NLCS Game 7: Cardinals vs. ex-Pirate

This might be a good one. What's the over/under on first-inning baserunners?

I'll take the under if it's three.

Dave Wannstedt a Steeler?

Profootballtalk.com speculates that a no-playoffs season for your 2006 Pittsburgh Steelers would result in a new coach. The candidates, they guess, would be Grimm, Whisenhunt, Wannstedt, and the obligatory "Rooney Rule" minority candidate. FWIW.

Ollie to start tonight

It's hard not to root for Oliver Perez as he starts Game 7 of the NLCS for the Mets tonight. Wow, and good luck with that.

Cut blocks

On Sunday the Steelers D will not only have to chase Ron Mexico around, but will have to do so while avoiding those dirty dangerous cut blocks. The NYT has a recent story on the Falcons and their unusual run-blocking plan. Whatever consultant Alex Gibbs has been teaching the OL, it's been working, as the Falcons lead the NFL with an obscene average team rushing of 232 yds/game. Starting G Matt Lehr was just suspended for steroids, so Tyson Clabo will make his NFL debut. This after Vick was sacked 7 times last week, so expect our fearless Samoan warrior to chop some heads.

Week 7 underdogs

I'm in a SU pool that requires 3+ underdogs each week. So I hunt them down. Today I like Carolina. Cincinnati should not be favored in that one. That team looked terrible--I mean bad--on Sunday, and I don't see how they turn that around in time for Carolina.

But what do I know? I'm hitting a buck-fifty or something.

Any other dogs to recommend?

No slots for the Nutting family

Bill Toland reports for the Post-Gazette. Here's another story link, from a ski site, with pictures.

The quick summary is the Nuttings could not waltz around the various laws conspiring to prohibit a MLB team owner from owning a casino in Pennsylvania. So the Nuttings just made a potentially bad financial gamble. So now they depend, perhaps, more heavily on the profits taken from the operation of the baseball club.

Season recap: marketing

The on-field product was never a priority for the 2006 Bucs. So why should reviewing the players' mostly sorry performances be our priority, especially in another 95 loss year in which Ryan Vogelsong led the team in OPS? Instead the recaps begin with the most important facet of Pirates baseball: the marketing department.

The unveiling of the utterly meaningless "We will" was met with immediate mockery. "We will ... what?," we all asked. We will ... lose 95 games again? embarass ourselves and our fan base again? get lucky in the second half? make money hand over fist? pocket the revenue sharing? inexplicably extend DL's contract? I never would have guessed the answers were "persevere", "entertain", and "have fun", so this goes down as a big whiff for marketing in my book.

Moving on, we have the musician commercials. We were promised a KISS commercial. I never heard or saw one, so I'm provisionally marking this down as a lie. We will NOT lick it up. Despite this whiff, Rowdy and I both thought the John Lee Hooker ad kicked ass.

Moving on (and quickly, before I vomit again), the All-Star Game ballot box stuffing and poetry reading of Brownie were positively nauseating. Some didn't like the punk band.

Most importantly, I blame the marketing department for my personal low point of the season. This came when listening to the KDKA broadcast of a second half game at work with my headphones on. Lanny was plugging Pup Night to outrageous lengths. "For 20 dollars, you and your dog can watch the Pirates battle the Cubs!" In this context, he began summarizing all of the players' dogs and at one point delivered this haymaker to my eardrums: "Jeromy Burnitz has a Maltese named Fluffy. Jose Hernandez has a bulldog named Brad Pitt." Blood immediately began pouring out of all five of my cranial orifices, as I tore off my headphones, rent my garments, clutched my head, and reeled from the sickening pain.

Marketing department grade = F.

Samoan warriors

They will destroy you.

Little ball of muscle

EB reports on the emergence of the running game. With 5 TDs through 5 games, Willie's on track to surpass Franco's 1976 Steelers' single season rushing TD record of 14. Meanwhile, Najeh has solidified the #2 role.

Suddenly, the worries about the Steelers' running game without Bettis and with an ineffective Staley walking the sideline in sweats every game do not seem as acute today.

Steelers win big

Happy day.

NLCS Game 4: Ex-Pirate at Cardinals

Oliver Perez vs. Anthony Reyes at 8:15 PM EDT. Ollie bumaye!

NFL Week 6: Chiefs at Steelers

Game on at 4:15pm. As Bradshaw just said on the TV, the Steelers will turn this around. I'm not sure it happens today. But it will happen.

... UPDATE ... it will happen today.

Pirate-ization of the Reds

John Fay reports for the Cincinnati Enquirer that the Reds plan to re-build their team around high batting average and good defense.

So their best player, Adam Dunn, will be the first to go.

