Bucs Trade Winds Bucs Trade Winds Talking Pittsburgh Pirates baseball from the ledge. Articles
BTW Power Rankings - Week 22
2007-09-05 08:20:00 Hopefully everyone enjoyed the weekend. Considering how poorly the team played last week, the Pirates(193) are still second to only the Yankees(205) in runs scored since week 17. That says a little about how outstanding the month of August was for the Pirates, considering the Rangers scored 30 in a game but have only scored 165 runs since week 17. August was a fun month, but bad for the fans. Why was it bad? Now ownership will believe this team can play at that level long term, hesitating from spending money in the off season because there are now "no holes on the team". Cough! Cough! Now management can justify keeping both offensively challenged short stops and an offensively challenged center fielder in Duffy. August was fun to watch, but might set the team back a couple more years. Don't believe me? Pirates management has made statements that they are still in the race. It is as if they really believe it, that is ... More About: Power , Week
Mid Game Thoughts
2007-09-02 02:07:00 Some quick thoughts: Youman and Armas have been auditioning for the last spot on the 40 man roster. With Zach Duke coming off of the DL, a 40-man roster move needs to be made. Based on their last couple outings... It has been nice knowing you Shane. Steven Pearce started the game tonight against the Brewers. The Pittsburgh Pirates rookie RF/1B started in RF. The other call-ups announced so far are outfielder Nyjer Morgan and left-hander Juan Perez. Two or three more call ups are expected. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Thoughts , Game
Holiday Weekend
2007-09-01 14:32:00 With the holiday weekend upon us, I won't have many updates up until Monday. Have a happy and safe holiday weekend.Leave your opinion in the BTW Forum.Register for the forum here:http://forum.bucstradewinds.net/inde x.cgi?action=register More About: Holiday , Weekend
Sports Minute (Or So)
2007-08-31 05:28:00 The National Lampoon Sports Minute (Or So)Written by Steve Hofstetter, Adam Hofstetter, Cody Marley, Ryan Murphy, Rich Ragains, Elliot Steingart, and Chris Strait Harrah's has announced that it intends to build an arena in Las Vegas capable of housing an NBA team. Tim Donaghy has already volunteered to referee all 41 home games. The Houston Rockets have made a contract offer to defensive specialist Dikembe Mutombo. The offer is for one year or six points, whichever comes first. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban will be a cast member of Dancing With the Stars. We're not sure how he'll be able to stay on his feet while they're constantly in his mouth. A judge has set bond at $5 million each for the two men accused of robbing Antoine Walker's home. Ironically, that's almost as much money as Walker stole from the Heat last season. Barry Bonds was honored in San Francisco when the mayor presented him with the key to the city. Given Bonds' popularity, we're surprised he didn't just leav... More About: Ports
For Those Scoring at Home
2007-08-31 02:33:00 A rules clarification for anyone confused by the appeal at 3rd in the 4th inning of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds game: With 2 outs Edwin Encarnacion singled to left field with the bases loaded and 2 outs. Adam Dunn was at 2nd base when the ball was put in play. He missed 3rd base on his way home. Ken Griffey Jr. scored ahead of Dunn. An Appeal at 3rd base was made by the Pirates. The runner, Adam Dunn, was called out for missing the bag. By rule, the appeal at 3rd base is considered a force out thus no runs could score on the play. The single should be changed to a fielders choice. If Adam Dunn was at 1st base and missed 3rd, the runners ahead of him would have counted, since he never advanced a base, it is a force out. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Home
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2007 and Beyond Part 4
2007-08-30 08:38:00 This is the 4th in a series of articles that will take look at the current state and the future state of the Pittsburgh Pirates . The articles will be broken out into three parts: what should happen, what will happen and what could happen. We'll take a look at each position in the franchise covering where they are, where they will be and where they should be. Where there was a plethora of options for right field, center is not quite as deep: Chris Duffy Nate McLouth Jose Bautista Jose Castillo (? according to ESPN) Xavier Nady Andrew McCutchen Duffy started the season as THE center fielder. McCutchen is the future. Bautista has played there the last two seasons. Jose Castillo is listed on ESPN, but I cant see that one. Nady has played center this year. McLouth has been steady since Duffy went down and Davis was traded. What Should Happen I called for McLouth, early in the preseason, to be the starting center fielder. ... More About: Part , Pittsburgh Pirates , Rate
