While in fact I think the Bucs have a bigger chance of surprising some people next year, they aren’t comparable to the 08 Rays, mainly because of the pitching. Garza, Kazmir, and Shields all have swing and miss stuff, and were all better than any of the starters the Bucs rotation will be comprised of next year. Not to mention Sonnanstine’s consistency last year, who could be portrayed as a poor man’s Zach Duke (not to say Duke is in the category where referring to another player as a “poor man’s” version of him is a complement, but you get the picture.) Also, the speed tandem of Upton and Crawford was and is far and away the best in the league. They combined for over 100 SB last year, and although McCutchen will only become stronger in the wheels department, I can’t see him stealing any more than 45 bases next year. And for MIlledge, IF he is in better shape next year, which I believe he will be, he probably tops out at around 30. Not to mention the fact that the Rays’ defense was much better than ours will be next year.

I will only point out that the Pirates have far less formidable hurdles in the division than did the Rays, who had to vault two legitimate powerhouses, and therefore don’t HAVE to be quite as good as the Rays to play with the Cards (and Cubs?). Doesn’t mean I think that’s what they should aim for, to be just as good as the Cards; I think they should aim to be better than the Yankees. Just means that in Fusili’s comparison, they can come up short in some of the matchups and still compete.

but we did not have the depth that they did that year. They had amazing pitching depth and had players like Cliff Floyd on the bench. They also had a very good defense that we will have a hard time matching with players like Alvarez at third and LaRoche at second. Even if our defense is average our pitching staff would have to be above average to match them in pitching. Posiotion by position we match up pretty well though.

C- If Doumit is healthy all year then we will crush them at this position offensively. I think Jaramillo will ventually get the call though and put up similar offensive and defensive numbers to Navarro.

1B- Garret Jones will hit for a better average, similar power, and will steal many more bases. Carlos Pena had better defense though.

2B- Andy LaRoche has the potential to be much better than Iwamura was offensively and defenseively.

SS- With work Cedeno could be better at defense, but will not hit for the contact Bartlett does.

3B- Alvarez will probably put up better numbers with the bat, but will not come close to Longoria on defense.

LF- Milledge could be Crawford’s equal with better power and less stolen bases.

CF- McCutchen In my opinion, much better than Upton. Ic ould see him going 300-20-35 next year with gold glove caliber defense. Almost MVP type numbers.

RF- Moss/Tabata will put up at least league average numbers with slightly less power. Tabata will come up late in the year after tearing up Triple A.

Roation
Ohlendorf
Duke
Lincoln
Maholm
Morton

That rotation will be solid 1-5 if no one gets hurt and we have the depth here to make up for an injury with Hart, Karstens, D. McCutchen, Dumatrait, Veal, Hacker, and possibly prospects like Rudy Owens and Tim Alderson. We have the potential to make a run next year if we get some things going for us.

Yes in the past management, and people involved with the Pirates (announcers) have always had the excuse that we don’t have the talent to compete. Well I think next year will be different; no one will have that excuse any more. I think we will have the talent maybe not to compete for a World Series title but to contend down the stretch for a Divisional title or Wild Card spot. Management has the players they want in place, and actually have a good bit of talent depth so if it does’nt happen for us next year I do not want to hear anyone saying that we don’t have the talent here….It’ll have to be on John Russells shoulders and the rest of the coaching staff…Our lineup is full of talented big league capable players that have excelled in all levels except the big leagues. It’s time for them to put it together next year…Atleast make progress for a contending 2011 team…Just think how many players in our lineup were former top prospects that were thought to be can’t miss guys by scouts throughout the league. Milledge (Mets top prospect at one time), Moss (Red Sox top prospect at one time), LaRoche (Dodgers top prospect at one time), Cedeno (Cubs top prospect at one time) etc…It’s not like these guys don’t have the talent to succeed. Its up to the managers to manage the game properly and get all the talent they can out of these players!!!

Jones isn’t even close to Pena. I know this is a hopeful comparison, but Jones produced for 1/2 a year…think about that and take a deep breath. Pena has always had K problems, but he’s produced for a much longer period than Jones. I think, because of his age, Jones might not be much more than a stop-gap solution (think Kevin Maas). As for Milledge, if he turns out to be as effective as Crawford (and I think this is very possible), that would be huge.
Contention next year is pretty much out of the question. Probably for 2011, too, although I think some strides will definitely be made over the next two years. If everything breaks right, maybe 2012 or 2013 we might see a playoff run.

Right you are grapes…next year could be worse than this year. These projections assume that about 10 players make a HUGE leap and become much more productive. Most of the upside guys have yet to hit the major league roster.
Frankly, I’m hopeful to see big strides in Capps and Doumit, so they can be flipped for something more productive.