The most depressing part of the coming season...

> Can't for the life of me see where you come up with that lineup?

It's a lineup created with the idea of putting the best offense on the
field out of the best players available to the Pirates at the time.

>It's
> interesting, but why would you wanna play Ward in RF and even keep
> Graham Koonce in the bigs when you can play him at AAA to see if he's
> for real? And Ben Grieve in LF? He's a doubtful/marginal major
> leaguer with worlds of unfulfilled potential - emphasis on
> "unfulfilled".

Second "point" first...

So you say this guy, age 34...

YEAR G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS
2004 150 591 109 164 25 0 20 70 74 84 .277 .366 .421 .787
Career 1182 4236 684 1139 237 16 125 577 610 534 .269 .370 .421 .791

.... is a proven veteran and a worthy major league starter. While this
guy, age 29...

YEAR G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS
2004 123 250 30 65 17 0 8 35 39 70 .260 .361 .424 .785
Career 953 3195 470 859 192 5 118 491 461 777 .269 .367 .443 .810

.... is described as unfulfilled potential. Mmmm, go figure - they look
pretty much like the same player to me.

As for playing Ward in RF, it wouldn't be the position you'd put him at
first, but if you want the best hitters on the field, putting him at
first base keeps Koonce out essentially keeping the much weaker Redman in.

As far as hitting goes Koonce, Grieve and Lawton will all produce about
the same if given the same playing time. The difference is that Lawton
will get 7.5 million over the next two years to do it, while the Pirates
could have paid about 1.5 million for the other two combined instead had
they not traded for Lawton.

It's pretty irrelevant at this point since as I said the Pirate's did
the predictable and will go with the weaker options, because name
recognition is what drives their decisions not performance.
 >> Stay informed about: The most depressing part of the coming season... 

On Fri, 04 Mar 2005 13:41:30 -0500, Another Day Another OS
<UspammerzSux.RemoveThis@stayaway.com> wrote:

>... has to be looking at the spring training roster and realizing that
>the Pirates have more offensive talent in camp than they've had in a
>long time, enough that if they hadn't made one stupid trade and
>constructed their lineup properly they could actually be competetive
>this season for a fraction of the cost they'll end up spending ...
>
>But most of the talent probably won't make the team and name recognition
>and contracts will yield another loser.
>
>A lineup of
>
>2B Bobby Hill
>LF Ben Grieve
>CF Jason Bay
> C Craig Wilson/Humberto Cota
>1B Graham Koonce
>RF Daryl Ward
>3B Freddie Sanchez
>SS Jose Castillo
>
>Would actually play really well at PNC Park and be the most competetive
>team the Pirates have put on the field in over a decade and there's no
>chance what so ever it or anything like it will ever happen.
>
>A competitive team is sitting there right in the palm of their hands and
>they don't even know it.


<laughing>

Paul Paul..... come on you know the Pirates have the best AAA team
that McClatchy can buy after he's done taking his huge cuts for him
and his crew.

The Pirates will not be .500 again for the what? 13th straight
season?

I thought that stadium was going to bring a winner to Pgh? I thought
McClatchy had a plan, why I remember him begging on KDKA radio that if
just had a new stadium that we would be just like the Indians.


<laughing>


But we all know the truth, huh?


Chuck
 >> Stay informed about: The most depressing part of the coming season...