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2007 and Beyond Part 3
2007-08-29 07:12:00 This is the 3rd in a series of articles that will take look at the current state and the future state of the Pittsburgh Pirates . The articles will be broken out into three parts: what should happen, what will happen and what could happen. We'll take a look at each position in the franchise covering where they are, where they will be and where they should be. The Pirates have a plethora of right field options, the list includes: Xavier Nady Ryan Doumit Nate McLouth Jose Bautista Brad Eldred Jose Castillo Josh Phelps Matt Kata Steven Pearce The top 5 in the list have started games in RF for the Pirates this season, the rest have yet to start in right, but they have been either been rumored to play or have been a sub a some point during the season. Pearce is the only player on the list that has yet to make an appearance in Pittsburgh. September is coming, and so should Pearce. Pearce is a first baseman who can play right in a pinch, he is curr... More About: Part , Pittsburgh Pirates , Part 3
Protest Part 2 Tonight
2007-08-28 21:53:00 The Pirates Fans for Change are having their second protest tonight. If you are at the game, show your support for the cause. For details on the protest visit http://www.piratesfansforchange.com/.&nbs p; Unfortunately I will not be able to take part this time around, living in Iowa puts a damper on supporting at the game. The June 30th protest got some national exposure, hopefully this one will have more participation and more exposure. Sign the petition if you haven't already. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Protest , Tonight , Part , Prot , Toni
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2007 and Beyond Part 2
2007-08-28 08:11:00 This is the second in a series of articles that will take look at the current state and the future state of the Pittsburgh Pirates . The articles will be broken out into three parts: what should happen, what will happen and what could happen. We'll take a look at each position in the franchise covering where they are, where they will be and where they should be. Director of Player Development Brian Graham and Director of Scouting Ed Creech should both be sweating profusely now that McClatchy is gone. Creech has set this team back 10 years in his time in Pittsburgh. For the very few talented players Creech and his staff have identified, Graham's department has completely botched their development. Of the Scouting department, the only scout I could see staying on the staff is Gayo. He has not had enough time to prove his worth, I would give him at least two more seasons before I would give him a grade. Right now he has earne... More About: Part , Pittsburgh Pirates , Rate
BTW Power Rankings - Week 21
2007-08-28 06:26:00 The Pirates have been playing well for the month of August, climbing within 9 games of the division lead. True the Central is abysmal, but there still is hope. The Pirates have 6 games remaining against the division leading Cubs, 6 versus the Brewers and 7 versus the Cardinals. The division, although not likely won by Pittsburgh, could be determined by what the Pirates do over the last month of the season. The top 3 teams in the division will square off against each other multiple times over the last month. The Cubs have a 3 game series against Milwaukee starting Tuesday. The Brewers have a 3 game set later in the month with St. Louis. The Cards have 5 games left against the Cubs. With all of the top 3 squaring off against each other, when they aren't playing the Pirates they will be beating themselves up. With 19 games against the top 3, look for the Pirates to enjoy the spoiler role while possibly sneaking into contention rath... More About: Power , Week
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2007 and Beyond Part 1
2007-08-27 07:06:00 This is the first in a series of articles that will take look at the current state and the future state of the Pittsburgh Pirates . The articles will be broken out into three parts: what should happen, what will happen and what could happen. We'll take a look at each position in the franchise covering where they are, where they will be and where they should be. The obvious start is the front office. With the resignation of Kevin McClatchy, a void is left in the front office. This makes a trickle down affect throughout the entire structure of the organization from scouting to coaching. The entire future of the franchise lies in the hands of one man. Robert Nutting. Robert Nutting has stated he is a one man committee that will choose the successor to Kevin McClatchy. McClatchy is owed a great deal of thanks for keeping the Pirates in Pittsburgh by each and every fan, his failure was simply not fielding a winning team and mismanagement o... More About: Part , Pittsburgh Pirates , Rate
