Pirate Gun Deck

[Black Panther]

Pitching Coach Joe Kerrigan & Bench Coach Gary "swamp thing" Varsho walked the plank today.I figured someone would take the fall sometime...lol Not them though...But hiring Searage as your bullpen coach should have been a red flag for Kerrigan.As for today's game-the Bucs fall to the Rockies 8-4.Horrible piching performance by Maholm.If we get his normal solid outing we win this game...

[dazed&confused]

What a great heritage. They should be better than this. They have a great ballpark and Steelers fans prove there is a constituency for credible winners. I wish they and the Reds were still squaring off for the NL Pennat on a regular basis. What's wrong with baseball in the Heartland?

[Black Panther]

Dont know...The Pirates have some pieces that are in place and should show some real improvement in the next couple years...Who would have thought the Reds would be where they are right now? So you never know....

[mister b]

I can't figure out Pirates management.

We trade for Snyder, get 3 million to boot with him but he has 2 years left on his contract. 5.75 million next year and 6.75 million for 2012. Why spend so much for a backup catcher?

John Russell and all of his coaches just renewed their contracts for another year about a month ago and now we give some the boot? We still have to pay them for the duration of their contracts. Kerrigan did a decent job with the staff he was given. The bullpen got gutted the past 2 weeks so we now have unproven pitchers with unknown stuff coming into games.

We are basically giving minor leaguers major league experience and expecting them to win.

If we should have fired anybody it should have been Russell since he directs the asst coaches.

Management needs fired. Huntington constantly trades for prospects or signs washed up free agents. The Pirates are not in the business to seriously win games, they are in the business to make money and to constantly stock pile prospects that never pan out.

Why is LaRoche suddenly back in the lineup? Why is Garrett in the outfield? Where is Delwyn Young? First he was an outfielder, then a first basemen, back to the outfield. The guy can hit. We still are trying to get Clement in the lineup, why? He has no bat.

The lineup should be this, Tabata in LF, McCutchen in CF, Milledge in RF, Jones 1st, Walker 2nd, Alvarez 3rd, I don't know at SS, Doumit at catcher if he doesn't have a concussion but right now I say give it to Snyder because he has thrown out 8 of 10 runners since he came to the Pirates which is saying something because our pitchers don't hold runners on well and Doumit doesn't have the arm. Doumit is done, in my opinion. Every fou lball off the mask, he has concussion like symptoms.

These guys will never learn how to win if they are not in the lineup everyday and made to learn to win. This constant shifting of the lineup by Russell will accomplish nothing in the long term.

Kerrigan is not the reason the pitching staff imploded of late, look at what he has to work with. This includes 1 lefty coming out of the pen that you don't know if he will be good or bad. Hanrahan should be the setup man and Meek the closer, not the other way around just because Russell likes it that way.

[Black Panther]

This is my theory on the Snyder deal-I think if Doumit would have been healthy we would have sent him to Arizona.Otherwise this makes no sense....Like you said why add salary for a backup catcher when Doumit has better or similar numbers.The only real difference in the two besides salary is that Snyder has a better percentage of throwing out base runners.As for the lineup,Yes,what the heck was LaRoach at first last night? If Jones needed a day off put Clement there.Are those gagging noises I hear in Cincinnati all the sudden?? lol

[mister b]

Pirates are paying Doumit 3.6 million to be the starting catcher. Snyder is getting 5.2 million as the backup. 8.8 million for 2 catchers out of a total payroll of 36 million. The Diamondbacks did send 3 million in cash with Snyder but he still has 2 years left on his contract with a 750,000 buyout. Jaromillo and Kratz came much cheaper, around 400,00 each, and they are no worse than Doumit or Snyder.

I don't get this trade for Snyder because of his salary. I can see getting him if he wasn't paid as much. Offensively, he and Doumit are basically the same at the plate even though Doumit is a switch hitter. Snyder has power. Defensively, Snyder is much better. Especially, throwing out runners.

I just don't get some of our trades. I don't get our lineup. I agree. If Jones needed a day off, he just had one on monday as it was an off day for the team, put Clement or Young in there, not LaRoche. Russell kills me.

[mister b]

Padres 8 Pirates 5

Russell continues to baffle me, this time by putting Doumit in RF. He allows a fly ball to drop in front of him, very catchable, that could have ended the inning but the Padres get 2 runs out of it. If I was the Bucs starting pitcher McDonald, I would have gone Carlos Zambrano on him in the dugout. Milledge has to wondering what he did to earn a seat on the bench since he is an outfielder and has a better batting average than Doumit's 257.

It bothers me that since around June 15th, we have basically been bringing guys up, putting people in odd positions and just trying them out and hoping we find something that works. We deplete a very average bullpen for one that is made up now of castoffs. Chan Ho Park can't pitch, Gallagher isn't much better. He has as many walks as innings pitched and he allows inherited runners to score.

I just don't get it. We have a good young group of position players, Walker, Alvarez, Garrett, Tabatha, McCutchen that you need to instill a winning attitude in. This trying people out as the season progresses doesn't teach a team to win.

McDonald pitched good enough to not get the loss if the bullpen did their job and if we had an OF, not the regular catcher, playing RF. He threw a career high 107 pitches and thru 2 starts, appears promising.

Pirates should have fired Russell instead of resigning him and firing the pitching and bench coaches.

Need to win today so the Padres don't sweep the 6 game season series.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[Black Panther]

I agree,Russell may need to go...And with his moves of late maybe he's trying to make it easier for them to do so.As for Doumit,he's a catcher not a Rightfielder.But he still should have caught that ball.Your opinion-Is McCutchen playing injured? He just seems a bit tenative to me going after balls and routes to balls...I guess that could be said for all but something seems different with him...I think he is playing hurt and we'll find out he was at the end of the season...

