Thursday, June 04, 2009
By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pirates/
The Pirates have shipped away another All-Star, part of a long-recurring summer theme.
In a stunning move, the team last night traded Nate McLouth, their Gold Glove center fielder with 35 home runs the past two years, to the Atlanta Braves for three prospects -- outfielder Gorkys Hernandez and pitchers Jeff Locke and Charlie Morton -- none of whom will play in Pittsburgh immediately, maybe not for years in two cases.
Nate McLouth, right,is congratulated by third base coach Tony Beasley after hitting a first-inning solo-home run off Houston Astros pitcher Mike Hampton in a baseball game in Pittsburgh Sunday, May 31, 2009. (AP)
With the trade, the Pirates announced the immediate promotion of their top prospect, center fielder Andrew McCutchen, from Class AAA Indianapolis, perhaps the only aspect of this scenario that will placate a fan base certain to be furious again.
Management seemed braced for it.
"I know how it's going to be received back home," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said by phone from Bradenton, Fla., where the team is preparing for the amateur draft next week. "Believe me, it was the most difficult move I've made, but we believe it was the right baseball move, and we believe it firmly."
"I empathize with fans who don't like seeing a player like this go," team president Frank Coonelly said. "Our fans liked Nate McLouth, and they should have. But, for the Pirates, we need to be better than we are. We're out to win a championship. And, if we take advantage of trades like this, for three quality players, we're going to be there faster. I'm convinced we're a better organization now than 24 hours ago."
McLouth, 27, had a breakout 2008 in which he batted .276 with 26 home runs, 94 RBIs and 23 steals, all while becoming the Pirates' first Gold Glover since Andy Van Slyke in 1993. This season, his average was down to .256, but he still led the team with nine home runs and 34 RBIs.
In his final game Tuesday night, his sixth-inning double drove in the winning run to beat the New York Mets, 3-1, at PNC Park.
McLouth found out he was traded through a call from Huntington, shortly after 6 p.m., an hour after the Pirates and Mets were rained out.
"Obviously, I was surprised," McLouth said. "I owe a lot to the Pirates because they allowed me to establish myself as a big leaguer, spent 10 years of my life with them. I made a lot of good friends I'm going to miss, and the fans have always been great to me. But I understand this is part of the game and, now, I look forward to the next chapter of my career."
Huntington described the call as emotional for him.
"Brutal," he said. "I like Nate, and he's a heck of a baseball player. I really mean it when I say he's the type of player we want to build around. But we need a lot of good players. We need depth at all levels. We need a strong group coming behind this one."
Some of McLouth's teammates, predictably, were disappointed or outright angry. Several called each other last night, according to many accounts, and expressed dismay that management removed a key piece with the team at 24-28 -- despite missing cleanup-hitting catcher Ryan Doumit for two months -- and having some of the best pitching in Major League Baseball.
Shortstop Jack Wilson, the Pirates' most tenured and popular player, was among them.
"It's a shock to all of us," he said. "I've been talking to a lot of the guys, and this is not going to be viewed very highly in the clubhouse by any means. We're a team, and we were battling without our catcher, waiting for him to get back. To lose your best all-around player -- and that's what Nate was, in terms of power, speed and defense -- and to do it so early in the season ... that's going to be tough to get over."
Huntington sounded braced for that, too.
"Our players are probably going to have a difficult time understanding this, probably going to have a difficult time supporting this," he said. "But, as we know them to be professionals, we expect them to come out and continue to play hard."
The Pirates have traded top players all through their 16 consecutive losing seasons leading into this one, including 2008, the first year under new management, when outfielders Jason Bay and Xavier Nady and reliever Damaso Marte were dealt for prospects.
More could come this summer, too: Wilson, first baseman Adam LaRoche and reliever John Grabow, all eligible for free agency this fall, will be shopped for possible trades, Huntington has acknowledged. The only way that will not happen is if there are contract extensions, but none has been offered.
Part of what makes the trading of McLouth different is that management made signed him and two other young players -- Doumit and pitcher Paul Maholm -- to long-term extensions this past offseason. At the time, Coonelly described those as "our commitment to build a strong core."
