Penguins sign Crosby to five-year extension

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

By Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Sidney Crosby had agreed to a $43.5 million contract extension a few hours earlier and was planning to celebrate in style.

Sidney Crosby style.

With his family. At his parents' home. In suburban Halifax.

Yaa-hoo.

"It's been a busy June," Crosby said. "So July will be a good month for me to train and relax."

And so the good times rolled in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia yesterday. Perhaps right up until the crack of dusk.

And what of the trappings associated with highly paid young athletes?

Mansions? Flashy cars? Gaudy jewelry?

Yeah, right.

Crosby is content being a renter at Mario Lemieux's house and driving a vehicle that's good in the snow and gets him to and from work. And the only piece of bling in which he seems interested is one that can't be bought in a store: A Stanley Cup ring.

That's why he accepted a deal that's worth an average of $8.7 million per season, below the maximum allowed by the NHL's collective bargaining agreement.

It caps individual salaries at 20 percent of the team's payroll ceiling, $50.3 million for the coming season. That means Crosby could have gotten at least $10.06 million, and probably more if he'd waited another year to open negotiations and the ceiling, as expected, rises again.

Instead, he opted to settle for less to give general manager Ray Shero a better chance of keeping the Penguins' nucleus of exceptional young talent intact.

"Any [financial] projections I'd done had Sidney at the max, because you never know what was going to happen," Shero said. "Sidney is interested in winning the Stanley Cup. He's interested in winning in Pittsburgh. This is a great first step, obviously."

Crosby said that "it was important to do what was right for everyone," but allowed that he had gotten at least one whimsical concession in the talks: A deal that translates to an annual salary-cap hit of $8.7 million.

Those digits are no coincidence. Not for a guy born on 8/7/87, who wears No. 87.

"I was right around that ballpark, so I said I might as well go 8.7," Crosby said. "That's my number, and it's always been that way. It's always been good to me, so, hopefully, maybe it will bring a little luck."

Crosby probably wouldn't have had to rely on good fortune to spend the next six seasons -- he still has a year remaining on his entry-level contract, so his new one doesn't take effect until the 2008-09 season -- with the Penguins but his agent, Pat Brisson, left nothing to chance.

He got Shero to agree to a no-trade clause that kicks in in 2012. That's the first year in which Crosby could have been eligible for unrestricted free agency, although that milestone has lost much of its significance now that he's signed through 2012-13.

"It was his strong desire to remain in Pittsburgh and it was obviously our strong desire to keep him here for as long as we can," Shero said.

Sometime before the deal struck yesterday expires, Crosby figures to set up housekeeping on his own here -- "I'll have to call Mario and see if I also get a five-year extension on the lease, too," he said, laughing -- but that might be one of the few things that changes for him.

His bank statements will look a bit different when the new contract comes into play, but his lifestyle probably won't. At least in the early going, it appears as if his money won't do anything more exotic than earn interest.

"When I signed my first contract, there were a few things I did [with the money]," Crosby said. "At this point, I'm really happy with things. To have the ability to maybe get something that you thought at another time you might not be able to get, it's nice to have that opportunity.

"But to be honest, right now, there's nothing that really comes to mind. I have a house here in Halifax that I couldn't be happier with and I think my parents are pretty comfortable, so it's something I'll have to see. But it's not really a huge issue right now."

And the largest one facing the Penguins since the deal to get the city its new multipurpose arena was crafted -- locking up the game's best player to a long-term contract -- is a nonissue now, too.

"We're very happy with it, and we're very happy that he's [with the Penguins] for at least six more years," Shero said. "And hopefully, his entire career."


NOTES -- When the NHL schedule is released today, it will include a Penguins game at Buffalo Jan. 1. For now, at least, that game is scheduled to be played at HSBC Arena, not in an outdoor venue. ... Crosby, who finished the 2006-07 season playing on a broken foot, resumed skating Monday and said "it felt good," although he acknowledged that "I haven't gotten hit with a puck there yet."


(Dave Molinari can be reached at DWMolinari@Yahoo.com.)

Sanchez ready for All-Star repeat

Second baseman in his second straight Midsummer Classic

By Justice B. Hill / MLB.com

07/09/2007 5:16 PM ET



SAN FRANCISCO -- The grand stage does not awe Freddy Sanchez.
Nor should it, for Sanchez has been on the grand stage before. He's a lot more comfortable there on his second go-round.

"But I don't know if you can ever get used to it, you know," he said Monday. "This is something that's a good experience."

The experience, of course, is making the National League All-Star team again. He was Cardinals manager Tony La Russa's choice to represent the Pirates at the ballgame Tuesday night in AT&T Park, and La Russa couldn't have made a much better pick.

Not that Sanchez would have lobbied one way or the other. He's quick to point out that the Pirates, a team on a roll as the first half ended, had other worthy choices, too. But he is flattered, nonetheless, that La Russa picked him.

"It's something very special," Sanchez says. "But it was very unexpected. I wasn't expecting it. I was kind of in shock when they told me. To have Tony La Russa, a Hall of Fame manager, pick you for his team is more special.

"It was kinda like, 'Wow, he wants me.'"

He says it feels good to go again, and the broad smile that Sanchez wears shows how happy he is to be on the national stage again. He belongs there.

Surveying the other stars on the podiums in the Westin St. Francis Hotel here, Sanchez looks as if he fits in well with the likes of Alfonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, Barry Bonds and Miguel Cabrera, the National League stars who sit closest to him.



Like Sanchez, none is a first-timer at this either. They are men with baseball pedigrees that any All-Star manager would like to have in his lineup. So is Sanchez. He looks forward to his second appearance.

"You kind of know what to expect a little bit more," he says. "Last year, I was just following Jason Bay around the whole time -- every day -- asking him what events I should go to, where I should be.

"This year, for the most part, I know where to go and how to get there."

Yet he's quick to say he's no old pro at this All-Star stuff. He's got much to learn about it, though the more he keeps hitting, the more likely he'll have three, four or more appearances here during his career.

For someone with his meager beginnings, the 29-year-old Sanchez can appreciate the two All-Star appearances he has. Just two years ago, he was little more than a utility player with the Pirates. But an injury to a teammate got him into their starting lineup and he hasn't been out of it since.

One batting title and two All-Star selections later, Sanchez has proved he's one of the most accomplished hitters in the game. He's also one of the most versatile players, as baseball fans will likely see if an ailing Cabrera can't play Tuesday night at third base.

La Russa can slide Sanchez, a second baseman mainly, into Cabrera's spot without hurting the chances of the National League to win.

"One of the variables that went into it was, maybe, that I can play three positions," said Sanchez of the selection. "Maybe other people are watching what I do and how I go about the game, and maybe they respect that and want me to be part of it."

He's glad he's here. He's glad that he can represent the Pirates and Pittsburgh, as he did last summer with Bay when the game was in PNC Park. But he hasn't let the selection inflate his opinion of himself. That's not how Freddy Sanchez operates.

"Just 'cause this is my second time, I don't feel like I definitely belong here or anything like that," he says. "But it feels good. It's definitely still jaw-dropping."

Justice B. Hill is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Pirates Notebook: Sanchez rediscovers All-Star form in field

Monday, July 09, 2007

By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

When Freddy Sanchez boarded a private plane last night to fly to San Francisco for the All-Star Game, he took along a bat that has delivered an inclining .296 average and a glove going in the same direction.

As Sanchez put it, "All around, I think things have gotten better."

That has been most evident with his offense.

His average was at .206 on April 29, but it has hovered steadily in the .280s or .290s since mid-May, largely because he has hit safely in 53 of his past 62 games.

Not the stuff of National League batting titles, but not bad.

The glove has been slower.

A sprained ligament in Sanchez's right knee, the result of a collision in spring training, cost him the opening week of the season and plenty of aches and limitations in his first month back. That, combined with being moved from third base to second for the first time in his career, brought a visible lack of range and fluidity in the field.

Now, as might have been best evidenced Thursday with his excellent stop of a grounder well to his left by the Milwaukee Brewers' Tony Graffanino, those issues seldom come up.