[mister b]

McCutchen could be playing hurt. My guess is that he is mainly sore and probably has never been hurt before this year. Shoulder injury and then hit in the back of the head with a pitch. Sore and gun shy at this point. He is a player that, if he continues to improve and doesn't let the little aches and pains bother him, he could get a very good contract the next time around. I hope it is with the Pirates.

Clemente was a hypochondriac, always complaining about his back or shoulder or legs, but come game time, he would suck it up and play with the best of them. I hope McCutchen is like Clemente except for being a hypochondriac. I give McCutchen a free pass, for now, because of the beaning to the back of the head.

[mister b]

Fish 6 Bucs 0

Poor performance by the Bucs. 6 hits. Scoring chances there, no timely hits. Buccos played very well the night before.

Pirates are 4-12 for the month.

Game 3 of 4 tomorrow, need a win in the worst way.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[mister b]

Fish 3 Bucs 2

Ohlendorf pitches well. 8 innings, 3 runs on 4 hits. The last 3 games he has pitched, he has given up 4 runs on 12 hits and has 1 loss and 2 no decisions. Bucs can only muster 2 runs on 7 hits. Both Pittsburgh runs were solo shots. Once again, the Buccs cannot get runners on base prior to the long ball or any timely hits with runners in scoring position.

Game 4 tomorrow.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[mister b]

Fish 4 Bucs 2

Bucs loss 3 of 4 to the Fish. It is only the second series the Fish have ever won in the Burgh.

Pirates are 1-9 since they fired bench coach Varso and pitching coach Kerrigan.

The Pirates are just 1 loss away from making this their 18th straight losing season. They are also 41 games below 500 and they just resigned their manager to a new contract a couple of weeks ago.

Do ya think that maybe it would be easier to change 1 person, the manager, instead of completely overhauling the whole team as the Pirates have done these past many moons?

Mets come to town for the weekend. Maybe we can win a couple.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[mister b]

Mets 5 Pirates 1

5th loss in a row and 12 out of the last 13 for the Bucs.

Interesting note...manager John Russell and GM Neil Huntington had their contracts renewed last off season but the Bucco managment didn't release that info until June 17th. On that date, the Pirates were 19 games below 500. We are now 43 games below 500.

This is our 18th straight losing season. This year is the fastest that the Bucs have reached the 82 loss count in the past 18 years. We lost 99 games last year. Sadly, 100 losses is well within our reach.

I am becoming a visitor of the website firejohnrussell.com. If the Bucs would fire him, they would at least be pretending to care about the organization and the fans.

Regardless...LETS GO BUCS!!!

[mister b]

Pirates 2 Mets 1

RAISE THE JOLLY ROGER!!! (Almost forgot that we can say that)

Duke pitched well, 7 innings, 1 run, 5 hits, 5 Ks and 2 BB.

Buccos only manage 4 hits but 2 of them were solo shots by Milledge and Tabata. Just enough offense to get by a good pitcher in Santana.

Cards come to the Burgh for 3. Buccos better get some offense going.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[Orange and Brown]

So what is the answer to turnning the Pirates around? They have sold off every decent player they have had this past decade. Is it going to take new ownership to "right the ship"

[mister b]

So what is the answer to turnning the Pirates around? They have sold off every decent player they have had this past decade. Is it going to take new ownership to "right the ship"

Yes. Sadly, we just new ownership back in 2007, Bob Nutting of the "spend nothing, get nothing" family.

The Pirates did hire Neil Huntington as GM who was schooled by the Indians in how to make a small market team competitive.

I really think that Nutting wants a winner but will not pay for it simply because the Pirates are making money for him even with 18 straight losing seasons. Shows you have loyal (or dumb) us Pirate fans are.

The young talent is there to win, not a world series, but a winning season is plausible with this group. The first step is an experienced manager of young talent, i.e. Lou Piniella, a couple of winning vets to lead the clubhouse and the streak of 18 losing seasons could end next year, but not with John Russell as manager.

JMHO

[Black Panther]

Captain Geena Davis and I decided to walk the plank ourselves for a few days... Not much has changed in that time though,(other than losses mounting up)inconsistent play,errors,and John Russell is still on the job.I agree with you it's time for him to go...I know it wont happen,but, I would love to get Tony LaRussa. He is in the last year of his deal in St. Louis,and most fans aren't happy with him there...Seems like it might be a good fit...

[mister b]

On a side note, since Bob Nutting took over as majority owner of the Pirates in 2007, the franchise has turned a profit of $36 million from 2007-2009.

Not bad for a small market team that can't compete against the bigger teams for free agents.

Why should Bob "spend nothing" Nutting change his formula? He is making $12 million a year with a franchise that is in it's 18th straight losing season.

At the very least, Pirate management should dump Russell and go after a better manager to at least give the appearence that they are building a winning foundation.

[mister b]

Cards 10 Pirates 2

Ugly game from the first pitch. Card's had a 3-0 lead before they got an out. Bucs muster little offense against a pitcher who just came off the DL.

LETS GO BUCS!!!

[mister b]

Pirates 4 Cards 3

RAISE THE JOLLY ROGER!!!

Walker plates 3 RBI's. This kid could be the everyday 2nd baseman for us the next 10 years. He does the little things very well.

Buccos try and help the Reds out by beating the Cards but the Giants laid the smackdown on the Redlegs again.

Buc look to win the series (I'm dreaming) with game 3 tonight. A little sunshine in a dismal year.

LETS GO BUCS!!!