Stick with the man

Ed Bouchette argues that the idea of benching Ben for Batch is crazy talk:

This is the franchise quarterback the Steelers have been awaiting for a generation. He got off to the best two-year start of any quarterback in history, both in his own success and his team's. If you go by passer ratings, his first two seasons are the top two in Steelers history. You don't throw that away because of a three-game losing streak in which Roethlisberger did not play well.

... [Rowdy] Bouchette is right on the main point, but this argument from stats is bogus. Ben had a killer passer rating his first two seasons not because he was Dan Marino or John Elway, but because the Steelers installed a very conservative offense for him to manage. In his first season, he was only looking at one half of the field on all the passing plays. The entire team and coaching staff conspired to protect him and pad up those stats. He did not win those games so much as he managed not to lose them.

So to argue that Ben deserves to start because of the stats he accumulated on those teams with those offensive strategies is not unlike arguing that a six-year-old should start in the Tour de France because he was the greatest biker ever on training wheels.

Ben is and has looked like a third-year quarterback. He has struggled more this year than the previous two because his supporting cast has not played as well as they did when they regarded him a child who needed every advantage they could squeeze from the playbook.

When the Steelers go back to seeing Ben for what he is, then perhaps they can go back to having the success they had with him.

Charlie Batch is no long-term option. Like Tommy Maddox or Mike Tomczak, Batch is the kind of player who can put in a fantastic emergency start here or there. Unlike Ben, he is not a player capable of growing into a Dan Marino or a John Elway.

All hail the Tigers

Rowdy Jr. and I enjoyed that game tonight. He calls it "bat-a-ball," not baseball, and wants every batter to hit the ball "high, high, high."

Now the Mets and Cardinals are on, and both these teams look pretty mediocre. The Mets start Oliver Perez tomorrow. I am looking forward to seeing what he can do now in a playoff atmosphere. Not too many people expect much, as that NY Post article by Joel Sherman suggests. Maybe Ollie can surprise them all.

Ex-Pirates win!

All hail the skipper!

Kill, kill, kill

Right guard Kendall Simmons gave himself frostbite while watching MNF and will miss the KC game. Starting in his place will be Chris Kemoeatu, Gerry Dulac reports:

Said Kemoeatu, "It's hard for a young guy going out there because all you think is 'kill, kill, kill,' instead of playing smart. Kendall talked to me about that and I think that helped me out a lot."

All hail blman37!

For the 10-4 ATS, earning Week 5 swami honors. I tread water, one game below .500 at 36-38. Rowdy, now at .432, continues his limbo towards the Littlefield Line (.431). Still time to get in the pool.

Shortslef added

Josh Shortslef added to the 40-man roster. For comment, see Wilbur's analysis.

A team like the Pirates can't have too many relief pitchers, as Bones explains.

Nobel Peace prize for hangover-curing powers

News that the microloan dude won the Nobel Peace prize reminds me to plug Kiva.org, my favorite internet charity thing.

With this website, you can lend money to people far away through PayPal. They use it for six months or a year, then pay you back. Then you cash out or lend it again.

One of my favorite deserving entrepreneurs is Juan Quinto. All I know about him is that photo and the text of his loan application, which mentions that his restaurant specializes in "encebollado," which features an "incredible mix of ingredients, including albacore tuna, onions, yucca, and lime." This dish is a favorite in Ecuador for "its hangover-curing powers." All hail Juan Quinto! Have fun spending my money, Juan, and don't forget--I want it back.

No more internet gambling

President Bush is expected to sign Bill Frist's no-internet-gambling measure into law this afternoon.

All this should be good for slots. And this will be good for the Nuttings the children, whose parents will enjoy school property tax cuts.

We blame a lot of things on the Nuttings, but here I'm not serious. This looks more like one man's attempt to make himself a Presidential candidate.

What are you thinking about the gambling ban? Anyone adept at opening Swiss bank accounts? To me it's not clear what loopholes or workarounds exist or will work.

Chad Brown returns

In other news, Porter and Townsend hurt yesterday and Chad Brown signed to take Porter's place. Welcome back, Chad.

Finger pointing

Bob Trumpy and Mike Butler point at Ben. Jack Ham points at the wideouts. Ed Bouchette writes it down.

3-4 defense

The Charger defense looked a lot like the Steeler defense, and that got me wondering if the 3-4 has become more common. A few years ago, it was used by only a few teams and was generally discredited as sacrificing too much bulk and strength for speed. At nose tackle, a team needs a vending machine superman (reg. req. for "Nose tackle with big appetite getting recognition he deserves"; see bugmenot), and at linebacker, a team needs serious skills and leadership.

These teams, I'm pretty sure, mainly use the 3-4: Pittsburgh, San Diego, New England, Cleveland, Dallas, San Francisco, Miami (about half the time), and the New York Jets (adopted it this year). There are some good and some bad defenses. The league's worst defense, which plays a lot down in Texas, just switched to the 4-3 and failing to make the 3-4 work.

