Olney busts DL

I don't pay for ESPN Insider, but maybe I should. KPatrick comments on this fair-use sample from Buster Olney's blog.

Who knows why stuff is written, Pirates GM Dave Littlefield says, of the perception that he's too difficult to deal with. By the way: I hear that from executives around baseball a lot. What they say is that Littlefield asks for too much at the outset of negotiations -- say, the best possible prospects for second-tier or third-tier major-league talent -- and gives you no foundation from which to begin serious trade talks. But, hey, every GM has his own distinct style.

There is something of an echo chamber effect in the way trade rumors are circulated. One site can publish some totally bullshit, pulled-out-of-my-ass rumor and we find it circulating through the national media on equal footing with the work of more careful reporters from more reputable outlets. That is true. But this, what Olney just wrote, this is more or less what I expected to read in response to Dejan Kovacevic's report containing DL interview on the subject. We've been hearing tales of DL's juvenile trading abilities for years now.

I can wait until August 1 to pass a judgment on his work this month. He has an opportunity to do good for the franchise. And by "for the franchise," I mean, for the long-term winning prospects of the franchise. This is not at all the same thing as the long-term financial health of the ownership group.

Money wasted is money wasted; here's to hoping Littlefield gets no love for money saved. Let his work be evaluated solely on its ability to help the team win games now and next year. This isn't personal. This is about the franchise.

And as I just said, I think he has an opportunity to do good. He's human; he can learn from his mistakes.

For the team's sake, I hope he does well. I will be the first to cheer him if he does.