the PBC is still paying the $10 million to Morris. They let him go, he didn’t retire. If he would have retired, they would have been off the hook for the $10 million. Of the players traded, the salaries are pro-rated unless the teams that picked them up agreed to pay Pittsburgh the cash for April, May, June and July. Considering what they got back in player/prospects, I would say that Boston, NYY and LA didn’t pay Nutting for games played as Pirates.

Having said that, they might have cut $6 million off of the actual payroll for 2008, not $24.2 million dollars. I am not 100% on the numbers, just a guestimate based on the $$$ amounts listed above.

I’m not taking the Nutting side on this, just pointing out that the savings aren’t quite as high as one might think.

Nine of the current Pirates are arbitration eligible and I would expect raises to be higher than each is being paid now. It has been mentioned that the Pirates are looking at offering McLouth and Doumit contract extensions that would buy out at least one of their free agent years and give them raises ABOVE what they are making right now. If they want to keep Mientkiewicz and possibly Gomez, it might take a little more than what it cost them this season. As far as free agency goes, I really don’t see them kicking out any serious cash but who knows what they might do there. I can see the payroll increasing over the number previously stated ($24 million) but nowhere near where it was.

Maybe they will spend the extra money on scouting, player development and international signings as well as the draft? Or maybe they will spend it on a small island in the Caribbean known for fishing and the beaches? All that I know is they won’t give it to you and me, that’s for sure!

that it takes 1000 AB’s for a player to really figure out what it’s like playing in the major leagues. Very few prospects tear it up Evan Longoria style.

Your explanation of the high quality of pitchers faced by these guys is a good point that I had not considered and could be an explanation for poor performances of these three in addition to LaRoche’s injury. I realize new hitters have to adjust to MLB pitching just as the pitchers have to adjust to the styles of the new hitters and so I’m hopeful that our bats will adjust so we can see an improvement. However, I had hoped that at least one of the 3 would have started out hot just to give us some hope upon which to cling but that hasn’t happened.

At this point, I would be satisfied if management returned Gorzo to the rotation and sent Duke either to Indy or the bullpen. I’ve totally given up on him and never expect him to add anything to our team. He’s simply not a MLB pitcher and we must realize that fact. He has done nothing to prove me wrong. He simply gives up too many hits and does not register enough strikeouts all which tell me that he is neither capable of fooling anybody nor overpowering anybody. The league has him figured out. Stick a fork in him…he’s done.

Your comments are well thought out, reasonable, and suggest patience. GET OFF THE INTERNET PLZ! ;-)

Don’t always tell the whole story, but you are dead on. Every player has a different timetable, and you dont want to be the team that gave up on a guy too soon. To think that the Indians almost gave up on Cliff Lee before this year…

turns them around. There is no evidence that Duke can turn it around BUT there is no evidence that says he can’t either. Look at Jamie Moyer for christ’s sake! He sucked in his early years yet turned it around and still has a career at the age of 45. Left handers have some value that baseball people see that we don’t. Just because a player can’t make it in one organization doesn’t mean he won’t make it in another.

There is a difference between trading for prospects by selling high on a player, and trading a player who has struggled because you are giving up on him. The Pirates did not give up on Bay, or Nady but were selling high. The Indians almost traded Lee at a low point would have been giving up on him.

Duke’s 2.37 career minor league ERA is evidence that he could be a Major League starter. Teams become bad by poor scouting, drafting, and management decisions and not simply because they keet giving starts to a 25 year old with decent stuff who performed well in the minors. Pitchers with decent stuff sometimes “figure something out” like confidence, learning to pitch to contact, or add another pitch. I am not saying it will happen, but it could happen and its not like we are attempting to contend this year.

This may come as no surprise but I disagree with your assessment of Duke. I sincerely believe that he does not have the talent to pitch effectively in the MLB and needs to be sent down. Quite frankly, I don’t think that even Dave Duncan could resurrect Duke’s career because the talent just isn’t there for Duke to succeed. I’m upset that he’s taking the spot of someone else and I don’t care who that pitcher is as long as his name isn’t JVB because he isn’t as bad as Duke. Just look at the massive amount of hits Duke allows. Nobody can survive by giving up that many hits. He has to go and the sooner the better. I don’t even want him infecting our bullpen with his garbage pitches because somebody might accidently use him in a meaningful game (if we ever play in another one).

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