It's Time To Start Believing Again
Excuse me, but did the Pirates just take two of three from the Braves?
In Atlanta?
In August with the Braves in the hunt for October?
Rrrealllly?
No.. we couldn't have.
You mean to tell me that the worst team in the National League who has only won 16 games on the road all year long, and who have only won 6 out of the last 28 games in Atlanta, actually went into their house and won two straight games from the Braves?
Geezz.. the Pirates haven't done that since.. since.. gee whiz.. since Joe Randa, Jose Guillen, and Jason Schmidt were Pirates. Man, when was that anyway..
1997!?!
Now wait a minute.. I knew the Pirates played .520 baseball in July winning 13 of 25 games and that was only the fourth time since Kevin McClatchy bought this organization that this team had a winning record in July.
Hmm..
Now we took 2 straight from Atlanta IN Atlanta, and haven't done that since 1997?
Hmm..
Let's see now.. if the Pirates win 5 of their last 7 games in August, they will have a winning record in July and August. The last time the Pirates had that was.. was.. 1997, and then 1991 before that when they won 98 and the division?
Amazing.
Wait.. we are now 19-18 since the All-Star Game, which looks just a tad better. True, we are still only winning just over 1 of 3 on the road overall, which isn't very good, but we are winning just a tad short of 2 of 3 at home.
Considering those earlier losses away can be partially explained by all the rookies on this team traveling with a major league team for the first time, I can easily see how that will improve.. and it has.. they have gone 6-7 their last 13.
I don't know about all the 'irate' fans out there but that certainly is a significant move forward for a team that is featuring four rookie starting pitchers, a rookie catcher, a rookie CF, and a rookie 3B in their lineup, not to mention a near rookie closer and a brand new coaching staff.
Pirate fans better wake up.
It's time to find the 14-year old rally caps.. the 'we are family' buttons.. shoot, dig out the hooch.. anything. These guys seem to be for real as 22 wins out of 46 games is not that small of a sample size.. especially considering that they played 37 of the last 46 games against teams in the hunt for October.
And just knocked yet another team out of the hunt for the wild card at their home turf.
Wow.
I'm sorry.. but even 14-year pessimist Joliet Jake here sees the light now. This is no fluke. My eyes are wide open.
It's time to stop whining as fans and start getting behind these guys in serious numbers.. it's time to forget the protest rallies, the fat-man yellow t-shirts, how poor the farm system is, and everything else negative, and start focusing on where this club could be in 2007 and on.
They are winners.. and they are proving it right before our pessimistic eyes which have gone blind from the years and years of rhetorical BS fed to us from this organization.
God Bless Mickey White.
Ok.. it isn't all his doing but his hand is all over this team. Now Tracy and his staff are putting the finishing touches on the group.
Sure.. we have a ways to go yet. We need a solid leadoff man that can get on base and we need a solid 30 HR, 100 rbi guy in the middle of the lineup. But that is doable with the cash this org has saved and a few arms we have that can be dealt if they get healthy. I think we are very, very close. Closer than even I thought.
No, I don't think we will win the division next year.. maybe not for awhile. Maybe never with these guys. I'm more concerned about getting to .500 first.
But I do believe that Tracy and Colborn ARE difference makers, I do believe this young group has some guts to them like the old sandlot team days, and I do believe that just two players (the right two players) could make a huge impact on bringing us closer to that magical .500 season.
And I do believe it is closer than we all think it is.
More importantly, it is obvious the players believe.. and they believe it is now.
Wow! The record from July onward really does seem cause for optimism, and for once it's something real, not just talk, talk, talk from the front office. Thanks, Jake, for keeping on top of this.
Judge Rufus Peckham
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Getting that 30HR 100RBI guy is doable if money is spent wisely. However that is the problem, do you really trust David Littlefield to spend wisely given his recent history of spending decisions? I'd be more willing to believe in this team if the management were better at evaluating talent and spend money wisely. This team has yet to prove they are a winning team. 19-18 since the All Star break is a barely .500 team not a winning team. We'll see if any of what has been done in the second half of the season carries over to next year, and if management is capable of spending money on players who are not over the hill and washed up. If they are less than double digits back at the next All Star break then maybe there may be reason for optimism, I'm not willing to go any further than that given the last 14 years.
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(Maxim Magazine)YOU-**** THURSDAY: BASEBALL’S DUMBEST EXECUTIVES 2006
1. Dave Littlefield, Pittsburgh Pirates: His every trade reeks of panic and desperation. He repeatedly signs players (Joe Randa and Jeromy Burnitz before 2006, Benito Santiago before 2005, Jose Mesa before 2004) that have no place on a roster in the throes of rebuilding. The Pirates’ record under his watch from 2002 onward (and, granted, this is partially attributable to his predecessor in penury, Cam Bonifay): 286-360. Did we mention that he just secured a two-year contract extension?
Dumbest move: Take your pick. Dealing Aramis Ramirez for a bag of poop? Dealing Jason Schmidt for two bags of poop? Waiving Bronson Arroyo? Allowing Tigers slugger Chris Shelton to walk away for nothing in the Rule 5 draft? Even Isiah Thomas has himself a good laugh at this guy’s expense.
Tough-guy boast from MLB.com biography: “Dave earned a Varsity letter in 1981 while playing linebacker for the UMass football team.”
Mitigating factors: Getting all-around monster Jason Bay and lefty slinger Oliver Perez in exchange for Brian Giles panned out pretty nicely, even if Perez was recently spotted at a roadside vegetable stand asking for directions to the strike zone.
Further evidence that this organization has further to go than you may think.
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admbom -- you know, I find it hilarious some girlie magazine wanna writer thinks Littlefield is the dumbest Exec for 2006. Ok.. I appreciate his comments.. I considered them, then I threw them in the trash like I would have if I ever received their magazine. hehehe
BTW - ever since Anna Benson posed for Maxim this guy has been stalking Littlefield like he is in love with him or something.
You said: "19-18 since the All Star break is a barely .500 team not a winning team"
ok.. fair enough.. as I said the sample size isn't the best, but certainly not poor either.
Keep watching them and see if they stay ahead of the .500 mark since the ASG through August. My money says they will.
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Something else to consider:
Yet a larger concern to the Bucs ownership group than what could be a major down-tern in future attendance have been the recent discourse by the Player’s Union about its demands for the next CBA...
-- snip by Jake --
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I snipped your long post that essentially made no sense whatsoever.
The Pirates are nearly 100% debt free so any changes to the CBA aren't going to hurt them as much as other teams.
But the key point is.. until anything changes, I'm not going to sit and worry about it because I have no control over it. After all, the moon might fall apart tomorrow and come crashing into Earth too.. huh?
Get my drift?
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As long as this ownership and GM are in place the Pirates will never be competitive. Get it? Until there is a CBA similar to that of the NFL and the NHL the Pirates will never be competitive. Get it? If through some miracle the Pirates were to actually become competitive it would be very short lived as any potential top free agents the organization develops would have to be traded because the Pirates would not be able to afford to keep them. Get it?(see Aramis Ramirez) Until the economic structure of baseball changes radically (salary cap, revenue sharing, doing away with arbitration and all guaranteed contracts) what has been happening for the last 14 years will happen for the next 14 years. Get it?
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