So now is it more common? Or do I only think that because I just watched the Chargers shred the Steelers offense, Steeler-style?

And what about the college level? Penn State has been moving toward the 3-4. Are many college teams doing this?

Dave Littlefield, heart surgeon

For most occupations in today's society, gross incompetence will quickly get you fired. Of course there are exceptions, including being GM of the Pittsburgh Pirates. What if Dave Littlefield had followed another path, and similarly failed? What if this utter failure was similarly tolerated? Today we explore one of these parallel universes...

Scene: an operating room. A horribly mangled corpse lies upon an operating table. DL, wearing full surgical gear, is covered in blood and surrounded by bustling assistants. The doors burst open, and the elderly Chief of Surgery, also in full surgical scrubs, enters.

Chief (rushing to corpse): What the hell is going on here?

DL: The motivation was simply that we felt like we could upgrade this man's organ systems like we've done in the past with many other patients.

Chief (inspecting corpse): He's dead. This man was to have an aortic valve replacement. Instead you ... implanted the GI tract of a cadaver into his thorax and arm to give him a second functional anus on his elbow?

DL: Whether it's media or his family, everybody has to realize that, if this man is going to get better, part of it is having a better backup GI tract. I don't want to undermine the fact that he's got a lousy heart. But, as far as other organs go, he's got good individual organs. Better days are definitely ahead for this man, and they're coming soon.

Chief (gravely): Dave, he's dead.

DL: There is often times a misperception of what kind of value certain vital signs have. That's always what's hard for people to understand that are kind of on the outside looking in. You always have in mind the fact that you've got to play the 'What if' game. What if this man's heart starts beating again?

Chief: You just killed a man! That's the third time today! Have you lost your damned mind?

DL: Not at all. This patient retains control over his new elbow sphincter for the next two years.

Chief: Goddamnit, Dave, are you listening to me? He's dead.

DL: In the future he'll need less of his heart just to a lesser degree. We'll maybe see in a couple years. His liver and lungs obviously are both doing a very nice job. His new second anus obviously has taken advantage of this new situation and done a solid job so far.

Chief: (sigh) Go wash up, Dave. Another patient's waiting in OR15.

Drilling Jeff Kent

Hilarious recap now at Deadspin of Scott Ostler's even-better San Francisco Chronicle report on the fantasy-driven deceptions of Tom Candiotti.

For sure I think that fantasy sports and the correlating increase in attention to individual achievement hurts teams like the Pirates. For sure I doubt that our players care enough about winning. For sure I think that the right manager, say Jim Leyland, would get much better results mainly by more effectively motivating these young men.

As much as I like Freddy Sanchez, which is a lot, my disenchantment with the Go Freddy Go stuff, which Bones mocked in mid-September, comes from my sense that the team and the fans were going to accept that consolation prize and feel good about a season that otherwise went as mind-numbingly bad as a season could possibly go.

Once a team starts the year 30-60, there is nothing that can redeem that failure.

That's just my opinion, I know, but the fact that it's not widely shared is something that I find discouraging and, possibly, a part of the self-perpetuating failure that grips the franchise.

Adam Dunn on the block?

Sean Casey fan extraordinaire Hal McCoy argues that the Reds should dump Adam Dunn.

Dunn is a left-handed monster who draws a ton of walks. Can you say "perfect fit" for Pittsburgh? Batting average is not a concern here. If Sanchez does not win the title again next year, maybe Ronny Paulino does.

I would gladly give up any of our starters for whatever remaining rights to Dunn the Reds have to offer.

Steelers lose

So how did that happen? Everything looked under control at the start of the second quarter. Then the Chargers like scored a shitload of points.

NFL week 5: Steelers at Bolts

Years ago they'd bill tonight's game as the Master (Marty Schottenheimer) against the Student (Bill Cowher). There was a stretch of time where the Steelers travelled to Kansas City every year for a Monday night game with such billing.

It would be appropriate tonight, too, because the coaching and the game plan will make the difference. Cowher and his staff once did wonders by limiting Roethlisberger's role in the offense. When not asked to do too much, he exceeded expectations.

The Super Bowl victory, the retirement of Jerome Bettis, and the whole near-death motocycle experience have elevated Roethlisberger's role on the team, perhaps to a point that's higher than a man of his age can handle. So I'd like to see him put back on that same short leash he once found so comfortable.

Chargers preview links

The PG's Gerry Dulac previews the matchup and LT and Michael Turner, while Ed Bouchette previews the much-anticipated Polamalu-Gates matchup. LT and Turner are averaging 5.1 and 7.4 yds/carry respectively. The Bolts' defense leads the league in allowing only 66 rushing yds/game, but has played the Raiders, Titans, and Ravens. The Bolts will wear the powder-blue throwback jerseys and are 3 to 3.5 point favorites. To win, Ben needs to overcome his brain [cramps] and make better and quicker decisions.