"No question, Freddy looks a lot more comfortable," manager Jim Tracy said. "He looks more sure of himself in going after the ball, in fielding the tough hops, even in going after those popups that are between him and the outfielder. And there's no question our double plays have been better."

The Pirates lead the National League with 99 double plays.

"Obviously, I wasn't able to get a lot of reps in the spring, so those reps came in the first month or two of the actual season," Sanchez said. "I feel like I've still got a lot of work to do at second base, but I also like the way our whole infield is coming together."


Doumit's hamstring ailing


Catcher Ryan Doumit was scratched yesterday because of discomfort in his left hamstring, the same one that cost him two-thirds of last season.

He was injured Saturday in the seventh inning while running from first to second base on a Ronny Paulino single. He wound up scoring on Jack Wilson's double and stayed in the game, but he later complained to the athletic trainers.

Yesterday morning, Tracy said, it was decided he should stay out for precautionary reasons.

"With it being the same hamstring, that sends up kind of a red flag," Tracy said. "We can't take a chance on damaging that thing again."

Doumit missed three stretches of last season because of the hamstring, including most of June, July and August when it was torn.



Adam LaRoche circles the bases after hitting a homerun on July 4th.

LaRoche's knee to linger?


First baseman Adam LaRoche was back in the lineup after his left knee "felt better," Tracy said, than when he was scratched Saturday night.

Tracy said the Pirates' medical staff has told him the knee trouble -- infrequent fluid buildup that began with the June 26-28 series in Miami -- has a chance to linger, but little chance to worsen.

"It's just something we've got to manage day to day," Tracy said.


Buried treasure


Reliever Salomon Torres pitched two scoreless innings -- one hit, three strikeouts -- in his second rehabilitation appearance for Bradenton of the Gulf Coast League. He will pitch a side session Wednesday at PNC Park. After that, general manager Dave Littlefield said, he will begin a rehabilitation assignment with Class AAA Indianapolis.

Littlefield said he is "getting closer" to contract terms with pitchers Daniel Moskos and Brian Friday, the Pirates' first- and third-round draft picks.

Altoona first baseman Steve Pearce, the top player in the Pirates' minor-league system this season, was 0 for 1 with a walk in two plate appearances in the Futures Game yesterday at San Francisco's AT&T Park. The Pirates' other representative, Class A Lynchburg pitcher Serguey Linares, did not play.

Bay finally joins Pirates' surge, 6-2

His home run off Zambrano, four RBIs clobber Cubs

Monday, July 09, 2007



Xavier Nady greets Jason Bay at home plate after Bay's two-run home run against Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano in the third inning yesterday at PNC Park.

By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Carlos Zambrano, the Chicago Cubs' ace, once was so affected by how Jason Bay always got the best of him that he perched Bay's baseball card atop his locker stall all through the spring training of 2004.

A running gag?

A reminder to exact revenge?

"Honestly, I don't want to know," is Bay's diplomatic answer. "The last thing you need is for a pitcher that great, that competitive to be looking for you."

Well, judging from Zambrano's reaction to Bay's two-run home run that propelled the Pirates past Chicago, 6-2, yesterday at PNC Park, it is safe to say he is not about to add an autograph to the collection.

Here was the pivotal point in the Pirates' final game before the All-Star break ...

They trailed, 1-0, in the third inning when Xavier Nady's two-out single chased home Nate McLouth.

Next to the box was Bay, who might as well have been lugging a 10-ton crane instead of his bat.

The worst slump of his career included one hit in his previous 25 at-bats, one home run and seven RBIs in his previous 25 games, a .149 average since the start of June and ...

Crack!

Never mind.

Bay launched Zambrano's 1-0 fastball that drifted over the meat of the plate into the bullpens beyond center field.

"Last thing I'm thinking about there is a home run, the way things have been going," Bay said. "I just got a good swing."

The moment the ball was struck, Zambrano, without ever looking back at its path, strode off the mound in disgust.

And the reaction was not rash: Bay now is 11 for 33 with five home runs and 16 RBIs against Zambrano, one of the National League's elite pitchers.

"I either strike him out, or he hits a home run," Zambrano said. "He's a good hitter in the big leagues. You can't make a mistake against good hitters. They make you pay."



Bay follows through on his two-run single during the eighth inning against the Cubs Sunday, July 8, at PNC Park. Bay drove in four runs, as the Pirates won, 6-2.

The Cubs would continue to pay for that home run, as it surely gave Bay the confidence to come through with a two-run single in the eighth and cap his day with four RBIs.

So much for the slump.

"Every hitter goes through it," manager Jim Tracy said. "But, when you look at the history of the individual, you know they're going to figure it out at some point in time. It can take one swing, and they say, 'Oh, yeah, that's what it was.' "

Which is pretty much how Bay described it.

"One hit like that home run can kind of turn things around for you, feel-wise," he said. "After that, I did feel a little more comfortable."

Especially against Zambrano, the pitcher who gave up all eight of Bay's RBIs in a game Sept. 19, 2003?

"Sometimes, the numbers lie," Bay said. "Trust me: He's not the type of pitcher you enjoy facing."

Having Bay, the Pirates' best player, experience a one-day revival just before the break was only part of what made this one so satisfying for them.

Shane Youman won for the second time in as many starts since being recalled from Class AAA Indianapolis, limiting Chicago to two runs on six hits over six mostly quiet innings.

The Cubs did make some noise in the second when they loaded the bases with nobody out, but all they culled from it was Angel Pagan's sacrifice fly. Koyie Hill flied out to shallow center, and Zambrano grounded out.

"I'm just thinking damage control the whole time," Youman said.

A 3-2 lead was turned over to Shawn Chacon in the seventh, and he responded with two perfect innings, a level of efficiency that has become common since his return to the bullpen in mid-June.

"I'm starting to like this," Chacon said with a wide smile.

The Pirates, finally facing someone other than Zambrano in the eighth, pounced on reliever Bob Howry for three singles before there was an out. That loaded the bases for Bay, whose stroke to left field brought a three-run edge and drew a two-minute ovation from the 22,470 in attendance. Some had been booing Bay earlier in the week.

Jose Bautista added a sacrifice fly, Matt Capps pitched a scoreless ninth, and there were handshakes and backslaps all around.

Not without cause, given the Pirates' surge into the break ...

They have won nine of 13, including this 7-3 homestand, to match their best run over such a span in Tracy's two years.

They are eight games under .500 at 40-48, this shortly after a five-game losing streak pushed them to a season-low 13 under June 24 in Anaheim, Calif.

They have won four consecutive series, first time for that since May 30-June 12, 2005.

They just took series from the top two teams in the Central Division, Milwaukee and Chicago, and the Cubs had won 11 of 13 before arriving in Pittsburgh.

Oh, and this, too, in case anyone remains interested in the standings: The Pirates are nine games behind the Brewers, the closest they have been to first place at the break since being 7 1/2 back in 2003.

Tracy, optimistic in the worst of times, clearly was feeling buoyant on this occasion.

"This is a great way to end the first half, to maintain the momentum we've been building," he said. "And the manner in which we did it was great, too."

He credited the players with persevering.

"A lot of good has come out of this so far and, the fact is, it could have been better. We had to reconstruct our bullpen a couple times. We had problems with the back end of the rotation. We've yet to fire on all cylinders offensively. But we dealt with all of that, we stayed together, and we won our fair share."

He paused.

"We want to do a lot more of that in the second half, and I believe we can."

So, it seems, does first baseman Adam LaRoche.

"I believe," he said. "You know I believe. I like this group. I like what we're doing. Let's see what happens."

The Pirates resume play Friday in Atlanta.

(Dejan Kovacevic can be reached at dkovacevic@post-gazette.com.)

Grading the Pirates through the break

Monday, July 09, 2007

By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Grading the Pirates' performance through the All-Star break, player by player, for those who spent more than a month on the active roster:



Tom Gorzelanny

STARTING PITCHERS

IAN SNELL- A, 5th-lowest ERA in league, staff-best 93 strikeouts. Outstanding.

TOM GORZELANNY- A, 8th-lowest ERA in league, staff-best 9-4 record. Outstanding.

PAUL MAHOLM- C-, Twenty losses? Not now. Past nine starts have been solid.