McLouth's three-year extension guaranteed $15.75 million, including $3.5 million this year. The Pirates will save almost all of that money, as the three players coming in the trade and McCutchen will not make much more than the major league minimum -- $400,000 this year -- for the first three years they play in Pittsburgh.
"It's not about money," Coonelly said. "If we had any design on trading Nate before this, we certainly wouldn't have structured his contract as we did."
That was a reference to $1.5 million of McLouth's pay this year coming in an upfront signing bonus.
"We don't need to move money. We're fine financially. This was about baseball."
Another perception or possible reality: The Pirates might run the risk of not being taken seriously in future talks about internal extensions, as some players already began discussing last night.
"We don't believe that's going to be an issue," Huntington said. "Look, we believe in our core. We still do. But I've been consistent in saying that nobody is untouchable, not Doumit, not Maholm, not anyone. We're not going to be -- and we can't be -- a team that ties or own hands. We have to be open to making moves."
Two other teams previously inquired about McLouth in recent months, but the Pirates never shopped him, Coonelly and Huntington insisted. Atlanta made its first serious approach two weeks ago.
The Pirates failed to get any of the Braves' top three prospects, as rated annually by Baseball America: Hernandez was ranked No. 4, Locke No. 7 and Morton not at all. But the Braves had made clear that they would not trade either of their top two prospects -- pitcher Tommy Hanson or outfielder Jason Heyward -- even if it was one-for-one for McLouth.
The Pirates came back quickly with the three-player package they sought and stayed with it.
"The Braves' initial reaction was, 'No, we'll never do that,' and they tried to substitute other players," one team source said. "We got the package we wanted."
Hernandez, 21, is the player the Pirates coveted most of that group. He is a lithe 6 feet 1, 175 pounds, and was batting .316 for Class AA Mississippi with 11 doubles, 19 RBIs and 10 steals. He twice represented the Braves in the All-Star Futures Game.
"Gorkys is a dynamic player," Huntington said. "He's a quality athlete with plus speed and above-average defense. He has bat speed and the upside to develop into a productive table-setter."
Morton, 25, is the only one with a chance to reach Pittsburgh this season, and that can be expected to happen, according to a team source, within a month. He is 6 feet 4, right-handed, has a mid-90s fastball and has dominated Class AAA this season with a 7-2 record, 2.51 ERA, 55 strikeouts and 16 walks in 10 starts for Gwinnett.
His history is less enticing: The career ERA in the minors was 4.53 before this season, he habitually displayed poor control, and his 15 starts for Atlanta last season -- 4-8, 6.15 ERA, 48 strikeouts, 41 walks -- match that profile.
"Right now, Charlie is dominating his level," Huntington said. "And that began last year, actually."
Huntington added that the Pirates have paid especially close attention to Atlanta's system because of trade talks those teams had last year, regarding Bay.
Locke, a 21-year-old left-hander, was 1-4 with a 5.52 ERA for Class A Myrtle Beach, with 43 strikeouts and 26 walks.
"He has the frame and the athleticism to become a quality major league starter," Huntington said.
Morton will be assigned to Indianapolis, Hernandez to Class AA Altoona, Locke to high Class A Lynchburg.
McCutchen will make his long-awaited debut for the Pirates this afternoon against the Mets.
To clear space on the 40-man roster for McCutchen and Morton, the team transferred injured reliever Craig Hansen from the 15-disabled list to the 60-day.
Dejan Kovacevic can be reached at dkovacevic@post-gazette.com.
First published on June 4, 2009 at 12:00 am
McCutchen 'excited' about Pirates debut today
Top outfield prospect gets chance with trade of McLouth
Thursday, June 04, 2009
By Chuck Finder, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
http://www.post-gazette.com/pirates/
The latest in a long line of future Pirates meets the present this afternoon, when ballyhooed Andrew McCutchen arrives on the North Shore to make his major league splash and PNC Park debut.No pressure, either.
Just step into an outfield vacated by the trade of a Pirates-popular, All-Star, Gold-Glove-winning, middle-of-the-lineup, face-of-the-franchise guy.
