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Pirates of '97 retrospective

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Cousin Jeffrey, Jul 9, 2007.

  1. Oz

    Oz Well-Known Member

    That might change for both this offseason.
     
  2. playthrough

    playthrough Moderator Staff Member

    I hope there's a Cincinnati Post in nine years.
     
  3. outofplace

    outofplace Well-Known Member

    Two VERY different situations. Bonds was arguably the best player in the game when he left the Pirates as a free agent after the 1992 season (I know I would then and still do make that argument). They simply would not pay enough money to keep a player like that.

    The Pirates (foolishly) gave up on Wakefield after he struggled in the majors and minors in 1993 and '94.
     
  4. Smasher_Sloan

    Smasher_Sloan Active Member


    I remember the background story on that because they were suddenly double-teaming the Pirates on the road. The second guy was gathering stuff for a quickie book that would have been published if they had won the division. They didn't, so his notes were salvaged with a special section.
     
  5. Cousin Jeffrey

    Cousin Jeffrey Active Member

    Part 2 (or 3, whatever)

    http://postgazette.com/pg/07191/800560-63.stm

    Two things: Who remembered John Ericks started out as closer, and even existed in the first place, and how funny is it that "I only want to be with you" by Hootie was the "winning" song?
     
  6. Smasher_Sloan

    Smasher_Sloan Active Member


    The Pirates have screwed up a lot of things, but I have a hard time finding fault with them for releasing Wakefield after two awful years. He put 229 runners on base in 128 innings in one season. It's not like he had a bad month or even half a season, he was terrible for two years.

    It's to his credit that he rebounded, but it's not exactly like you could see that coming.
     
  7. outofplace

    outofplace Well-Known Member

    It's not like they had some big surplus of talent pushing him out of the way. He wasn't making much and one more year as the 5th starter at AAA wouldn't have killed them.

    Oliver Perez also had two pretty lousy seasons before they gave up on him. How's that working out so far this season? Chris Young apparently wasn't very good in their organization, either. Guess it's ok that they let him go, too.
     
  8. zagoshe

    zagoshe Well-Known Member

    Well -- I think the Oliver Perez trade -- given that it brought Xavier Nady to a team starving for offense and a competent right fielder -- has worked out just fine regardless of what Perez has done in New York.
     
  9. Smasher_Sloan

    Smasher_Sloan Active Member

    Perez and Wakefield situations aren't comparable at all. Perez was traded for Nady, who's hitting close to .300 and on pace for 25 to 30 home runs and 100 RBIs. I'd consider that fair value.

    Young and Wakefield aren't comparable because Young never pitched an inning in the MLs before he was traded. Wakefield had two years where he was absolutely awful in the major leagues.

    BTW, they may not have had a "surplus" of talent pushing Wakefield out of the way, but the '95 staff from which he was released included Denny Neagle, Jon Lieber and Esteban Loaiza, all of whom would go on to have 20-win seasons. Not exactly a tryout camp situation.
     
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