ZACH DUKE- D-, With .364 opponents’ average, every hitter was Ted Williams.



Tony Armas and Matt Capps

RELIEVERS

DAMASO MARTE- A-, Maybe majors’ best lefty specialist: Lefty hitters went 4 for 42.

MATT CAPPS- B+, 9 for 9 in saves as new closer, despite giving up too many hits.

SHAWN CHACON- B, Not so hot as starter, but averaging K per inning out of pen.

MASUMI KUWATA- C, That touchdown by the Brewers July 2 blew up his numbers.

SALOMON TORRES- C-, Losing closer’s job, six blown saves, overshadow great May.

JOHN GRABOW- C-, Struggles with fastball control responsible for 5.32 ERA.

JOHN WASDIN- D-, Won job in spring training. Has not pitched well since.

TONY ARMAS- F, Joins Burnitz, Randa on list of recent free-agent flops.

CATCHERS

RYAN DOUMIT- B+, No telling what he might have done if he played more.

RONNY PAULINO- D, Offense, defense and even effort called into question.



Jack Wilson, Jason Bay and Adam LaRoche

INFIELDERS

FREDDY SANCHEZ- B, Who can complain about .300, even if it is not a batting title?

JOSE BAUTISTA- C+, More needed from bat, but glovework has been golden at times.

ADAM LaROCHE- C, Despite horrific start, on pace for 25 home runs, 100 RBIs.

JACK WILSON- C, His .985 fielding percentage 3rd among league shortstops.

JOSE CASTILLO- C-, Fared well when starting, but rarely started. Not a bench guy.

DON KELLY- D, Fell well short of becoming Pirates’ next Jose Hernandez.



Xavier Nady

OUTFIELDERS

XAVIER NADY- A-, Platoon player? Not with 14 home runs, 50 RBIs. A leader, too.

JASON BAY- C+, Big reminder yesterday: He has 13 home runs, 56 RBIs.

NATE McLOUTH- C-, Bats .293 as starter, but 4th outfielder 6 for 36 as pinch-hitter.

RAJAI DAVIS- D+, Speed matters little with low average, erratic routes in outfield.

CHRIS DUFFY- D, Has yet to show he can perform in first half of a season.

Inside the Pirates: Highs, lows of extreme first half

From liftoff in Houston, it was quite a plunge before recent rebound

Sunday, July 08, 2007

By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



The braintrust gets a gold star for sticking with Tom Gorzelanny this spring.
Click photo for larger image.


From the high of the opening sweep in Houston to the low of that comedic catastrophe at Yankee Stadium to a modest surge leading into the All-Star break that begins tomorrow, only this much has stayed steady through the Pirates' 2007 schedule:

A 15th consecutive losing season, one shy of matching Major League Baseball's record, remains the course.

A look back at the extremes ...

* Best victory: The opener has yet to get topped. The Astros had a 2-0 lead, but home runs by Nate McLouth in the eighth, Xavier Nady's tying shot with two outs in the ninth and Jason Bay's two-run blast in the 10th made for a rousing start.

* Worst loss: Marty McLeary, anyone? The Pirates were ahead of Arizona, 7-1, at PNC Park on May 19, but that lead disintegrated when Tony Clark tagged McLeary for a grand slam that started a five-game losing streak.

* Best position player: No one is calling Nady a platoon player anymore. Nor is anyone complaining much about the Oliver Perez trade, for that matter. Nady is on pace for 28 home runs and 90 RBIs, has played error-free in right field and has been credited with being a vocal leader on a team in need of that trait.

* Worst position player: Ronny Paulino, at least compared to where he was last season. He has lost nearly 100 points off his batting average from his rookie year and, seemingly, has dropped that many balls sent his way.

* Best pitcher: Good luck picking between Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny.

* Worst pitcher: Tony Armas. And not just because his $3.5 million contract leaves the Pirates with next to nothing to show for $14 million spent on their past four free agents, including Jeromy Burnitz, Joe Randa and Roberto Hernandez last season.

* Best personnel move: Management, especially Jim Tracy, standing behind Gorzelanny through a nightmarish spring.

* Worst personnel move: All of the ones that were not made by general manager Dave Littlefield to improve the team during the season. It has been 10 years since the Pirates acquired a player -- Shawon Dunston in 1997 -- during the season with a specific aim of upgrading the roster for that season.

* Best quote: Courtesy of a very loud Snell, June 23 in Anaheim: "I [expletive] hate this. And you can put that in the paper. I [expletive] hate losing. I hate when the team doesn't bring out its full potential. And if they fine me, fine me. I don't care. Because this is getting stupid."

* Worst quote: Judging by the negative public response, it was Littlefield's statement the next day that the Pirates' fundamental play was "better" than last year.

* Best play: Chris Duffy's sensational catch May 23 in St. Louis, when he reached over the wall, his arm stretching and snapping like Plastic Man, to rob Juan Encarnacion of a home run.

* Worst play: Paulino declining to slide into home plate and getting tagged out June 7 in Washington. It was emblematic of the all-too-frequent lapses in effort and focus that were the team's unquestioned black mark of the first half.

* Best strategic decision: Tracy's bold benching of Jack Wilson for four days in mid-June got his shortstop back on track. Maybe more important, it sent a powerful -- and necessary -- message to the clubhouse that performance was a prerequisite for playing time.

* Worst strategic decision: Tracy summoning McLeary to face Clark. Within 24 hours, McLeary was in the minors. Within a month, he was off the 40-man roster.

* Proudest development in the minors: First baseman Steve Pearce, an eighth-round draft pick in 2005, has emerged as a legitimate thumper, that rarest of commodities in the Pirates' system. He has 22 home runs and 75 RBIs with Class AA Altoona and Class A Lynchburg.

* Most ominous development in the minors: No one who saw Andrew McCutchen play baseball before this season could explain his batting average being at .241.

* Best story: The Masumi Kuwata saga. How else to explain the dozen Japanese journalists chronicling his every breath daily?

* Worst story: Any rift between the Pirates and Salomon Torres, one of their top performers and citizens, is a negative on all levels.

* Most legitimate news: The Pirates passing on top prospect Matt Wieters in the June draft solely because they did not like his asking price focused public attention -- no, wrath -- on a far more meaningful facet of the team's operations than that which usually gets discussed.

* Most inflated news: The June 30 protest, judging by the result.

* Greatest in-season progress: Adam LaRoche, from the worst everyday player in the majors for a month or so to his current tear.

* Greatest in-season regress: Where have you gone Zach Duke, Duffy and even Bay?

* Most encouraging sight: A fastball leaving Matt Capps' right hand.

* Most frightening sight: A throw from the outfield to the plate. Either end of it.

* Best ownership move: Bob Nutting and Kevin McClatchy traveled to the Dominican Republic to examine first-hand why the team has fared so poorly in producing Latin American talent under Littlefield.

* Worst ownership move: No one can -- or is willing to -- explain why the Pirates are spending $25 million less in major-league payroll than Milwaukee, a team based in a smaller market with similar revenue streams.

* Most underappreciated statistic: Damaso Marte's ridiculous work against left-handed batters, who are 4 for 42 against him with 17 strikeouts.

* Most overblown statistic: Tracy's repeated citations of runners in scoring position will not take on true meaning until ... well, the Pirates have more runners. Their .316 on-base percentage ranks 27th of the majors' 30 teams.

* Reason to believe the Pirates can achieve 82 wins: Snell wants them to.

* Reason to believe they will not: Those seven letters stitched across the front of their jerseys.


(Dejan Kovacevic can be reached at dkovacevic@post-gazette.com.)

Bob Smizik: Are Pirates trying to fool us with recent surge?

Freddy Sanchez congratulates Adam LaRoche after hitting a two-run home run in the sixth inning on Wednesday at PNC Park.

Monday, July 09, 2007

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

So what are we to make of these new-look Pirates, the winners of nine of their past 13 games? What are we to think of this team that is fresh off winning two of three from the Chicago Cubs and three of four from the Milwaukee Brewers, clubs that represent the elite of the National League Central?

Is 14 years of losing evaporating right before our eyes?

Anything is possible in athletic competition, even the absurd notion of a winning season by the Pirates, who last had one in 1992.

