What is the fastest way to alienate an already bitter fan-base? Trade your best young player. Trade a guy who made the all-star team last year, won a gold glove, is still only 27 years old, and the guy you made the center of attention in your marketing and advertising materials? Who would do this? Hint: they have had 16, that’s right 16 straight losing seasons. Kids who just finished their sophomore year of high school have never seen them have a winning season. The answer: The Pittsburgh Pirates.
I think first year General Manager Neil Huntington tried to be too cute with this deal. In return the Pirates received a 21-year-old AA outfielder Gorkys Hernandez, 25-year-old AAA pitcher Charlie Morton and 21-year-old Jeff Locke who is in A. In the Baseball America team by team Top Ten prospects which was done on December 15, 2008 for the Atlanta Braves, Hernandez was #4, and Locke was #7.
Hernandez is hitting .316 in 52 games at AA with 67 hits and 19 RBI‘s, but has 0 HR’s. 54 of Hernandez’s hits have been singles! Do the Pirates have a fetish for trading for former prospects of other teams with no power? (See Andy LaRoche and Brandon Moss). In High A ball, Jeff Locke is 1-4 with a 5.52 ERA. In 45.2 innings, Locke has given up 47 hits, struck out 43, and walked 26. He’s still young, but not the best numbers especially for still being in A ball. Now let’s look at Charlie Morton. Morton’s numbers aren’t bad, he’s 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA in 64.2 innings pitched in AAA. Morton has struck out 55 and walked 16 batters. Morton is not known as a top prospect and is already 25. Maybe someday he can contribute, I can see getting him in a package for Ian Snell, but for McLouth, c’mon!
I understand the Pirates had to trade Jason Bay and Xavier Nady since they probably wouldn’t have been able to keep them after their respective contracts were up in 2009, but what kind of return did you get?. Andy LaRoche, and Brandon Moss? Sure the Pirates were able to plug Steve Karstens and Ross Ohlendorf into their rotation, but neither of them will ever be an ace. If you’re going to move an elite player like Bay, you damn well better be getting top ten or better prospect talent in return if you’re going to be obsessed (well have to go) with the prospect route. But McLouth was just resigned to a new three-year deal worth 15.75 million this past February, yes not even four months ago! Some say this trade could pave the way for top prospect Andrew McCutchen to take over the center field slot in Pittsburgh, and maybe that’s so, but this still could have been done by leaving McLouth on the team. Why not trade Nyjer Morgan if you think you need to move a piece to make room in the outfield? Sure he’s not going to get you a lot in return, but it would be more of a purpose trade than a improve your club kind of thing, in essence you could improve your club though by freeing up an outfield spot. You could have also asked Nate to move to left and if he had a problem with that, put McCutchen in right and platoon him with that stiff Moss, who isn’t an everyday player to begin with.
I think this is a great move for Atlanta, prospects are just that, prospects. I see alot of Pirates games here in the Youngstown area, and McLouth was the centerpiece of their marketing campaign and commercials before and during the season. In my opinion he was the face of the franchise, and took that role last year while Jason Bay was still there and solely became it after he was traded. I know the Bucs are sliding into another losing season, but to give up on this guy already? The youngsters they are getting will probably work there way into the system quickly, hell they plugged Brandon Moss and Andy LaRoche in immediately last year, but that doesn't mean it was a good trade. I don't like the move for Pittsburgh and I think it was a bad way to start the Neal Huntington era, he could be looked back on in much the same light as the Expos GM of 2002 would be by Cleveland Indians now in the deal that got the Tribe Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, and Brandon Phillips. The Pirates don't have a great fan base to begin with, at least they’re not showing up at the games, and to trade a guy who was quickly becoming a fan favorite and endeared by the true baseball fans still left in Pittsburgh is a bad PR move, and a slap in their still hopeful faces.
Please direct any questions or comments to me at bvee10@gmail.com.
Keywords: Pittsburgh Pirates