ALDS: Ex-Pirates 3, Yankees 1

Congratulations to Leyland, Casey, Mac, Lamont, Slaught, Belliard, and Slick for knocking out the hated Yanks. I want to see the Tigers run the table.

Colclough out for season

Neck problem. Undrafted rookie Anthony Madison gets promoted from the practice squad.

How Not to Drink Like a Champion Today

The Case of the Screeching Weasel.

Blonde Polamalu

KDKA reports on the homecoming queen of Mt. Pleasant High School.

Brad Lincoln shut down

Dejan Kovacevic reports some kind of oblique problem.

Dejan season-ending chat

Dejan has long last chat. On who does what in the front office:

"Littlefield decides what to do with the money allotted to him. The major-league payroll and development money -- not the same thing, necessarily -- are placed in his hands. Thus, if you have a complaint -- as so many do -- about why so much more of it goes toward one-year rentals rather than building up a sound developmental system, this is where to aim it."

So DL really has the decision over how much to invest in development? If so, this sounds like an inherently flawed system. Why should DL care to develop the Bucs beyond 2008, the year he will almost certainly be fired?

One of my favorite Bucs, Bob Walk, on the second half:

"As far as the winning now, I don't really think it means anything. I'm not convinced that finishing strong means anything. We can find examples, sure. The '87 team is one of them. But for every one we find, I can show you a team that did that, then did nothing the next year. Next year is next year. I don't think this will help us next season."

Daily chats begin Nov. 27th. All hail DK!

Season recaps: Pat and Charlie

If you haven't read them yet, Pat and Charlie both have excellent season recaps on how, exactly, this season sucked. Pat laments the questions unanswered and the regular Sisyphusian frustration of being a Pirates fan. Charlie highlights some explanations for what went wrong, gives some props for what went right, debunks the second half improvement, then ends with a depressing commentary on how the Bucs are built to win 65-75 and any deviation from that won't be by design and won't last until we have a change in the ownership group.

Willie Reid to play

Reid in, Colclough out, Dulac reports. Ricardo has a nerve problem in his neck that might keep him out for the year. Dulac also reports that Najeh is feeling better, and will back up #2 Verron. Looks like Duce will don the sweats again.

Addition by subtraction

Santos and Edwards removed from the 40-man roster. Santos, 29, posted a 5.70 ERA, 1.66 WHIP, and .321 BAA in 115.1 (!) IP.

All hail Puzzleman!

For the badass 11-3 ATS picks last week. Rowdy and I are both stinking up the pool, which still has room, so come on in. Rowdy's .433 is flirting with the Littlefield line (.431).

HW preseason predictions: Burnitz botulism

Moving on to the second and third parts of the preseason poll, I admit to crapping my pants with the Reds-in-the-cellar prediction. In my defense I was in good company, and at least was right about the Bucs not finishing in the basement.

As for the other predictions, perhaps Vlad was the most prescient with: "Jeromy Burnitz will go over like a can full of botulism". For $6 million, Burnitz put up an ungodly .230/.289/.422 with 74 Ks in 313 ABs. Symptoms of botulism completely overlap with those induced by the 2006 Bucs and include: difficulty speaking, facial weakness, double vision, trouble breathing, nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, and paralysis. Note to DL: to prevent botulism, "Avoid eating preserved food if its container is bulging or if the food smells spoiled".

HW preseason predictions: 67-95

Beginning with my 75-win preseason prediction, the win total predictions for the 2006 Bucs in the HW Poll were:
75, 70, 75, 81, 69, 79, 80, 76, 73, <72, 78, 78, 71, 82, 82, 81, 82, 80, 76, 80, 85, 112, 78, 67, 82, 2.
Of 26 predictions, two aren't serious (erh's funny 2 and Rowdy's 112), leaving 22 of 24 predicting over 67 wins. Long lost ex-fan Angry Bucco edged Randy's vague <72 by nailing the 67-95. That leaves over 90% of us who underestimated DL's uncanny ability to field losing teams.

Pirates stay the course

McClatchy going nowhere.

McClatchy fires DL then resigns

Well he freaking should already, right? Kevin, to help make today as easy as possible, I've taken the liberty of writing your resignation speech:

"Good afternoon, Pirates fans. For years you have debated whether my heart is filled with evil, stupidity, or amply supplied with both. If consciously subjecting others to shame and misery for personal monetary gain is "evil", then I guess I've been evil. If having no long-term plan for a contending team and inexplicably extending the contract of an established failure GM is "stupid", then I guess I've been that too. If fielding a sub-.500 team all 11 years I've been on the job is "losing", then I guess that makes me an evil, stupid, loser. And a damn good one at that. I stand before you today as an accomplished loser, and for that, I blush with shame. However, by admitting these shortcomings and accepting the fact that I'm not cut out for this job, today I make the first steps towards regaining my freedom, pride, and membership in the human race. My dignity can no longer be bought and I hereby resign.