But let's take a minute to deal with some realities. The Pirates' record after their 6-2 win against the Cubs yesterday at PNC Park is 40-48. That is the same record they had in 2003 after 88 games. It is one game worse than the record they had after 88 games in 2004 and it is one game better than their 88-game record in 2002 and 2005.

And we know how those seasons turned out.

Nor can we forget June 11, 2005, when a similar level of high expectations and all-around giddiness was in place when the Pirates raised their record to 30-30 with an 18-2 win against Tampa Bay. That team went on to finish 28 games under. 500.

So the question is this: Have the Pirates truly found their stride or is this a momentary aberration that will fade when play begins Friday in Atlanta after the All-Star break?

There are plenty of reasons to believe this team can continue to play well and three of them start with the middle of the lineup.

After playing mostly well below expectations for three months, Adam LaRoche is 17 for 40 (.425) in the past 10 games, with 5 homers, 5 doubles and 11 RBIs. He won't continue to hit that well, but there's reason to believe he's ready to remain the potent slugger he was expected to be when the Pirates acquired him from the Braves.

Jason Bay snapped a horrendous slump in which he was 18 for 120 (.150) since the end of May with a home run and four RBIs yesterday. Bay has been too good a player for too long to believe he won't resume being one of the better offensive outfielders in the National League.

With 14 home runs and 50 RBIs, Xavier Nady is establishing himself as the middle-of-the-lineup presence the Pirates so badly needed to go along with Bay and LaRoche. Of particular significance, Nady is handling right-handed pitching like never before. His slugging percentage (total bases divided by at-bats) is .505 against right-handed pitching.

All three have 50 or more RBIs, and when was the last time the Pirates could say that at the All-Star break?

The emergence of Nady has allowed manager Jim Tracy to regularly bat Freddy Sanchez second, a position that better suits him than the No. 3 spot in the lineup he held down most of the season.

If Ryan Doumit, who was out yesterday with a strained left hamstring, can continue to hit as well as he has, the Pirates have a solid two through six in their batting order.

What the team doesn't have is a competent leadoff man in front of those batters. It remains a gaping hole.

Equally as important as the emergence of Nady has been the surfacing of Paul Maholm as a competent starter to go along with Tom Gorzelanny and Ian Snell. In his past nine starts, Maholm has gone seven or more innings seven times. During that stretch his earned run average is 3.96. If that were his season-long ERA, it would place him 18th in the league, one spot in front of Philadelphia's celebrated Cole Hamels.

With two good starts in as many tries since being recalled from the minors, Shane Youman might be a fourth quality starter. Youman gave up two runs in six innings yesterday against the Cubs, which is what he did in a win against Milwaukee last week.

The bullpen has solidified with Shawn Chacon becoming a formidable setup man for Matt Capps. Chacon retired the six batters he faced in the seventh and eighth against the Cubs before turning the game over to Capps. Forget his torturous four attempts as a starter this season. In 29 games out of the bullpen, Chacon has an ERA of 2.79.

All of this is to indicate the Pirates have not gone 9-4, including 5-2 against the Brewers and Cubs, by a giant stroke of luck. They've earned the wins with good play.

The downside is no one knows how long this will last. There are too many players without proven track records. Nady might revert to being semi-helpless against right-handed pitching. Chacon could melt down, as might Capps, who has never closed before. LaRoche could cool considerably. Bay, it might turn out, is having an awful year, not an awful five weeks.

Baseball is about being good over the long haul, not 13 games or even 30 games. Seventy-four games remain. The story of the 2007 Pirates will be etched by those games. In the meantime, all anyone can do is enjoy it while they can.


(Bob Smizik can be reached at bsmizik@post-gazette.com.)

Bob Smizik: Remember McClatchy as man who saved Pirates

Pirates chief executive officer Kevin McClatchy jokes with reporters while escorting Bob Nutting, the team's principal owner, during spring training workouts at the Pirate City complex in Bradenton, Fla.

Saturday, July 07, 2007

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

We come here today to extol Kevin McClatchy, not to disparage him. There has been enough of that: here, there and everywhere.

We come here to remind you that the man who for too long has been everyone's favorite punching bag never had anything but the best interest of Pittsburgh baseball in mind.

We come here to remind you that no one wanted to win more than he.

And, sadly, we come here to remind you he had neither the finances, the personality nor the expertise to execute the daring plan he undertook, as a young man of 32 some 12 years ago, to buy the floundering Pittsburgh Pirates.

Once he was Prince Charming on a shiny white horse. He was the man who saved baseball in Pittsburgh. Let's not forget that in the wake of the news that he is stepping down as the team's CEO at the end of the season.

There have been 11 losing seasons, going on 12, on his watch. That's what people most know about McClatchy. But without him there might not have been any losing seasons. Or any seasons at all.

While the fabulously wealthy of Pittsburgh understandably looked away when the Pirates were for sale in 1995, McClatchy, a Californian, stepped forward. He did not have the personal wealth for such an undertaking -- that would turn out to be his undoing -- but he had the energy, he had the ambition.

When you think of all those losing seasons, all those stinking trades and all those rotten signings, remember this: He saved the Pirates.

More than that, he saved them for another generation. He was the driving force behind the building of PNC Park. If there is baseball in Pittsburgh for another 25 years, and there should be, the man most responsible for that is Kevin S. McClatchy.

He came from a wealthy family, and although he had money, his fortune was paltry compared to the vast majority of baseball owners. There's no way he should have been able to grab control of a Major League Baseball franchise. But he did. He was the last bidder standing for the Pirates.

He probably didn't have much of a grasp of what was required when he took over ownership of the team in 1996. How many people in their early 30s do? His background in baseball was mostly as a fan, not as an owner or anyone who understood the intricacies of the business.

He wanted to win as badly as anyone. He just didn't know how to go about it.

Let's state the obvious: His 12-year run, during which he went from majority to minority owner, is a failed one. There's no getting around that. He had neither the finances nor the baseball expertise to play with the big spenders in the big markets.

His greatest fault would, in some circles, be a glorious attribute. He wasn't ruthless enough. He didn't have it in him to make some of the tough decisions required in running as competitive a business as an MLB franchise. He allowed Cam Bonifay to stay too long. Now he has allowed Dave Littlefield to stay too long.

It's impossible to be successful in a market the size of Pittsburgh with the mistakes made during the general manager tenures of Bonifay, who McClatchy fired in June 2001, and Littlefield, who was hired less than two months later.

When chief operating officer Dick Freeman left in 2002, he wasn't replaced and McClatchy was thrust into the role of handling the day-to-day operations of the team. Freeman was steeped in baseball experience, as was marketing vice-president Steve Greenberg, who left a year earlier. In effect, there was no one on the business side of the operation who had baseball experience.

That's no way to run a business. Whether McClatchy wanted his new role or whether it was forced upon him by the Nutting family, which had slowly gained control of the franchise, we might never know. But with the Nuttings in control, a distinction that was formalized earlier this year when Bob Nutting became principal owner, more decisions were driven by bottom-line logic rather than baseball common sense.

That became obvious last month in the baseball draft when, for financial reasons, the Pirates passed on the player who was their obvious best choice. McClatchy mouthed the company line that day, but there's no way he believed it.

McClatchy's departure is not surprising. It has been speculated on for some time and that speculation became more intense when Bob Nutting publicly assumed control.

It was never any fun to rip McClatchy, although he was an easy target. He was never anything less than the ultimate gentleman. He bore no grudges. He always had a glad hand. It was the nature of his personality.

He'll soon be gone, but not so quickly forgotten. He'll best be remembered as the owner during all those losing seasons. But he deserves much more. He deserves to be remembered for keeping the Pirates and building PNC Park.

Above all, he should be remembered as a good man. Keep a good thought for him. I know I will.


(Bob Smizik can be reached at bsmizik@post-gazette.com.)

Penguins add 2 vital pieces

Secure deals with Sydor and Sykora; focus goes toward contract extension with Crosby

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

By Dave Molinari, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Penguins general manager Ray Shero announces the signings of defenseman Darryl Sydor, right winger Petr Sykora and Dany Sabourin as well as re-signing defensemen Rob Scuderi and Ryan Whitney yesterday at Mellon Arena.
Click photo for larger image.

