus seasons, this cycle has occurred: trade vets for prospects. When those prospect mature, trade them for more prospects. Rinse. Repeat.
Albert Einstein once said: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”
Welcome to the Pittsburgh Pirates, insane since 1992.