My last act as CEO is the immediate dismissal of Dave Littlefield. The only thing Dave has won since infecting the organization with his record-setting ineptitude is a Worst G.M. trophy. Dave bowled over your hopes like Wiggy. Then he kicked off your helmet and stomped on your head. For that I'm truly sorry. My final act as CEO ensures this will never happen again. I look forward to winning baseball returning to Pittsburgh soon."

Simple as ABC

Ed Bouchette spells out a simple plan in today's chat.

Season recap by DK

The PG's Dejan Kovacevic weighs in with season-ending grades, highlights and lowlights, and analysis. The grades look fair to me. I'd downgrade Jack to a C-, as his .316 OBP and 18 errors for $4.9 million aren't "good". As for highlights, DK's second pick is my first: the May 27th game where Bay Wiggified Eric Munson to win the game in the 18th.

Season recap by Rowdy

All in all, the 2006 season just plain sucked.

Baseball radio of the future

I'm a radio guy, and I follow the Pirates much more through the radio than through the TV. So I was a bit sad to hear about no more KDKA. The Pirates will lose some of their reach with the switch to Clear Channel stations -- maybe -- not sure -- But with satellite and internet radio, it does not matter so much.

It's fun to listen to the games from both sides of the press box. The other team's announcers speak more openly and unguardedly about the performance of our players. You need the satellite service or MLB audio to do this, of course. And these things should be easier or more ubiquitous over the next few years. Already I possess the intense technical ability required to stream the living room computer's MLB audio through my state-of-the-art home theater system. Soon enough everyone will be in on the secret.

When MLB and the NFL get on the same satellite radio service, I'm there. And not a minute sooner. There's no way I'll pay for two services and have two clock radios or whatever pieces of crap it is you buy to receive the signal.

In the meantime, MLB audio is OK but the insulting low quality (12 kbps) of the audio feeds infuriates me often. It can be hard to tell if you are listening to Lanny or Greg. The audio quality is that bad, and there's no excuse for it.

They are really shooting themselves in the foot with this shit-for-quality audio service they are selling. Click through iTunes and you see that even the blues stations that crank out tunes with grandpa on the washboard and grandma on the tin can, even those stations offer 32 kbps. No talk stations go lower than 16 kbps, and they don't have the bat cracking and the mitt pounding and the beer man yelling as background. You don't have to be a blind man to observe that one of the great things about the game is the panorama of sound. MLB could do a much better job of miking the game and broadcasting it themselves. I'd pay a lot more for a service that provided something like "high-definition" sound. Maybe we all would.

The sound might be that good on the TV broadcasts, but I'm a working man, and I do not have time to sit on my ass and watch many games. If I'm not looking at the TV, I'd rather have it on the radio since, when they are doing their job, they explain what you are not seeing while you listen and do whatever it is you need to be doing.

Chat

Dejan Kovacevic did one recently.

Game 162: Freddy wins batting title

All hail Freddy, who won the NL batting title the best possible way. The Marlins put Miguel Cabrera in the lead-off spot to better his chances of catching the Rake. No luck for Miguel with that. Freddy started for the Pirates, and he singled in his first two at-bats. He finishes the year at .344.

Go Freddy go

They won a game yeah whatever. Dejan Kovacevic asks:

Despite the standing, chanting support of 35,514 with each of his four at-bats, [Freddy] went hitless -- all against Cincinnati starter Bronson Arroyo -- to drop his National League-leading average to .343. That left him three points ahead of the Florida Marlins' Miguel Cabrera, who stayed at .340 by going 1 for 4 in Miami.

What it means: Sanchez remains in control, but not by much.

If, for example, he were to go 0 for 4 in the season finale today, his average would drop to .340. Cabrera probably could beat him, then, by getting two hits.

Sounds scary. But consider this, too: If Sanchez simply sat out, Cabrera would need to have a monster day -- 4 for 4, or 4 for 5 -- to pass him.

How will manager Jim Tracy handle it?

How would you handle it? I would start him and consider benching him if (1) he looked lost at the plate (i.e., if I thought someone else on the bench could do a better job) and (2) he would clinch the batting title with a shower. That said, if Freddy can't handle tomorrow with grace and concentration and ability, what good could he be in, say, a playoff game?

In 1991, Terry Pendleton took the final day of the season off with a .319 batting average. Hal Morris would have to go 4-for-4 to finish at .320. Morris led off for the first time all season and got three hits in his first three at-bats. He lined out in the last at-bat.

Pendleton was excused from playing because the Braves had clinched the division title the night before.

That's a good excuse. No one should be asked to further claim a batting title by playing an exhibition game while still drunk or hung over from a division-clinching party.