Penguins general manager Ray Shero locked up the veteran defenseman he had been seeking when Darryl Sydor accepted a two-year contract early yesterday morning.

Secured what he hopes will be a consistent goal-scoring winger by giving Petr Sykora a two-year deal.

Found the partner he wanted for goalie Marc-Andre Fleury when Dany Sabourin agreed to return here after spending last season in Vancouver.

Now, he can focus on a challenge any GM would love to have: Negotiating a contract extension for the best player in the world.

Discussions with agent Pat Brisson on a new deal for Sidney Crosby could begin this week, Shero said yesterday. And they won't necessarily drag on for long.

Most likely, they will amount to Shero figuratively, if not literally, handing Brisson a blank contract form and asking that a dollar amount and duration be filled in. The hard truth is that when dealing with a player who already has done so much for his franchise -- and who is the cornerstone of its future -- management has no significant leverage.

"I'm not sure what the expectations are going to be," Shero said. "We'll more listen than anything, and we'll see where we end up. I think the thing that's clear is that we want to keep Sidney for as long as we can, or as long as he wants to stay."

The NHL's labor agreement allows Crosby to earn 20 percent of the team's salary-cap ceiling -- $50.3 million for 2007-08 -- and he isn't likely to get a penny less unless he voluntarily accepts a reduced salary to enhance management's chances of keeping the Penguins' exceptional core of young talent intact.

Such a gesture probably would not be welcomed by the NHL Players' Association because it could have a chilling effect on other players' earnings -- who would want to be the guy who had to argue that he's worth more than Crosby? -- but it's conceivable that Crosby would settle for less than he's entitled to.

While Shero is negotiating with Brisson, he will be trying to reach agreements with five restricted free agents: Forwards Colby Armstrong, Tim Brent, Erik Christensen and Maxime Talbot and defenseman Ryan Lannon.

"Signing our own players is the most important thing for our franchise, moving forward," Shero said.

The restricted list was pared from six Sunday, when Ryan Whitney accepted a six-year contract that includes a bump in pay each season. His salary will rise from $2.5 million in 2007-08 to $3 million, $3.5 million, $4.5 million, $5 million and $5.5 million.

Around the same time, defenseman Rob Scuderi, who would have been free to negotiate with any team at noon, agreed to a two-year deal worth $700,000 in 2007-08 and $725,000 the following season.

"There were just too many good things in Pittsburgh going on for me, personally and team-wise," Scuderi said. "When you step back and look at the whole situation, maybe I left a little money on the table, but I'm willing to sacrifice that for a chance to win and be part of something real special."

Scuderi apparently will be the only unrestricted free agent from the NHL roster to stick with the Penguins. Shero said he doesn't expect any of the others -- Josef Melichar, Jocelyn Thibault, Ronald Petrovicky, Nils Ekman, Eric Cairns, Joel Kwiatkowski and Alain Nasreddine -- to return, although he did not rule out re-signing Petrovicky.

Shero said he wanted to bring Scuderi back because "our coaches love him," and they obviously think highly of Sydor, too, considering they didn't balk at giving him a deal worth $2.5 million in each of its two seasons. Those are the same terms for which Sykora signed.

"There were a few teams kicking tires, but Pittsburgh stepped up," Sydor said.

Shero cited Sydor's ability to move the puck, along with his reliability and experience, as the primary reasons he wanted to bring him in.

"He can give us some quality minutes," Shero said.

Sykora, meanwhile, will be counted mostly on to generate goals, although it remains to be seen whether his center will be Crosby or Evgeni Malkin, his teammate in Russia during the NHL lockout.

"He's got a great release, a great shot," Shero said. "I really think he'll be a good fit on our top two lines."

Sykora's defensive work is the major flaw in his game, but Shero tried to downplay concerns about that.

"He's a diligent defensive player, I believe," he said. "I think he's aware. He cares, defensively. Is he [four-time Selke Trophy winner] Bob Gainey? I don't think so."



NOTES -- The Penguins have four goalies -- Fleury, Sabourin and college products David Brown (Notre Dame) and John Curry (Boston University) -- on their organizational depth chart and would like to add a fifth. Nolan Schaefer, an unrestricted free agent acquired from San Jose at the trade deadline, remains a possibility, but likely will move on if another club offers him a one-way contract. ... In addition to a goalie, the Penguins are receptive to the idea of adding a depth defenseman and/or a faceoff man via free agency.

Bob Smizik: Majority silent in protest, but Pirates still should worry

Protestors at the Pirates/Nationals game in Pittsburgh on Saturday night.

Monday, July 02, 2007

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

In 1969, President Richard Nixon coined a phrase that gained immediate popularity and a permanent place in the American lexicon: The silent majority. Nixon was referring to the people who he believed supported the strategy of his presidency in the Vietnam War, not those who boisterously demonstrated against it in the streets.

A parallel situation exists in this region, although on a far less significant matter. The silent majority of Pirates ticket buyers has spoken: Down with protests; up with the status quo.

The outcries against the Pirates have been numerous and venomous. They come from newspaper columnists, talk-show hosts, talk-show callers, bloggers and just plain fans. They're tired of losing, tired of low payroll, tired of massive mismanagement. They want change and they want it now.

But when a well-organized protest, run by legitimate Pirates fans, was attempted Saturday night during the team's game against the Washington Nationals, the silent majority did what they're supposed to do. They shut up and stayed the course.

This column was a supporter of the protest, which asked fans to leave their seats at the end of the third inning and stay out of them for at least one inning. We supported the walkout not because we thought it would change the business strategy of owner Bob Nutting, but because we thought it was time for the fans to speak up and at least let ownership know how they felt.

Instead, they sat down and let ownership know how they felt.

By most estimates, somewhere between only 1,000 and 2,000 of the 26,959 fans left their seats after the third inning. The fact the Pirates led, 6-1, at the time might have had something to do with the lack of enthusiasm. But no matter how the walkout is viewed, it was a major flop. It appeared to have considerable support. It didn't. It had a vocal minority, not a silent majority.

In a silence that was quite eloquent, the fans spoke: They would love to have a winning team, but they just love having a team. They love their beautiful ballpark. They love bobbleheads and fireworks and having their kids run the bases after Sunday home games. They view coming to PNC Park as a nice day at the ballpark, not a "we-must-be-victorious" situation. They can handle the losing. There are far greater priorities in life than having a winning baseball team.

Nutting and CEO Kevin McClatchy should feel heartened by this show of support for their policies. But they should not get comfortable. The day of reckoning might not be at hand, but barring unforeseen developments, it's coming.

There is no reason to believe the Pirates are going to get significantly better in the immediate future despite the party line coming from general manager Dave Littlefield. As constituted, the Pirates are a moderately talented team. They are nowhere near ready to play with the good teams.

For example: After a 3-2 loss yesterday to the Nationals, the Pirates are 11 games under .500. How their 35-46 record breaks down tells an interesting story. The Pirates are 26-22 against teams with losing record. Against teams .500 or better, they're 9-24.

After the 2009 season, the contractual status of many of their key players will force the team to either significantly increase payroll or once again roll out the rebuilding plan. Some people will remain comfortable with that. But each losing season peels off another layer of fan support.

MLB threw Nutting and McClatchy a life preserver of sorts when in July 2004 it awarded the 2006 All-Star Game to the Pirates, just 12 years after the team had previously hosted the event. That spiked ticket sales in 2005 and 2006 and reversed what had been a steady decline in attendance since the club set a record by drawing 2.4 million fans in 2001, the first season of PNC Park.

That reversal ended this season. Attendance is down about 1,200 per game. That will continue to slide and the season-ticket base will continue to erode until the losing stops.

For now, though, the fizzled protest speaks more loudly than anything. Nutting and McClatchy have been validated by the silent majority.

What's important for critics of ownership to remember is this: The silent majority that Nixon embraced in 1969, slowly slid away. The vocal minority never was silenced.

That's as it should be with the Pirates. The criticism should continue until the vocal minority becomes the vocal majority. The only way that will happen is for the Pirates to keep losing. Don't bet against it.

