John Mehno: Where's GM's Advise Coming From?

04/23/2006
Beaver County Times


Fox Sports Net Pittsburgh recently produced an hour-long documentary about the Pittsburgh Pirates' preparations for the 2006 season.

At least one of the behind-the-scenes looks in "Under The Lights: The Making of a Season" was revelatory.

General Manager Dave Littlefield was pondering personnel options on Dec. 2, 2005, as his staff prepared for baseball's annual winter meetings.Littlefield discussed a couple of players and solicited staff feedback. At one point, a voice is heard saying, "I like the idea of getting a right-handed bat..."

The speaker was Larry Silverman, the Pirates' vice president and general counsel. The in-house lawyer. According to his official Pirates biography, Silverman "assists in contract negotiations, arbitration cases and other player-related matters."

Silverman spent 21 years with a Pittsburgh law firm before joining the Pirates. He got his law degree from Duquesne.

Having an attorney on staff certainly makes sense, given the complexities of contracts and the amounts of money involved.

Just navigating baseball's complicated waiver procedures is a challenge, as former GM Larry Doughty showed several regimes ago.

There's no reason to believe that Silverman doesn't possess a sharp legal mind and isn't a valuable asset to the Pirates.

But how much does he know about baseball? While Littlefield may trust him implicitly on contract details, does the GM have any reason to hold just as much faith in a lawyer's thoughts on the need for a right-handed bat?

This is, after all, a little bigger than the average fantasy league.

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By the way, the rest of the "Under The Lights" special was reasonably entertaining.

It's interesting to see how much corporate hot air was pumped into creating the trivial "We Will" positioning statement. It must be a challenge to work in an environment that zealously manufactures importance for the inconsequential. There's a scene where the prospective 2006 bobbleheads are placed on a conference table for final approval. Looks like something out of NBC's "The Office."

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Craig Patrick took the fall for the Pittsburgh Penguins' dismal failure last week, as expected.

Patrick wasn't the only person in the organization who badly misread the new NHL landscape.

Sports Illustrated's Oct. 3, 2005, issue quotes Mario Lemieux as saying the Penguins are one of "five or six teams with a chance to win the Stanley Cup."

Some of those failed free agent signings bore Lemieux's fingerprints.

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The whole arena/slots issue has led to harsh feelings on both sides.

Spies report that some Grant Streeters who aren't fond of the Penguins' approach have a less-than-flattering nickname for team CEO Ken Sawyer.

Politics is nasty business.