Back from the DL - Random Madness and Links
2007-08-24 05:39:00 Well, my knee is feeling somewhat better, I can at least walk on it with minimal pain. Congrats Let's start off with a congratulatory pat on the back for Bucco Blog. They have announced that they have been added to the BlogBurst syndication network. BlogBurst has a slew of blogs that appear on nearly 100 news and media sites. Welcome aboard. For clarification purposes, BTW has been a member of BlogBurst since May of this year. Even though I don't have the readership of Bucco Blog, hopefully they will correct their statement of being "the only Pittsburgh Pirates fan blog to be available for social media syndication via BlogBurst to over 100 top-tier news and media sites like Reuters, USA Today, Gannett Newspapers, Fox News, and many others". No Mo Monroe In case the news has not made it to you, the Cubs have acquired Craig Monroe from the Tigers for cash and the ever popular PTBNL. Obviously the cash is what kept the... More About: Random , Links , Back , The D , Madness
Sports Minute (Or So)
2007-08-24 05:01:00 The National Lampoon Sports Minute (Or So)Written by Steve Hofstetter, Adam Hofstetter, Cody Marley, Ryan Murphy, Rich Ragains, Elliot Steingart, and Chris StraitBraves manager Bobby Cox finally set the record for the most ejections in baseball history. Cox celebrated at a local bar before eventually being tossed.Has-been Jose Offerman has been suspended from his minor league team indefinitely after he hit the opposing pitcher and catcher with his bat. On the positive side, it's the first hitting streak Offerman has had in years.Johan Santana struck out 17 Texas Rangers. It's not that remarkable, since Sammy Sosa was 14 of them.Taco Bell is giving away a trip to the 2008 World Series. The winner gets to throw out the first pitch, $50,000, and free Spanish lessons from a Rodriguez to be named later.In Cleveland, doctors used electrodes to awaken a man who's been in a coma for six years. The man spent his coma in a hospital, coaching the Browns.Six players were injured in a p... More About: Ports
BTW Power Rankings - Week 20
2007-08-20 07:22:00 Since the week 17 rankings, the Pirates(133) have scored the second most runs to the Yankees(139). Where was this offense the rest of the season? If something resembling this offense showed up when the pitching was holding its own, the Pirates could have been talking about playoffs. I know this offensive surge is not sustainable, but the contrast between August and the first 4 months of the season is night and day. I am writing it off as nothing but the annual late season spurt to tease the Pirates fans into believing the team is better than it's record, after all they have gone 10-9 in the stretch. 29-11 to .500 Rank LW Team W L 1 1 Boston 74 50 2 2 LA Angels 72 51 3 4 NY Mets 70 53 4 3 NY Yankees 70 54 5 7 Cleveland 68 55 6 6 Seattle 69 52 7 5 Detroit 67 57 8 8 San Diego 66 57 9 9 Philadelphia 65 58 10 13 Chicago Cubs 63 59 11 10 Atlanta 65 59 12 11 Arizona 71 54 13 14 Toronto 63 60 14 12 Colorado 6... More About: Power , Week
On the DL
2007-08-20 06:35:00 Well, I promised a post on position by position going forward, then I proceeded to screw up my knee (again). Tylenol 3 is a great thing, no pain and no focus. I will get the series started in the next day or so. Please keep checking back. More About: The D
Announcement: BTW Fantasy Football League
2007-08-18 21:21:00 Like any good Pirates fan, I am thinking football at this time of year. I have set up a free 10 team, 4 player keeper league at ESPN for anyone interested. Tentatively it is scheduled for a Sept 2nd draft at 3:00 PM. If you are interested, email me through the contact link above and I will send you an invite. First come, first serve. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Football , Fantasy , Announcement , League , Fantasy Football
More Detroit Wilson Talk
2007-08-18 16:49:00 Yet another article in the Detroit Free Press speculating on Wilson . This article got me to thinking. Later today I will have a multi part series on the 2007 Pirates and Beyond chronicling what will happen, what should happen and where the team is headed, in my own demented mind. I will do my best to think like Littlefield then try to rebound to rational thought. I will attempt to tackle it position by position coming to a final conclusion on who should stay and who should go, and why. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Talk
Craig Monroe to Pirates?