Sanchez is an All-Star again

Pirates 2B selected to NL roster; Gorzelanny has shot to make team

Monday, July 02, 2007

By Paul Meyer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Second baseman Freddy Sanchez was named to the 2007 National League All-Star team.
Click photo for larger image.

Pirates second baseman Freddy Sanchez will go to the All-Star Game again this year, thanks to St. Louis Cardinal manager Tony La Russa.

And Pirates pitcher Tom Gorzelanny could join Sanchez in San Francisco, thanks to fans.

Gorzelanny is among five starting pitchers for whom fans can vote online to determine the final member of the National League All-Star team. Voting began last night and will end at 6 p.m. Thursday.

"This is my plea for people to get on the computer," Gorzelanny said. "It would be greatly appreciated. Maybe we can come up with something like, 'Send Gorzo to the Bay!' "

Gorzelanny, 8-4 with a 3.05 earned run average, faces stiff competition in his electronic campaign.

He's up against San Diego's Chris Young (8-3, 2.14), Arizona's Brandon Webb (8-5, 3.05), Houston's Roy Oswalt (7-5, 3.42) and Chicago's Carlos Zambrano (9-6, 4.20).

Sanchez, who won the National League batting championship last season with a .344 mark, didn't finish in the top eight in the second base voting.

La Russa selected him anyway.

"I'm not putting words in Tony's mouth, but it makes sense with the limited choices [the manager] has," Pirates manager Jim Tracy said. "Freddy's an excellent offensive player. If you need a guy to put the bat on the ball, put the ball in play, [La Russa] has a pretty good player there to do that."

"That definitely might have had something to do with it," Sanchez said. "We've played the Cardinals a lot. He knows I can play second base, shortstop, third base and that I'll do whatever it takes to win."

Sanchez missed most of the first week of the season because of a lingering spring training knee injury. He batted just .224 in April but hit .317 in May and .343 in June.

He went 0 for 4 yesterday, leaving him at .301 for the season.

Still, the news that he would be heading for San Francisco surprised him.

"I was kind of in shock," he said. "I didn't think I really had a chance. It's such an honor to be picked by a Hall of Fame manager. This is probably one of the biggest honors I can receive."

Sanchez had planned to take his family to Nemacolin Woodlands Resort during the break.

"But I think I can make it [to San Francisco]," he said, smiling.

Sanchez played five innings in last year's All-Star Game at PNC Park, winning his spot because of write-in votes. He went 0 for 2 and robbed Mark Loretta of a hit with a leaping catch at shortstop in the fifth inning.

"Last year, I was kind of in awe," he said. "I had shaky legs at the plate. I think it will be a lot easier this time."

Sanchez said he didn't vote for himself online last year.

"I didn't know how to vote," he said.

But he said he'll learn how to vote and cast some for Gorzelanny.

"Hopefully, we can get a lot of votes going his way," he said.

"I'll vote for him," Zach Duke said. "He's a good guy and a great pitcher."

"It's cool that I'm still alive," Gorzelanny said. "It's going to be fun. I'm going to enjoy this. Whatever happens, happens. I might vote a couple times, but I'll leave it up to everybody in Pittsburgh.

"I'm sure I'll be as nervous as I've ever been, but I'm going to enjoy the ride."

Gorzelanny and rotation mate Ian Snell (6-5, 2.90) both had shots at being named yesterday.

"Both guys are very deserving, no question about it," Tracy said. "I feel very strongly about those guys. They're All-Stars in my opinion. But we go through this every year. There's nothing you can do about it but live with it."

The Pirates haven't had a starting pitcher named to the All-Star team since Denny Neagle in 1995.All-Star rosters announced

Not only is Barry Bonds going to the All-Star Game in his home ballpark, he will be in the starting lineup. The San Francisco Giants' star overcame a 119,000-vote deficit in the final days of balloting and finished 123,000 ahead of the Chicago Cubs' Alfonso Soriano yesterday to claim the third and final starting outfield spot for the N.L.

There's a new Kid in town

By Rob Rossi
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, July 1, 2007


The Landlord seemingly could not hide his happiness as he walked past The Kid on the morning of October 8, 2005. Mario Lemieux was hours from playing in his final home opener. His NHL career was down to its final three months. He presumably did not know all of that then, but he clearly knew something as the wide grin on his face suggested.

A lockout had wiped out the previous NHL season, robbing Lemieux of perhaps a chance to leave the game on his own terms. He was three days removed from his 40th birthday. He could no longer physically do what he had done nearly a decade earlier, when he returned from a one-year hiatus to dominate the NHL as only he could. Or five years back, when he returned from a retirement of three-plus seasons to, well, dominate the league as only he could.

Mentally, though, Lemieux was still sharp. His gift for anticipation still so rare that it rivaled a comic-book created superpower. Maybe this explained the smile he flashed while walking by the locker stall of 18-year-old Sidney Crosby, who was swarmed by members of the media -- from Pittsburgh and beyond.

Lemieux, arguably the most recognized professional athlete in this town's history, was an afterthought on this morning. Crosby was the main attraction. The temperature inside the Penguins' locker room had suddenly shifted from a cool 66 degrees to a hot 87, and Lemieux's smile offered a glimpse into his apparent realization.

Pittsburgh had moved on. The city now belonged to The Kid.
It still does. And if the Penguins have their way, Crosby will own this town for a long time.



Extending circumstances

Crosby is entering the final season of a three-year, entry-level contract he signed shortly after the Penguins made him the top pick in the 2005 NHL draft. All he has done since signing that deal -- which, with performance incentives, has paid him well (almost $4 million annually) over the past two years -- is halt the Penguins' six-season playoff drought, become the youngest athlete to lead any North American professional league in scoring and win acclaim by both his peers and the hockey media as the league's most valuable player.

He will turn 20 on Aug. 7. The Penguins can start talking today to his agent, Pat Brisson, about a lengthy contract extension, under terms of the league's collective bargaining agreement.

So, why might general manager Ray Shero place on the back burner a chance to lock up his newly minted captain and the league's most dynamic offensive weapon?

For starters, Crosby is not going anywhere until at least the summer of 2012, when he would become an unrestricted free agent following his seventh NHL season. Crosby is eligible for restricted free agency after this coming season, but the Penguins will match any offer sheet he might sign.

Of course, there is the not-so-small point that Crosby probably would not sign an offer sheet with another club, anyway.

"Pittsburgh is a place I really enjoy," Crosby said in May. "There are a lot of similarities to where I grew up in Cole Harbour (Nova Scotia), starting with the people. I relate to the people in Pittsburgh. They're just working-class people. When I came there, the way they welcomed me, the way they have treated me -- it was very sincere. That is what I grew up around, so I appreciate it."

Sound like a kid itching to explore his options?



After accepting the captaincy that was vacant since Lemieux's retirement, Crosby matter-of-factly downplayed any perceived rush to reach terms with the Penguins on an extension.

"It is something that will be talked about more and it will definitely be good to get the conversation going," Crosby said in June. "But I am more than confident that everybody will be happy with it."

Crosby possesses the clout necessary to walk into Shero's office this afternoon and demand the highest salary in the NHL. If he did, Shero would have little choice but to acquiesce.

However, Crosby has said he would never make such a demand. In fact, he has informed the Penguins that he would accept less money so Shero can afford to keep stars such as goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury and centers Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal when they are due new deals in years to follow.

"The unique thing about us is that we have young guys making their mark," Crosby said. "The Cup is what you play for. That is what I am working for. I want to give Pittsburgh the best chance to bring back the Cup."

Staying put

The Crosby contract will get done before his entry-level deal expires -- not so much because the Penguins wish it but because Crosby genuinely has no desire to leave Pittsburgh.

After all, he is just getting to know the back roads to Mellon Arena from Lemieux's house in Sewickley. And there are some very Pittsburgh things he has to do yet -- take a birthday barhop along Carson Street on the South Side and eat a sandwich bearing his name, for example.

OK, perhaps those are poor examples. After all, Crosby is not Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.



Actually, Crosby's professed fondness for this city might have everything to do with the fact that no matter how many times he hoists the Stanley Cup over his head while wearing a Penguins sweater, Crosby will never be bigger than Ben, so to speak.

