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Pirates
Dec 15, 2010 21:41:52 GMT -5
Post by Miss Dee on Dec 15, 2010 21:41:52 GMT -5
Watching the World Series film on MLB. Includes the Q&A from the Byham event. Pretty cool.
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
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Pirates
Dec 17, 2010 19:26:34 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Dec 17, 2010 19:26:34 GMT -5
That was just a great week----on Sunday I was in the same building as Bob Dylan, on Saturday I was in the same building as the 1960 Bucs, Michael Keaton, & Franco Harris. The broadcast didn't leave out much of what happened in the Byham that night. The only thing that was omitted was Bob Costas' funny opening monologue about refusing to get on the school bus on that day. They also cut short the postgame show, so you didn't see Bob Prince push Mayor Barr off the platform. Another thing that you didn't see was when the fans in the theatre applauded to get a "curtain call" from Hal Smith, it was Bobby Richardson who first motioned for him to get up. Richardson was a class act thru-out the night. Costas had told us that Yogi, Whitey, & Ralph Terry were all invited but declined. Terry's excuse was that he was pheasant-hunting. I'm serious.
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Joe
Victim
I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Dec 18, 2010 10:02:12 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Dec 18, 2010 10:02:12 GMT -5
Finishing my coffee before Christmas shopping, so let's bring this discussion back to the modern Pirates.
Bad Deal Neal is apparently suffering from Dave Littleyield Disease (formerly named Cam Bonifay Disease, until I renamed it) & abandoning the youth movement that was central to his 5-year plan before the 5 years are up & signing 30-something free agents.
I woulda stuck with the guys we had, cept that I agree with letting Zach Duke go & I agree with trading Doumit if it happens. I know I'm in the minority here, coz fans are tired of losing & of looking at some of these players, but we have a new mgr. with a track record of getting improvement outta players.
So....2 veteran so-so starting pitchers were signed. If it means Charlie Morton works out his problems in the minors, that's OK with me, but it also means that Brad Lincoln & Daniel McCutchen aren't in the rotation & lose a year of experience & a year where we can find out about them.
32-year-old Matt Diaz replaces Lastings Milledge in RF. Diaz is a lot older, has similar career numbers both overall & against lefties, is probably better defensively (altho' from what I'm reading, not that much better--the Braves used to replace him in the late innings when winning), & probably doesn't have as high an avg. in the so-called RISP situations. I woulda rather have seen whether Hurdle coulda helped Lastings reach the potential that many believe he has.
33-year-old Lyle Overbay is on 1B, essentially turning Garrett Jones into a platoon RF. Overbay's career numbers are a lot like Adam LaRoche's, cept he's consistent thru-out the year rather than starting out in a 2-month slump. Still, he's a lot older & if they were gonna do this, they might as well have kept LaRoche instead of giving him away. I woulda preferred seeing whether Hurdle coulda gotten improvement from Jones as an everyday player.
Last year was a horrible year, but I believe that you gotta see a plan thru. The Braves of '88-90 let Glavine, Smoltz, et. al. take their lumps all season long & eventually it paid off. There's other examples.
Any thoughts?
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
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Pirates
Apr 18, 2011 17:28:12 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Apr 18, 2011 17:28:12 GMT -5
Yeah, I know, the Pirates are probably gonna stink this year, too, but I've been impressed with Hurdle so far. He manages to win the game in front of him rather than manage as tho' he's in a long horse race. No Pirate manager has done this since Gene Lamont. Yesterday, for instance, Meek got in trouble in the 8th, so Hanrahan was brought in for a 5-out save. Jim Tracy woulda stuck with Meek, or maybe brought in a lesser releiver, hoping to save Hanrahan for the 9th inning yesterday & today. (Remember the famous Marty McCleary game?) Hurdle, on the other hand, realizes that he had an opportunity to assure himself of no worse than a split for a tough road series, so we went for the win. Today will take care of itself.
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Apr 19, 2011 8:52:36 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Apr 19, 2011 8:52:36 GMT -5
Case in point last night. Hanrahan wasn't even needed. In fact, nobody from the bullpen was needed. Under the Leyland/McClendon/Tracy/Russell model, we probably would be leaving Cincy with a split (not bad) instead of a series win (fantastic).
Marty McLeary may soon become a distant memory. If I were Nutting, I'd sign Hurdle to a 10-year extension right now.