Tracy has no such excuse. And if Freddy sits tomorrow, Cabrera will get three hits in his first three at-bats. You know it, I know it, maybe Jim Tracy knows it. Honors are for the honorable. Pendleton had an honorable excuse, and you look at what happened to him. The Pirates did not clinch the division tonight. Tomorrow's just another day. Freddy should go to sleep and dream of singles and doubles jumping the middle-infielder's glove.

One last thing about Pendleton's batting title. It may have played a role in his edging out some Pirate for the 1991 MVP award.

Game 161: Reds at Pirates

The disrespectful Bronson Arroyo and McLeary at seven.

Game 160: Reds at Pirates

Harang and Duke at seven.

500 people watch Sanchez go 0-for-4

Dejan Kovacevic recaps loss number seven in a row.

Tracy continues to start Sanchez against the toughest right-handers. Since the Pirates have no better option at third, I applaud the effort to play like it matters and start the best guys.

If the batting title was the primary thing right now, Tracy could be sitting him against tougher right-handed starters.

Willie Reid

They have to play Willie Reid. If the wideouts were better as a group, maybe then they don't have to dress five, as Ed Bouchette describes the problem.

Doctor said nothing's wrong with my brain

The quarterback gets far too much credit or blame for the numbers he produces on the field. Ben could play better, yes, but so could the whole team around him. Had his wideouts not dropped so many passes, for example, then no one is asking him if there is something wrong with his brain this week.

Steelers anthem updated

What a relief. I was losing a lot of sleep over that.

Definitely growing

Dejan details the Bucs' second-half anemia. Tracy points out that the glass usually has a few drops in it:

"We are definitely growing," Tracy said. "On most days, when you look up there, you'll see hits on the board. And baserunners."

Other days, when you look up there, you'll see the basement again.

Brain [cramps]

Ben answers question from Ed Bouchette about whether head trauma was affecting his play:

"It's hard to say. The doctor said nothing's wrong with my brain, and it seems like I'm having brain [cramps] out there. It's just one of those things, you make mistakes and you learn from it and, hopefully, I will learn quickly from those mistakes."

I was confused until I learned that Ben just dropped the f-word and the PG censored him. First link also reports that Cowher told Ben to stop [cramping] around in the pocket and run every now and then.

Game 159: Astros at Pirates

Oswalt, Gorzelanny, and rain.

Game 158: Astros at Pirates

Hirsch and Chacon at seven. The Pirates have another chance to play spoiler here. The Astros have won seven straight, the Cardinals have lost seven straight, and suddenly the NL Central title appears to possibly be in play. The Cards still have about a four-in-five chance of taking the title, but what were they odds the Astros would make up seven games in seven games? A win tonight could really hurt the Astros' still-feeble hopes.

Bench Roethlisberger

Ed Bouchette deals with that question.

A few more games at this level, and Ben starts hearing questions about his sexuality.

Hello Spikes, goodbye Crosscutters

The Pirates appear to have partnered with the State College low A minor-league team, the Altoona Mirror reports. Williamsport has become a Phillies affiliate.

Castillo, McClatchy may be going places

Tracy's "big, powerful-looking big man" may be moving off second base, and nobody knows where McClatchy will be at the end of the season, Paul Meyer reports.

Game 157: Astros at Pirates

Pettitte vs. Snell at 7 EDT. Only 6 games left, but many more questions remain. Will Ian win 15? Will Freddy win the batting title? Will the Bucs win 2 more games to clinch their first post-ASB winning record since 1992? Will the Bucs win 3 games to best last year's limp total of 67 wins? Will the Astros catch the Cards? Will the Bucs sink below the Cubs? Would Bob Nutting kick a puppy for a nickel?

Dejan chat

Turns out the Nuttings might not even exist. This and more in today's chat between Dejan and the many different aliases of Graham Koonce.

The real problem

Pat at WHYGAVS has a nice piece reminding us of the real problem: the black-hearted moneygrubbing Nuttings. I'm with Pat here. The losing starts at the top. Shit flows downhill.

Pat advances an interesting theory here that I hadn't considered: shrewd DL intentionally hired the moronic Tracy to make himself look smart.

WTM's Player Profiles

Wilbur has updated and reorganized his Pirate Player Profiles, which summarize the farm system depth, or lack thereof, chart. Link via Bucs Dugout. Raise your glass for the time spent putting this invaluable resource together and the elevated pain tolerance this must have required: All hail Wilbur!

All hail Psyco's Dirt!

For going 11-3 in week 3 and now leading the HW free NFL pick 'em pool with a .630 ATS. Get in the pool.

NFL Week 3 grades

Gerry Dulac hands out grades for the Cincy game. Cowher and the special teams both get F's. I'd upgrade the OL and DL grades to A's and downgrade Ben and his 30.7 passer rating to a D. Who's to blame more, Cowher for the personnel decisions and play-calling or the players for repeated failure to execute?