"It caught me off guard that [Nate] McLouth was traded," McCutchen said of last night's surprising trade to Atlanta of a cornerstone Pirates player signed to a $15.75 million contract barely three months ago. "Good guy. Pretty much one of those guys who wanted to be the guy on that team. And they traded him to get me up there, which says a lot, that they have faith in me to make an impact. Hopefully, I can come in there and do well."
The Pirates' future banks on it.
In fact, general manager Neal Huntington discussed the McLouth trade with a vision in his eyes.
Your future Pirates outfield, Huntington related, looks to him like this: McCutchen, the speedy and athletic Gorkys Hernandez, one of the vital returns in yesterday's deal, plus power-hitting Jose Tabata. Of course, Hernandez was switched from Class AA venues, from Atlanta's Mississippi club to the Pirates' Altoona team -- to where Tabata is expected to soon return from a hamstring injury.
But where does McCutchen fit in the short term: His customary center field, where he seemingly was groomed as the next Andy Van Slyke there for the Pirates, or in left field so his former Class AAA Indianapolis pal Nyjer Morgan can move to center?
"I don't know where I'm going to be playing yet," said McCutchen, 22, the club's 11th-overall selection in the 2005 draft. "It doesn't matter to me. Shoot, I'm here now. As long as I'm playing. I'm good with that. I've been comfortable in both left and center."
More important than McCutchen's numbers of late in Indianapolis -- .303 batting average, .493 slugging percentage, 10 doubles, 8 triples, 4home runs, 20 RBIs and 10 stolen bases -- the Pirates brass saw progress from a prospect whom they designated to the minors this past spring assured that they would summon him to Pittsburgh in a couple of months.
"We certainly don't expect Andrew to step in and replace Nate McLouth's production from day one," Huntington said. "But as we've seen, Andrew has the potential to be one of those above-average players that we need to be successful as we go forward.
"The bunting needs some work. Stealing an impact base needs some work. Offensively, he's been much more consistent with his approach. He won't feel the weight of the world on his shoulders. He'll still drive the ball gap to gap, collect doubles and triples, draw walks, be an impact baserunner and play impact defense. If he just stays within himself, he has a chance to really do some exciting things.
"If we made this trade and not felt comfortable with Andrew coming up, we would have done something else. But we did feel Andrew was close enough. ... Not a finished product. Not going to step into the big leagues, hit .330 and win rookie of the year, probably. There may be some growing pains, which there is typically with every young player. But we felt like he progressed enough in his development path that he was ready to come in and be a regular player for us."
Hernandez plays center field, steals bases and sports traits similar to McCutchen, who poses more potential for power. Hernandez and pitchers Charlie Morton and Jeff Locke were part of the San Diego Padres' wish list when they discussed a Jake Peavey trade with Atlanta before it fell apart last winter. Still, Hernandez isn't Jason Heyward, the power-hitting minor leaguer who tops the Braves' list of top prospects, and he isn't boarding a 5:55 a.m. flight from Indianapolis bound for the big leagues, either.
Today is McCutchen's day, after roughly 500 minor league games. Huntington's future -- two-thirds of that outfield has arrived in trades over the past 11 months -- comes into focus. Chad Hermansen meets Kris Benson meets J.J. Davis meets Clint Johnson meets John VanBenschoten. Jason Kendall meets Sean Burnett meets Paul Maholm meets Neil Walker. First-round draftees have experienced varying success in the Pirates' past. But as Huntington and this administration often refrain, they aim to make this a new beginning.
"I'm real excited. I really haven't been able to sit back yet and think about it," McCutchen said. Of his debut today, he added: "I know it's going to be awesome, I know it's going to be a great feeling. Just bear down and bear with it. I'm sure if I do that, I'll do well."
NOTES -- Last night's Mets-Pirates rainout has been rescheduled for 12:35 p.m. July 2. ... Relievers Tyler Yates (elbow) and Donnie Veal (groin) could go on rehab assignments as soon as next week and Sunday.
Chuck Finder can be reached at cfinder@post-gazette.com.
First published on June 4, 2009 at 12:00 am
No comments:
Post a Comment