I know I always complain that the turkey sucks on Thanksgiving at 5 AM before it’s cooked

If it’s OK to pitch Capps the ninth and 10th, why isn’t it OK to pitch Capps the eighth and ninth, when he might have HELD a lead rather than maintaining a tie? He was throwing serious gas tonight, touched 96 one time at least, guess you can air it out when you haven’t been needed for a week.

This article is about #1 Cain will have the biggest impact of any of the players drafted. He was one of the top 20 players in the entire draft.

who else, i meant?
and any kind of preference ordering?

i know inman, heller, den dekker are all out there, but whats the pedigree/probabilities on those guys making it?

But Ogden papers have ALWAYS been cheap, the state of the economy hasn’t mattered a whit.

I’ve written a book on newspapers so I know the state of the industry today (and was a former journalist). But Nutting is in his own league for cheapness. I have one former colleague who has no health insurance and works at a mall to pay a student loan. Meanwhile, Fortune has documented the ridiculous profits that Nutting has made with the Pirates.

As for as the Rooneys being cheap, yes, that allegation was made in the past decade. But they spent nearly to the cap every year. Now were they cheap 40 years ago? Yes.

Only problem: You are talking of the old days with the Steelers. When is the last year they haven’t spent nearly to the cap? I’ll take Nutting spending the same as teams in comparable markets. I could care less where he spends it: minor leagues, international signings, major league roster.

And I have no problem with him making a profit. But a $10 million to $25 million profit? Yes, that seems a bit much.

I’d like to see data that Nutting spends “about what an average owner spends.” Of course, Nutting doesn’t open his books so we’ll never know. But the independent analyses that have been done show him making en enormous profit and not spending anywhere near teams in comparable markets.

But your points on the draft and Latin America, I think are well stated.

I have a great deal of confidence in NH and FC. The issue will become whether they are allowed to do their jobs when the payroll goes up. I agree on Cutch. The organization needs to get that deal done.

Also, the team needs to continue to draft and sign top talents. As you note, what if Strasburg goes back in the draft? Will the team put extra money into the draft if he falls to them? Will it pursue other top talents?

I guess the questions I’d add are:

1. Will the team compete internationally for the top players? Not just make an offer. But actually sign them.

2. Will the team raise the first-year-player budget if a top talent is there?

3. Will the team pursue smart free agents? Example: Juan Rivera last year. No, I don’t mean the idiotic, over-the-hill signings of the past. But there are mid-level guys who could add to the team available in free agency nearly every winter.

4. How will the team use this year’s payroll savings? I laugh every time I heard a Pirate administrator say the major league payroll and draft budget come from different line items. Okay. But you now have a surplus of nearly $8 million. What are you going to do with it?

I’m much more optimistic with the team since the days of Jim Leyland. But, yes, I am incredibly skeptical of Bob Nutting.

If you have to go back to Connie Mack to make a point, you should examine your thesis.

I have zero problem with the Nuttings making a profit.

I have an enormous problem with the team not openings its books while the public pays for a new stadium. Meanwhile, former employees and magazine investigations show them making a ridiculous profit.

Combine that with how the Nutting family runs their own business ventures, and I’m very skeptical.

But I’m still surprised that we didn’t get the Cubs’ rights to him in the Grabow/Gorzo deal.

Good day.

NH’s crusade against lefties continues….

sprained index finger on his pitching hand.

http://bucsbits.mlblogs.com/archives/2009/08/rhp_chris_bootcheck_also_joini.html

Or it means they know they aren’t going to come to an agreement with ZVR and they reallocated some of that money to make sure they got Cain. I mean, if he’s asking for $2 million+ (for example) I could see NH making the arguement that he’s just not worth that sum, end of story.

thats why

Yeah, Nutting has insisted that the Pirates go above slot since he was a minority owner. Get the best player, regardless of cost. Right.

When I look back at his involvement with the Pirates, he never said anything as KM and DL destroyed the minor league system with cheap slot picks. He never advocated going over slot.

Oh my gosh, in two years, he has increased the first-year-player draft budget to nearly $10 million and signed a handful of picks over slot.

Meanwhile, he is saving $8 million on the major league roster this year.

If you think Nutting is a big spender and will open up the checkbook when the team gets better, I think you are going to be pretty disappointed.

and everyone was making a big deal about the other kid signing for $350K and it being $125K over slot. What is slot for 235th pick?

Here

if we say 2.1 total to Cain + Dodson, we are at 7.16 M

Approx 3M left… i dont know if they will go beyond say 1.3-1.5 for ZVR, if they go 2, that gives them a max of 2 more high-upside picks, maybe 3. if they get him for 1.5, maybe 5 more… dont know… i d still say get him maybe till about 1.8, and see how you can spread the remaining 1 M

Awesome.

although i couldnt find a link to confirm/cross-check!

and this was basically why i cam to this thread…

BA sounds like a reliable source- buccoben, if its possible, could you post the link?