Was Littlefield Even Trying?
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by user Timothy Moreland(Bball3345)
Littlefield started off decent, not great, but decent in trading Sean Casey to the Tigers for a minor league reliever. Unfortunately, the reliever is 24-years-old and only in AA, but it seems as though he could throw valuable innings out of a major league pen. If nothing else, Littlefield got rid of the expensive Casey, instead of signing him to an extension.
Littlefield then followed up this deal with the not-so-surprising acquisition of Xavier Nady. I would like to know what the Pittsburgh front office sees in Nady that they like more than Craig Wilson. Nady has inferior on-base skills and less power than Wilson, as well as similar defensive problems. For those who are not familiar with how Pittsburgh has treated Wilson, let me enlighten you. They have been unwilling to give him a starting job for years, bringing in players such as Jeromy Burnitz, Reggie Sanders, Matt Stairs, Sean Casey, and Derek Bell to block him from playing regularly. As of late, he has sat the bench almost every night, watching Jose Hernandez(!) get more playing time. I hope that Nady does not have to face the same fate.
To acquire Nady, the Pirates gave up an old, semi-effective reliever in Roberto Hernandez and Oliver Perez. Shouldn't Hernandez have been enough? Did we have to get rid of a man who is in his early 20's and has a Cy-Young caliber season under his belt? Sure, Perez has been AWFUL this year, but it wouldn't have hurt to keep him in the minors, in case he regained his old form.
As expected, the Pirates traded away the right-hander Kip Wells. In return, they added a twenty-two year old reliever who could someday pitch at the major-league level.
To cap off the day, Littlefield made the worst move of them all, trading Craig Wilson for Shawn "My ERA is 7.00 again" Chacon. All they could get from an offensively above-average corner-outfielder was Shawn Chacon? I am not sure he deserves to even be on a major-league franchise. Did Littlefield hate Craig Wilson so much that he had to embarrass him like this? They should have just given Wilson to the Yankees for a Babe Ruth bobblehead doll.
Overall, the Pirates lost Roberto Hernandez, Oliver Perez, Sean Casey, Craig Wilson, and Kip Wells for two AA relievers, a lesser version of Wilson, and some financial flexibility to sign more over-the-hill players. In no way did these deals help the outlook for 2007 and beyond. On the plus side, Joe Randa and Jeromy Burnitz are still on the payroll... oh boy!
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Date
Tue 08/01/06, 6:28 am EST