Cox invited back

Third base coach Jeff Cox has been invited back by DL, Dejan reports. Cox has more than earned the extension, as he's been nearly perfect this year. In related news, DL invited back all the other coaches. All hail our 2007 third base coach!

Cota

Ed Eagle catches up with Cota before he's non-tendered. In 99 ABs this year, Cota has 15 hits, including 1 double. Cota went .192/.250/.202 and his .452 OPS is worst for 2006 position player Pirates having more than 2 ABs and not named Mike Edwards. Good luck Humberto.

Game 156: Pirates at Padres

McCleary vs. Hensley just underway. Two on in the top of the first. The Rake is resting today.

NFL Week 3: Bengals at Steelers

Here we go. Ben and the OL look not so feverish on the opening drive. Big 36-yard Cedrick Wilson gainer sets up Fast Willie up the gut for the score! Steelers 7, Bengals 0.

...Carson recovers from the fumble, fumble, INT sequence to drive 97 yds and hit Henry. Steelers 7, Bengals 7.

...Halftime. First half stats for Henry: 2 TDs, 0 arrests. Bengals 14, Steelers 7.

...Reed FG. Ryan Clark introduces Henry to HUGH! then Willie TD and excessive celebration. Steelers 17, Bengals 14.

...Ugh. Sloppy finish. Ben underthrown INT, Colclough and Haynes fumbles, another Ben INT. Steelers didn't deserve to win this one but in many ways looked better than they did on Monday. Bengals 28, Steelers 20.

Bengals

Huge game today. I expect it to be a physical, hard-fought game as the Bengals attempt to avenge the Lee Harvey von Oelhoffen loss. The PG's Gerry Dulac breaks down today's game and profiles the Ike vs. CJ matchup. In three previous games, Ike has contained CJ. Last week, CJ had his clock cleaned but might have regained his senses by now ... HUGH! (link of post-head-trauma-CJ clip via Deadspin). In addition to CJ and TJ, the Steelers have to worry about four-time loser Chris Henry and Kelley Washington. Most importantly, must stop Rudi.

McClatchy, Top Goat

Congratulations to Kevin McClatchy for winning a spot on the Top 10 Goats of the 2006 MLB season list. Kevin is even listed before God, who hates the Cubs. Larry Dobrow bestows the honor:

Kevin McClatchy, Pittsburgh Pirates: Given some of the team's recent moves, the question is no longer whether Dave Littlefield is a noxiously turbo-awful general manager or merely a bad one; it's whether he suffers from some kind of cognitive/neurological impairment that prompts moves like Craig Wilson-for-Shawn Chacon. And yet he received a contract extension this year from McClatchy, whose tenure as Pirates owner includes few highlights beyond hosting an All-Star Game that featured no salmonella outbreaks. Question: The buck stops where? Answer: Here, at McClatchy's nattily loafered feet.

Game 155: Pirates at Padres

Duke vs. Peavy at 10 EDT.

Dump Truck to play

Najeh will help Parker carry the load on Sunday, Gerry Dulac reports. Santonio's foot is feeling better, so we likely won't see Willie Reid just yet.

Happy stuff

Dejan deals with "happy stuff" and more in today's Q+A. I've been nervous about the recent talk about Luis Gonzalez, who I think would be a disaster of Burnitzian proportions. So I briefly got excited over this part:

"I have gotten no indication that the Pirates' plans have changed in the slightest from their stated intent to pursue a left-handed power bat who is young and under their control for several years (ambitious as it sounds) and a right-handed starter."

Then I remembered that DL is a bold-faced liar and to date has never enacted any kind of "plan".

Ollie

BBTF presents a fascinating analysis of Ollie's mechanics (link via WHYGAVS). It seems unlikely, but what if the 2007 NL All-Star team included Schmidt, Chris Young, Arroyo, and Ollie?

Game 154: Pirates at Padres

Gorzelanny vs. Chris Young at 10 EDT. The Padres lead the West by a half game. Trevor Hoffman is one save away from Lee Smith's career record. So far in Philly tonight, Cabrera is 2-for-2 and up to .342.

The Rake

Unlike Rowdy, I give a rat's ass about the batting title: I want to see Freddy win. Sure, BA is a misleading stat, and yes, individual accomplishments in no way atone for the overall misery that the 2006 Bucs and their 30-60 start have inflicted upon their fan base. My biggest worry about Freddy winning is that DL and the Nuttings will use the crown to distract attention away from their larger failures and instead successfully further their evil and greedy mission to extort money out of hapless Pirate fans. All that said, I'm pulling for the Rake, who now sits at .347 in the catbird seat.

Willie Reid

Willie Reid could be returning punts and kickoffs on Sunday, Ed Bouchette reports in his Daily Question. Santonio's foot is hurting. I was thoroughly unimpressed with Holmes and Colclough on Monday night and want to see what Reid can do.