"This city is the perfect balance for me: I can go places and see things and it is not a swarming atmosphere. The people are respectful of my privacy," Crosby said. "Pittsburgh has a more relaxed atmosphere. It makes me comfortable.

"When I want to go out here I just blend in. It is really different than other cities. The biggest thing is respect. The people here have a lot of respect for me. They treat me normal."

Normalcy is important to any professional athlete. But in football-frenzied towns such as Pittsburgh and Denver, normalcy is easier to come by for NHL skaters -- even stars of Crosby and Colorado Avalanche captain Joe Sakic's stature.



Joe Sakic

Sakic has spent his entire 18-year career with the Avalanche, though six of those seasons were in Quebec City, where the Avalanche was known as the Nordiques. No matter the team name or location, Sakic described himself as "fortunate" to play for only one organization.

He can relate to why Crosby might wish as much for himself.

"If you have an opportunity to do it, you want to do it," Sakic said. "If the organization treats you well, like the Avalanche has for me, you want to be part of that. I grew up with this organization, it is where I started and where I want to finish."

Sakic said he has read columnists opine that the league would be better served if Crosby played in a major hockey market such as New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto or Montreal. Clearly, Sakic does not buy into such belief.

"It is good for the league that he is in Pittsburgh. Places like Pittsburgh need stars just as much as New York and Los Angeles and Toronto," Sakic said. "Not everybody can play in the big cities and markets.

"It was good for the league that in Colorado we were able to keep our stars together for so long and make consistent runs at the Cup. It would be good for the league if Pittsburgh could do that, too.

"There is something to be said for being able to identify specific players with one organization. When people think of the Penguins, Sidney Crosby comes to mind immediately. It was that way when Mario played, too. And that is as it should be."

Kid's playpen

Upon drafting Crosby in 2005, Penguins officials privately referred to their proposed new arena as "The House That Sid Will Build." There was more than a hint of truth in that tag.

"You see a guy like Sidney -- you always have to come back to him," Tampa Bay star Vincent Lecavalier said. "To do what he has done is pretty incredible. It's something that is nice to see, because if he was not in Pittsburgh I am not sure there would be a team there."



Vincent Lecavalier

Lecavalier, who this past season paced the league with 52 goals, has spent each of his eight NHL seasons with the Lightning. Though linked to trade speculation nearly each offseason, he recently reiterated his desire to finish where he started.

"When you get drafted by a team and you come to that city, like Sidney with Pittsburgh and me in Tampa, you want to feel a connection," Lecavalier said. "Sidney clearly feels a connection with Pittsburgh. We have talked about it. Pittsburgh is where he is basically growing up, like with me in Tampa. That stays with you. It makes it hard to think about leaving because the place becomes like home."

The Penguins' new home will probably open in 2010. By then, they might have another Cup banner to hang from the rafters. Conceivably, a statue paying tribute to Lemieux will prove a popular gathering place for Penguins fans converge on the facility.

Crosby could not contain his happiness in May when presented with such a possibility.

"That would be awesome," Crosby said. "We want to have a lot of winning years in that place. It is going to be our home for a long time."

The same might be said for Pittsburgh and Crosby.



Rob Rossi can be reached at rrossi@tribweb.com or (412) 380-5635.

Joe Starkey: Bucs' protest night just another diversion

TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, July 1, 2007

In the middle of his impassioned speech outside PNC Park on Saturday, irate Pirates fan Andy Chomos tossed a Ronny Paulino Bobblehead into Federal Street.

Just then, a car sped past - and you won't be surprised to learn that it barely missed the fallen doll.

Even the Ronny Paulino Bobblehead avoids collisions.

This was the night of the big fan protest. Chomos, a 43-year-old Franklin Park businessman, and his partners orchestrated a pre-game rally outside Hi-Tops and a walkout after the third inning of a game against the Washington Nationals.

Protesters were urged to wear green, to represent the money ownership won't spend on improving the team.

The best guess here is that no more than 1,500 people headed for the concourses after the third inning. Hardly anyone actually left the ballpark, and plenty who wore green never budged from their seats.

As one wag put it, "It ain't gonna make anyone forget Tiananmen Square."

I don't know how or if any of it affected Pirates owner Bob Nutting, but I know this: I'll need a month to recover.



Former Pirates pitcher Doc Ellis addresses fans during a rally across from PNC Park before Saturday night's Pirates game. Protest organizer Andy Chomos, of Franklin Park, shows his support behind Ellis.

Not from the protest itself, but from my walk to the pre-game rally. It felt like I was trapped in "Alice in Wonderland," or, worse, a Dock Ellis flashback.

Ellis is the ex-Pirates pitcher who tossed a no-hitter on LSD in 1970. He was here last night. Came all the way from California to address the protesters and delivered the line of the night when he said, "I reached manhood in the streets of Pittsburgh."

My trip began when a group of reporters boarded the elevator and encountered ex-Pirates scouting director Mickey White, who was wearing a green button-down shirt, inadvertently.

"Matches my eyes," he said.

You might remember White. He was doing a decent job of procuring talent until Dave Littlefield fired him five years ago.

Once outside, I had to walk past a bunch of those inane "We Will" banners, one of which has a photograph of Zach Duke and the caption, "We Will. Amaze."

Another features Tony Armas and the caption, "We Will. Work Hard."

Pirates ownership actually deserves credit for cultivating a fan base that, by-and-large, couldn't care less what happens on the field. Many of the 26,959 on hand last night likely came for the Bob Walk Bobblehead (which Chomos didn't throw into the street).

Team officials were no doubt pleased the protest fell flat. Someday, perhaps, they'll take pride in a ballclub they assemble. This one is 10 games under .500 and headed for a 15th consecutive losing season.

I felt kind of like the new breed of Pirates customer last night. I didn't pay much attention to the game because I was so into the diversions.

Once past the banners, I wandered to the rally and saw a city policeman telling a man who was selling green, fluorescent "I support the third-inning walkout" shirts to take a hike.

The police presence added to whatever '60s feel the protesters might have been trying to conjure. There weren't any dogs or high-powered hoses, but the fellas made sure everyone stayed on the sidewalk.

One man sported a T-shirt that read "We Will Stink."

Somebody handed me a fake dollar bill with Nutting's photo in the middle of it; another waved a sign that read, "Boo-Hoo since '92."

At that point, I flashed back to a Grateful Dead concert in 1986 at Giants Stadium, when some freak handed me a red sneaker.

I'm not even sure I liked the Dead's music, but the shows were incredible.

By the way, who won the game?


Joe Starkey is a sports writer for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He can be reached at jstarkey@tribweb.com

Pirates cruise to 7-2 victory

Six-run second tames Nationals

Sunday, July 01, 2007

By Paul Meyer, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Tom Gorzelanny raised his record to 8-4 with last night's win at PNC Park.
Click photo for larger image.

On Bob Walk Bobblehead night, when there was a walk-up sale of about 3,200 tickets and some fans walked out of their seats in a protest against Pirates management, a walk-off win for the Pirates would have been fitting.

As it turned out, it was pretty much a walk-over.

With Jason Bay, their top RBI guy, resting comfortably in the dugout, the Pirates put Washington to sleep with a six-run second inning and cruised to a 7-2 victory behind Tom Gorzelanny and Masumi Kuwata in front of 26,959 -- at one time or another -- at PNC Park.

Jack Wilson, Freddy Sanchez and Adam LaRoche all had two-run hits in the second, fueling the Pirates' largest rally since they scored eight runs in the 10th at Cincinnati May 25.

"That's what we've been missing all year -- the big hits," said LaRoche, whose home run in the sixth completed the Pirates' scoring. "That's a hard blow to take. I've been on both sides, and it's hard not to lay down when the other side does that to you."

Bay didn't start for the first time this season -- and welcomed the opportunity to sit for a bit.

"It's no secret I've struggled over the last month basically," Bay said.

Through Friday, Bay was in a 13-for-86 slide as his batting average tumbled from .312 to .266. In the 23-game slump, he had two home runs and eight RBIs.

"It's pretty important that he gets a day off," manager Jim Tracy said. "Before he went into this lull, he was doing some good things."

