PITTSBURGH — Pirates owner Kevin McClatchy was signing autographs in the dugout before Friday night's game against the Cubs when a group of kids decided to toss their souvenir baseballs at him at the same time.

McClatchy avoided getting beaned, but he certainly knows what it's like to take a beating.

Actor Michael Keaton, a Pittsburgh native best known for his role in "Batman," caused a stir in town this week after being invited to throw out the ceremonial first pitch in the home opener.

The guest of honor proceeded to rip McClatchy and his partners for not spending enough to bring Pittsburgh a winner.

The Pirates added $14 million to the payroll last off-season, increasing it to nearly $47 million, but they still rank 27th of the 30 major-league teams.

The Pirates evidently can't afford to keep their good young players. They have traded Jason Schmidt, Brian Giles, Kris Benson and Aramis Ramirez in recent years rather than risk losing them in free agency. It's a cycle the Pirates can't seem to end.

"I feel for them, because I started my career here, and that was the team that gave me an opportunity to become who I am right now," Ramirez said. "I do feel bad for them."

Will the Pirates ever be able to bring in any top free-agent talent?

"I don't know," Ramirez said. "I was just looking in the paper, and the average in the stands is about 20,000. I don't think that's good enough to keep big-time players. It's going to be tough for them."

Pittsburgh has sold more than 11,000 season tickets thanks to having the All-Star Game in town this July. A season ticket gives fans guaranteed seats for the game. But a slow start is certain to hurt overall attendance, and the Pirates have fallen to 3-9 after Friday night's loss to the Cubs.

"We have some talent, but we're young," veteran reliever Roberto Hernandez said. "We've been in most every game. It's not like we're getting blown out by teams.

"We'll be OK."