2007-08-17 22:31:00 According to the Detroit Free Press Craig Monroe has cleared waivers and has been designated for assignment giving the Tigers 10 days to waive, trade or release Monroe. Detroit also optioned utility man Omar Infante to Triple-A Toledo. The Free Press points out "Some of the Tigers’ top prospects – including outfielder Gorkys Hernandez and right-hander Dallas Trahern – are not on the 40-man roster, and therefore could be traded at any time." The Post-Gazette, among others, has reported Jack Wilson has cleared waivers. Add up the two moves and the trade is coming within 10 days. Notes from ESPN: Monroe signed a one-year contract for $4,775,000 in the offseason, getting a raise from $2.8 million. The 30-year-old Monroe was hitting only .222 with 11 home runs and 55 RBIs in 99 games. The left fielder had been recently sidelined because of the flu. BTW Take: It was rumored the original deal fell through when DL asked for Monroe as well as minor league prospect(s).&nb... More About: Pirates , Craig Monroe , Rate
Wilson Clears Waivers
2007-08-17 20:14:00 Buried in the Pirates Notebook at the Post-Gazette is a trivial little fact, Jack Wilson cleared waivers. Link thanks to Fan Nation. BTW Take: Wilson allegedly cleared waivers a few weeks back, but now an official publication is reporting it, not just BTW. More About: Ears
McCutchen and Walker Promoted to Indianapolis
2007-08-17 15:51:00 The Pittsburgh Pirates promoted third baseman Neil Walker , outfielder Andrew McCutchen and reliever David Davidson to AAA Indianapolis . Walker has been very consistent offensively at Altoona. His defense still needs work. Walker, who made the conversion from catcher to third base this season, was one of the Eastern League's most consistent hitters, recording a .288 average with 13 home runs and 66 RBI in 117 games. He was selected to participate in the Eastern League All-Star Game and is a strong candidate to be named an E.L. post-season All-Star. McCutchen started the season slowly, only rivaled by Adam LaRoche, but has rebounded nicely to earn the promotion. McCutchen hit .258 with 10 home runs, 48 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 118 games this season for the Curve. After hitting just .233 (69-for-296) over the first three months of the season, McCutchen picked up the pace in July and August, posting a .307 average (46-for-150) in his final 41 Double-A games. He went 1... More About: Poli , Chen , Romo
Sports Minute (Or So)
2007-08-17 14:59:00 The National Lampoon Sports Minute (Or So)Written by Steve Hofstetter, Adam Hofstetter, Cody Marley, Ryan Murphy, Rich Ragains, Elliot Steingart, and Chris StraitThis week, a key defendant in the Michael Vick case asked for a plea bargain. By barking.David Beckham has released a new cologne named "Intimately Beckham." Sadly, the fragrance is only effective in Europe.Update on Yao Ming's wedding - it could be his only chance to get a ring during his career.Cal Ripken Jr. has been appointed a Special Sports Envoy by Condoleezza Rice. It's the first time the government has hired anyone who will show up to work every day. Ripken has already spent more days in Washington than President Bush.Magic Johnson will hold a fundraiser to support Hillary Clinton's presidential bid. That's perfect, since most political pundits agree that it will take some magic to get her elected.The Miami Heat signed Penny Hardaway. The deal has been applauded by the year 1995. Penny arrive in Miami shortly, ... More About: Ports
A Couple Notes
2007-08-16 23:50:00 Looking for a dead end job with a poorly run organization? The Pirates are looking for an Assistant Minor League Equipment Manager - Pittsburgh Pirates (Bradenton, FL) On a side note, the Toronto Star is running an article on Jason Bay and the possibility of him coming to Toronto. Some interesting quotes from JBay in this one. "I actually enjoy being out of the public eye," the 29-year-old native of Trail, B.C. said. "I like the market here. It's just a little under the radar. That would all change if we started winning a little bit." Hmm? Would that be a back handed compliment or a slap at ownership carefully worded? "It is definitely frustrating," Bay admitted. "It wears on you after a while. You can only hear, `We're looking forward to next year,' so many times. The fans get agitated and it starts up in here. No one in here enjoys losing and that's the thing." Amen Brutha! "I like it here," Bay shrugged. "I like the direction. I... More About: Notes , Couple
News and Rumor - Kuwata DFA'ed, Paulino to Mets?
2007-08-14 23:26:00 The Post-Gazette is reporting Kuwatamania is over in Pittsburgh. Masumi Kuwata has been designated for assignment. The Pirates have 10 days to trade, waive or release him. The Tribune adds the following: If Kuwata clears waivers, which seems likely, he will be sent to Indianapolis. Tuesday, Kuwata's wife and children arrived in Pittsburgh from Japan. He will discuss with them whether he will continue to pitch in the minors or retire. Tracy indicated the Pirates are interested in keeping Kuwata in some non-playing role, such as a coach or scout, in the future. The Pirates have also recalled Matt Kata and catcher Carlos Maldonado from Class AAA Indianapolis Ryan Doumit has been placed on the 15 day DL, Zach Duke has been moved to the 60 day DL. The New York Daily news is reporting the Mets have contacted the Pirates inquiring on Ronny Paulino. More About: News , Rumor
BTW Power Rankings - Week 19
2007-08-14 01:23:00 In the last 2 weeks only three teams have scored more runs than the Pirates (78): Atlanta(80) Colorado(92) Yankees (104) Good thing we acquired Morris, his presence in the batting order has really pumped up the offense. Oh, wait, he is a pitcher. Scratch that. The Pirates only need to go 33-15 the rest of the way to get to .500. How many games do we have left against San Fran? On to the ranking: Rank LW Team W L 1 1 Boston 70 47 2 2 LA Angels 69 47 3 4 NY Yankees 66 51 4 3 NY Mets 65 52 5 6 Detroit 65 52 6 11 Seattle 65 50 7 5 Cleveland 65 53 8 7 San Diego 63 54 9 12 Philadelphia 62 55 10 9 Atlanta 62 56 11 13 Arizona 67 52 12 17 Colorado 61 56 13 8 Chicago Cubs 60 57 14 14 Toronto 59 57 15 10 Milwaukee 62 56 16 15 LA Dodgers 60 57 17 16 Minnesota 58 59 18 18 Oakland 56 62 19 19 Baltimore 54 62 20 20 Florida 55 63 21 26 St. Louis 55 60 22 22 Kansas City 51 65 23 24 Texas 51 66 24 28 Houston 52 65 25 25 ... More About: Power , Week
Oh, the Humanity!