"Obviously, I want to come out of this, but I'm not beating my head against the wall just quite yet," said Bay, who will return to the starting lineup today against Washington left-hander Mike Bacsik.

"I'm not the first person it's ever happened to. Definitely, a blow here and there might not be a bad thing.

"It's something that happens all the time -- a guy gets get a day off to mentally and physically unwind. That's what I'm looking forward to doing -- kind of decompress a little bit, relax a little bit. Hopefully, we're up, 10-0, and I don't need to go into the game."

It wasn't quite 10-0, but 6-1 after two innings was good enough to ensure Bay could rest easy.

Xavier Nady started the Pirates' big inning with a single to left on an 0-2 pitch from right-hander Jason Bergmann. Ryan Doumit lined the next pitch into the right-field corner for a double that sent Nady to third. Ronny Paulino drew a five-pitch walk.



Masumi Kuwata, left, is congratulated by Adam LaRoche after the Pirates closed out the win last night.
Click photo for larger image.

Bergmann got ahead of Wilson 1-2, but Wilson worked the count full before drilling a two-run single through the middle. Gorzelanny sacrificed Wilson to second.

The Nationals walked Nate McLouth intentionally, and that almost got Washington out of the inning as Jose Bautista fouled to catcher Brian Schneider.

Sanchez almost did likewise, but Schneider couldn't hold his foul pop as he leaned over a railing in front of the Pirates' dugout.

Sanchez, who hit .344 in June, then grounded an 0-2 pitch into center field, scoring Paulino and Wilson.

LaRoche stuck an exclamation mark on the rally with a two-run double into right-center field.

"That's always big for a pitcher," Gorzelanny said. "It calms the nerves a bit."

The six-run half-inning, in which Bergmann threw 44 pitches, kept the first wave of protesters in their seats for about 20 minutes. About one-third of the estimated 1,000 fans who left their seats did so at that point.

The other two-thirds left their seats after the third inning, at which point Bergmann was just an inning from walking out himself.

Gorzelanny had it on cruise control by then. He would pitch into the eighth, allowing five hits, three walks and two runs with his 107 pitches.

After Gorzelanny walked Ronnie Belliard with one out in the eighth, Tracy summoned Kuwata. Ryan Zimmerman bounced Kuwata's first pitch to the mound, and Kuwata began a perfect double play, then sprinted to the dugout.

"It was very apparent he's made that play a few times in his career," Tracy said of Kuwata, 39. "That guy is a master. He knows what he's doing. Pitch after pitch, he puts the ball where he wants to. He's a tremendous professional."

Gorzelanny raised his record to 8-4 and lowered his earned run average to 3.05. Teammate Ian Snell is 6-5, but his earned run average of 2.90 ranks fifth in the league.

One of them might land a spot on the National League All-Star team.

"They've been two very reliable starters in this rotation," Tracy said. "They've been models of consistency. If either's had a hiccup, it's been a very brief one."

Gorzelanny conceded he has thought about the possibility of making an All-Star trip to San Francisco.

"If I go, it will be great and exciting," Gorzelanny said. "If not, it will be a three-day vacation. I'll either go and have fun or go home and have fun. It's a win-win."

Some Bucs fans, but not too many, leave their seats in protest

Sunday, July 01, 2007

By Robert Dvorchak, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Fans head up the stairs after the third inning of the Pirates game last night at PNC Park. Disgruntled fans, many of them wearing green, walked out in protest of the team's management.
Click photo for larger image.

One of baseball's time-honored traditions is the seventh inning stretch and the singing of "Take me out to the ballgame." But last night at PNC Park, some paying customers left their seats innings earlier, a disgruntled way of saying, "Take me out of the ballgame."

With yet another losing season nearly halfway through, a group called Fans For Change encouraged patrons to leave their seats -- an intentional walk -- to show public displeasure with Pirates management.

An estimated 1,000 fans answered the call. Several hundred left after the second inning when the Pirates scored six runs, but the majority made for the concourses after the third inning as planned. Most of the 26,959 in attendance stayed in their seats. Some of them chanted "Let's Go Bucs" and booed the gesture.

Still, organizers considered the night a victory for calling out the organization on its operations.



"It's more than symbolism. This is the wake-up call. This sends a message," said Andy Chomos, who led the exit after organizing the grass roots protest on the Internet last month. "I'm ticked off. We want to see meaningful baseball in August and September again."

Participants were asked to wear green, as in the color of money, to encourage management to spend its dollars on a better product. A few wore bags over their heads. One popular T-shirt -- selling for $5 -- carried the message "I Support The Third Inning Walkout." One of those walking out wrote on his shirt that Kevin McClatchy should be paying him to attend games.

Prior to the game, several hundred supporters of Fans For Change rallied outside Hi-Tops on Federal Street. Police were on hand to shoo the crowd back onto the sidewalk after it spilled into the street. A bobblehead doll was smashed in the street as a way of telling management that real baseball fans were tired of giveaways and want to see quality baseball again.

Among the speakers was Dock Ellis, a onetime Pirates pitcher who was an unabashed counter-culture figure back in the '60s.

"I've sort of been embarrassed to be called a Pirate over the last 15 years, and that hurts," he said. "You have to give the fans something. They deserve something. Let's hope that management takes notice."

Bob Nutting, the chairman of the Pirates, issued a statement Friday admitting this year's record has been a disappointment while acknowledging the passion of the fans who organized last night's gesture.

"Frankly, we all share in the frustration," said Mr. Nutting.



He appeared on the FSN telecast last night to repeat that the organization has not lost faith. Still, Mr. Nutting could not have imagined that when he stepped into the spotlight in January as the primary face of the Pirates that his picture would have appeared on phony money being circulated as part of last night's protest.

"What he said isn't good enough," said Mr. Chomos, a father of three and a lifelong baseball fan. "If the Nuttings are allowed to continue to run PNC as an amusement park, we've all lost."

Those on the field and in the dugout were focused on the game rather than what went on in the stands. But putting up six runs in the second inning perhaps softened some of the frustration everyone shares.

"We might have changed a couple of people's minds about leaving because we were swinging the bats so well," said Jack Wilson, the longest tenured Pirate on the roster. "Fans have every right to be upset with 14 years of losing. I've been here for six of them. I put some of the blame on myself. But it was a nice feeling knowing there were more people behind our backs, supporting us."

One of the quirks of the evening was that the protest fell on a night when bobblehead dolls of Bob Walk were given out. Now a broadcaster with the Pirates, he was a pitcher with the team when it last won a division title.



Two fans -- Brock Masters, 22, of Kittanning and Robby Bell, 21, of Penn Hills -- who held a banner aloft from the left field rotunda said they were escorted out by security in the bottom of the third. The bedsheet read: "Worst MLB Owners."

"We just wanted to express our opinion," Mr. Masters said, holding the banner aloft on Federal Street outside the ballpark. "Management doesn't want to accept the truth about how terrible things are. We won't pay to go to any more games."

Protesters Brieann McGavitt, 22, and Matt Klima, 22, of California, Pa., both wore T-shirts bearing likenesses of Bob Nutting, Kevin McClatchy and general manager Dave Littlefield above the words: "Axis Of Evil."



As another season walks on by, the Pirates are 35-45 following the 7-2 win last night over the Washington Nationals, a franchise that relocated from Montreal when fans stopped going to games and no stadium deal could be reached.

The losing record comes on the heels of 14 seasons of failing to win more games than they lose. The record for most losing seasons by one franchise belongs to the Philadelphia Phillies, who went 16 seasons between 1933 and 1948 without finishing above .500. The last team to have 15 straight losing seasons was the Philadelphia/Kansas City A's between 1953 and 1967.

One Shaler couple did not take part in the walkout because they refused to buy tickets. But they attended the pre-game rally.

"I'm fed up because they don't spend money the way they should," said June Coleman. "We pay the taxes that built this ballpark and don't have anything to show for it. I'm not going to any more games until something changes. Where's all the money going?'

"I'm bobbleheaded to death," said her husband, Ernie. "I don't want anymore giveaways. I want a winning team."


(Robert Dvorchak can be reached at bdvorchak@post-gazette.com or at 412-263-1959.)