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gmac
Corpse
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Pirates
Apr 23, 2011 15:20:00 GMT -5
Post by gmac on Apr 23, 2011 15:20:00 GMT -5
Yeah, I know, the Pirates are probably gonna stink this year, too, but I've been impressed with Hurdle so far. He manages to win the game in front of him rather than manage as tho' he's in a long horse race. No Pirate manager has done this since Gene Lamont. Yesterday, for instance, Meek got in trouble in the 8th, so Hanrahan was brought in for a 5-out save. Jim Tracy woulda stuck with Meek, or maybe brought in a lesser releiver, hoping to save Hanrahan for the 9th inning yesterday & today. (Remember the famous Marty McCleary game?) Hurdle, on the other hand, realizes that he had an opportunity to assure himself of no worse than a split for a tough road series, so we went for the win. Today will take care of itself. Pirates ownership should be very concerned about the possibility of losing the current revenue sharing plan. That being said, it has become so friggin' expensive to go to Red Sox games that it is actually cheaper for us to travel to Baltimore, Cleveland and now Pittsburgh to watch a series in person.
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Apr 27, 2011 19:47:49 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Apr 27, 2011 19:47:49 GMT -5
Pirates ownership should be very concerned about the possibility of losing the current revenue sharing plan. Have you heard or read that this is a danger? I haven't, but I've been so busy I might have missed something. Last I heard, the Chicago teams were complaining that Pujols is gonna make $30 million next year & the only teams bidding will be the Yankees & Red Sox. That's a positive step for more revenue sharing, that fact that the Chicago teams are now speaking out. It's never gonna happen if it's just the Pirates & Royals bitching about it.
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gmac
Corpse
Posts: 65
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Pirates
May 7, 2011 10:23:41 GMT -5
Post by gmac on May 7, 2011 10:23:41 GMT -5
Pirates ownership should be very concerned about the possibility of losing the current revenue sharing plan. Have you heard or read that this is a danger? I haven't, but I've been so busy I might have missed something. Last I heard, the Chicago teams were complaining that Pujols is gonna make $30 million next year & the only teams bidding will be the Yankees & Red Sox. That's a positive step for more revenue sharing, that fact that the Chicago teams are now speaking out. It's never gonna happen if it's just the Pirates & Royals bitching about it. Selig fined Red Sox owner John Henry $500K for complaining about the revenue plan and warned the Yankees as well. He was quoted as expressing doubts that a similar plan will be in place after the contract expires in December. I don't know about PNC, but Fenway has become advertising central. Every inch of available space has a sign, beers cost $8, water $5 and a double play is brought to you by an insurance company.
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
May 12, 2011 21:06:19 GMT -5
Post by Joe on May 12, 2011 21:06:19 GMT -5
It would seem more appropriate if the insurance co. would sponsor beanings.
"Wow, Bob, that pitch could have killed him." "Yeah, Greg, that's why it's never too soon to buy life insurance."
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Jun 10, 2011 22:25:05 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Jun 10, 2011 22:25:05 GMT -5
Tonight's lopsided loss notwithstanding, it's been a pretty good season so far. If the Bucs are still hangin' around .500 or a couple games or so over in July, do they do the usual thing of trading their high-salaried players for prospects? Or do they trade some of their prospects & actually pick up some salary, adding a big bat or 2 to make a play-off push? After all, Bad Deal Neal has long maintained that that's one of the purposes of having a deep minor league system. I'd like to see 'em go for it. Hurdle hinted as much, too, in an earlier interview. Seems like Hurdle is the guy calling the shots. Bad Deal Neal once famously said that left-handed relievers were overrated, & Russell went along with it. Contrast that to Hurdle, who said publicly that he needed 2 lefties in the bullpen, & sure nuff, that's what they gave him. Could be interesting.
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Jul 8, 2011 21:42:41 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Jul 8, 2011 21:42:41 GMT -5
This season is just plain nuts. It's '97 all over again.
How many of you thought of Kevin Polcovich's 8th-inning HR to beat Schilling when McKenry homered off Marmol tonight?
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Post by Miss Dee on Jul 9, 2011 7:44:08 GMT -5
This season is just plain nuts. It's '97 all over again. How many of you thought of Kevin Polcovich's 8th-inning HR to beat Schilling when McKenry homered off Marmol tonight? What an exciting game! And one game out of first place - this is a dream!
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Joe
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I don't wanna work, I just wanna bang on the drum all day.
Posts: 540
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Pirates
Dec 13, 2011 23:13:39 GMT -5
Post by Joe on Dec 13, 2011 23:13:39 GMT -5
My latest hokey if-I-owned-the-Pirates idea, which, of course, they won't follow. The Cards have lost Pujols. The Brewers are losing Fielder & won't have Braun for 50 games. The NL Central is wide open, provided the Cards don't decide to sign Fielder to fill their void at 1B. How many years will the Pirates ever have a realistic chance of winning the division? 2012 might be the year. I say, make an offer to Fielder---one year, $20 million. I'd tell him, just imagine what your stats will be playing in PNC Park for a year, then you can move on & sign a long-term contract that's even better than any you could sign now. Meanwhile, he'll help us win the division.
Why not pitch that to him? The worst he can do is say no & laugh.
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