2007-08-13 16:47:00 Well, get ready for yet another foul up by the Littlefield regime. They are looking at making some 40-man roster moves. The best advise is to take shelter in the lowest level of your home, in a room with no windows, no television and no radio reception. This won't be pretty, DL has an aptitude to screwing anything and everything up with the 40-man roster. Think Rule V. More About: Humanity
Links, News and Rumors
2007-08-13 08:30:00 Salomon Torres has dropped his grievance against the Pirates. BTW Take: Sally claims this is due to religious beliefs. More likely a trade is in the works that will send him to a contender, it is believed both he and Wilson cleared waivers. Possibly Sally and Wilson to Detroit? Pirates fluff on Latin Scouting and the draft. BTW Take: Damage control by Littlefield. The article claims the Pirates are dominant with their Latin American teams and Gayo has done a great job. I do not dispute he has done a great job, considering there was no scouting in Latin America for years. These players won't make an impact for another 5 years or so, long after Littlefield should be gone. Part two of the damage control is justifying the draft of Moskos since Matt Wieters has not signed with Baltimore yet. The O's have until Wednesday to sign Wieters or lose his rights. Free Press wondering about the Wilson deal. BTW Take: This is... More About: News , Rumors , Links
I Don't Understand
2007-08-12 06:27:00 Prior to the game Friday Tracy was talking about having not used Nady since the 4th, in the event they placed him on the 15 day DL the stint could be retroactive to the 4th. What does Tracy do? Pinch hits him that night. Why? True they won the game 8-7, but why waste a week for a meaningless game if they are concerned with the hammy? I just don't understand half the things this team does as a whole. Please someone explain that move to me. The more I see of Tracy, the less I like him. Not that I was a big fan of signing him as the manager to begin with. Discuss this topic in the BTW Forum. To post in the BTW Forum you must be registered. Register here. More About: Understand , Stand
Game Time is 3:55
2007-08-11 20:02:00 Just a reminder to everyone that FOX requested the game today to be moved up for telecast to 3:55. More About: Time , Game
Family Visiting: i.e. Quick Notes
2007-08-11 16:19:00 In case you have missed it here are a couple moves the Pirates have made: The Pirates have signed Victor Zambrano and assigned him to AAA Indy. He gave up 1 hit and 2 runs with 5 k's in 4 innings in his first appearance for the Indians. Josh Phelps has been taking grounders at 3B. Bonds likely won't play in the twin bill against San Fran in Pittsburgh. More About: Family , Notes , Quick
Sports Minute (Or So)
More articles from this author:2007-08-10 08:14:00 The National Lampoon Sports Minute (Or So)Written by Steve Hofstetter, Adam Hofstetter, Cody Marley, Ryan Murphy, Rich Ragains, Elliot Steingart, and Chris StraitThe Pacers Jermaine O'Neal requested a trade to the Lakers. Kobe Bryant is thrilled, since he can't win without an O'Neal.It was week of milestones as A-Rod hit his 500th home run, Tom Glavine won his 300th game, and Barry Bonds hit his 755th reporter. When Bonds hit his 755th home run, some in the stadium cheered while others booed. And that was just the Giants dugout.Yao Ming married his 6 foot 2 girlfriend. Tallest canopy ever. The couple is looking forward to having many freakishly long babies.The Cleveland Browns gave a $21 million contract to 22nd pick Brady Quinn. Wow - that's a million dollars for every player another team thought was better.In Kentucky, new Knicks center Randolph Morris was arrested for reckless driving. Morris explained that's just how the Knicks play. We're surprised that more Knicks ... More About: Ports 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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