Game 153: Pirates at Dodgers

Bucs trail 3-2 in the top of the 8th but have runners on the corners with one out. The Rake is 2-for-4.

The Ballad of X

Two drunk Mets fans have composed a moving folk song about Xavier Nady containing all kinds of details about the X-Man that you might not know (link via Deadspin).

Spoilers

Yar. The 35-27 has been fun, too.

Winter ball

Dejan Kovacevic reports some guys are going, others maybe not.

Also, Tracy will rig the rotation so Snell gets two more chances to set the single-season home runs-allowed record.

Game 152: Pirates at Dodgers

The season continues to wind down with the team out there on the west coast. There is only one more homestand, and I wonder if we won't see some more 50-degree temps for some of those games. Since this road trip may be their last chance to play spoiler, with Cincinnati and Houston falling away, that final homestand may be extra March-like. So here's to the Pirates keeping it real while they play a few more meaningful games.

Chacon and Maddux at ten.

Motivation more important than ability

Scientific American. Add that to the nurture vs. nature debate. Nurture wins! Do the Pirates need to "try harder" (or "try better")? Or do they need to be different people? Far too many people give the players a free pass. I mock the notion that they are getting 110% out of their God-limited abilities, that they are being all they can be. That's horseshit. The sycophancy displayed toward this collection of Losers disgusts me when sober. I don't give a rat's ass about a batting title in a season that started 30-60. Nothing atones for that. As much as I want to like the current Pirates, and as much as I have enjoyed the games of the last few days, they will have to win 32 of 60 at the start of season before I believe they've attained the dazzling heights of mediocrity. If it wasn't for beer, we wouldn't even be having this conversation about whether or not to expect the team to be mediocre in 2007.

FWIW, once upon a time, Bones and I were decent chess players. And I was the master of the Latvian Gambit. Hi-ya! Take that! Bones was powerless against 2. ... f5!!

2007: Bucs play .500?

Another fantastic win. All this winning vs. first place teams is intoxicating. Are the Bucs turning the corner? The Stats Geek thinks the Bucs aren't far from .500: "Many in the blogosphere think the Pirates are still pretty far from even a .500 team. I disagree." Maybe he's referring to the takes of Charlie and Pat on the second half stats. What are the odds that the 2007 Pirates break .500? More importantly, do the '07 or '08 Pirates stand a reasonable chance of contending?

True shame

One thing I'm more ashamed of than the Bucs' 14 year losing streak is that some idiot repeatedly objects in mostly all-CAPS to the overrepresentation of Negro League Buc statues at PNC and that these moronic racist screeds end up in the Stats Geek's chat. Is it really that no other questions are asked or is the PG choosing to publish this crap? Shouldn't the PG stop propagating this hateful garbage?

100.4

Ben's temperature Monday night was 100.4, not 104 as ESPN reported. I don't know if that makes me feel better or worse about the loss.

One thing that makes me feel better is watching John Henderson's pregame routine (link via Mondesi's House). Imagine what Ian Snell could do if the Bucs hired this guy to similarly inspire Ian before starts.

R.I.P. Syd Thrift

Pour some of whatever you're drinking out for the late great Syd Thrift. I'll remember Syd for the Tony Pena for Slick, Spanky, and Dunne trade, and for hiring Leyland. Syd never got the chance to GM the early '90s Buc teams that he resurrected/built with this trade, the trade for Drabek, etc, as Syd was let go after the 88 season. In the three years (86-88) that Thrift GMed, the Bucs went 64-98, 80-82, and 85-75, for a career Bucs GM mark of 229-255 (.473). (DL is now at 378-494 or .433). Thanks for the memories and rest in peace, Syd.

All hail POLABEAR34!

For going 12-4 ATS and the Week 2 HW Free Pick 'Em Pool victory. I treaded water with an 8-8 while Rowdy tanked with the 4-12. Still plenty of time to get in the pool.

Game 151: Pirates at Dodgers

Snell and Kuo, ten o'clock.

... one pitch, one home run allowed for Snell. He's now up to 29 allowed on the year ... the most since John Candelaria allowed 29 in 230 innings in his 20-win season back in the 1970s. On his career, Snell has pitched about 230 innings and allowed 36 home runs.

How about them Pirates?

Er, didja hear the Pirates swept the Mets this past weekend?

Not much to say about that football game. The Steelers are looking up at the Bengals and the Ravens, and they host a banged-up and always-whiny Cincinnati team next Sunday at one.

NFL week 2: Steelers at Jaguars

Keep an eye on Simmons/Faneca vs. Stroud/Henderson, as Gary Dulac explains.

Pirates sweep Mets

Yeah they did.

Game 150: Mets at Pirates

The Pirates will do their best to keep the Mets' champagne on ice. Maine and Duke at 1:35pm.

Mackowiak in center

Ozzie Guillen is big on this McClendon idea.