Monthly Archives: February, 2010

Last season, Delwyn Young was red-hot off the bench after Neal Huntington acquired him in an April trade. When Freddy Sanchez was dealt in July, the Pirates gave Young an opportunity to play every day at second base. He responded by slumping badly for the remainder of the season. Many attributed this nose-dive to the extra defensive work Young was putting in daily with Perry Hill. But simple regression was more likely the issue.

Three pitchers... two with similar names.... Zack (Zackry) Dodson was the Pirates' 4th round pick in the 2009 draft. �He's a lefty from Texas, who decided against going to Baylor University in favor of pitching for the Pirates. �Dodson is 6' 2" and weighs 190 lbs. �Dodson is said to throw in the low 90's, with a good curve ball. �He's not bad at the plate, either, hitting .465 with 11 homers in his senior year, when he was in the outfielder instead of on the mound. �It took Dodson several weeks to get around to signing, so his professional debut on August 31st with the GCL Pirates was his only game of the season. �Dodson pitched one inning, and mowed 'em down, with two ground outs and a strikeout. Zach (Zachary) von Rosenberg was picked just 2 rounds after Dodson. �Von Rosenberg is the righty, and is a little bigger: �6' 5" and 205 lbs. �Like Dodson, Von Rosenberg decided to forgo college (LSU) in favor of jumping right into the pros. �His velocity is reported to be a little less than Dodson's (89 - 90), but he has a good change-up to go along with his good curve. �Von Rosenberg also signed relatively late, and also made his pro debut in that same game on August 31st. �Von Rosenberg made the start for the GCL Pirates. �He struck out the first batter he faced as a pro, then recorded a pop up and a ground out, and then turned the ball over to Dodson. Both Zack and Zach are in similar circumstances for 2010: �where they are placed to begin the season is going to depend on what the Pirates saw last fall in instrux, and what they show in spring training. �Either or both could land in A West Virginia, Short Season A State College, or back for a little more work with the GCL Pirates. Another pitcher in a similar situation is lefty Colton Cain. Cain was the Pirates' 8th round pick, lured away from college in Texas. �He's 6' 3" and 225 lb, and like Dodson, Cain also played another position well -- first base. �Cain also signed late and did not get to play in the GCL before the season ended. �He is likely to get his feet wet in the GCL, then possibly move up to State College. Other news: Caribbean Series: The Dominican Republic began the day with a 4-1 record, and Puerto Rico began with a 3-2 record. �A win by Puerto Rico combined with a loss by the Dominicans would result in a tie, and a playoff game on Monday. �Any other combination, and the Dominican Republic would take the Series. Game 1: �Puerto Rico 8, Mexico 2 Puerto Rico was not going to just hand anything to the Dominican Republic. �They beat Mexico handily -- Mexico's only runs came on a 2-run blast by SS Luis Cruz in the 4th inning. �2B Luis Figueroa singled, reached on a force play, and scored twice for Puerto Rico. �Then the Puerto Ricans had to sit back and wait to see what the Dominican Republic team was going to do. Game 2: Dominican Republic 7, �Venezuela 4 The Dominican Republic jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the top of the 1st. �They loaded the bases with two walks and a single, then brought in two runs with a single and a throwing error, another run on a balk, and the fourth run on another RBI single. �They added two more runs in the 5th on a double, two singles, and another error. �Two walks and a single loaded the bases again in the 7th, and a wild pitch brought in a seventh run. �Five Dominican pitchers held the Venezuelans to just 3 hits. �Venezuela scored their first run in the 4th on a double and a sacrifice fly by DH Mike Ryan. A 3-run homer after a hit batter and a single made the score 6-4 after 5 innings. �Juan Perez pitched the 6th inning for the Dominicans, and got a ground out and two strikeouts. �The win gives the Dominican Republic (and Leones del Escogido) their first Caribbean Series win since 1990.

It is a common complaint among fans. But is it accurate?

Looking at some of the Pirates' prospects while we're waiting for spring training to start... Infielder Gift (Mpho) Ngoepe comes to the Pirates from South Africa. �Baseball is a club sport in South Africa, and Ngoepe grew up virtually on the field, as his mom ran the Randburg team's clubhouse. �Ngoepe arrived in the US last spring after playing for the South African team in the World Baseball Classic. �The South Africans generally played about as well as you might have expected, but Ngoepe did make some nice plays in the field, and he did hit back-to-back triples off veteran Mexican pitcher Elmer Dessens. �Ngoepe got himself adjusted to life as a professional baseball player in the US. �He was assigned to the GCL Pirates, and got off to a great start, hitting over.300 during the first few weeks of their season. �Things slipped in later July and into August, though, and he hit only .214 for the month of August. �He finished the short GCL season with a .238 average -- 4 doubles and one homer, 9 RBI, 21 walks, and 52 strikeouts. �He stole 13 bases but was caught 9 times. �The concept of "plate discipline" is pretty much non-existent in South African baseball, but Ngoepe is going to have to figure it out now that he's in the US. �He's just turned 20, and still could develop more power, though he is not a big guy (5' 10", 165 lb). �On the field, Ngoepe played mostly second base and also some shortstop. �He committed just 6 errors, which is a plus. �Ngoepe might need to spend a little more time in the GCL, but he is likely to get to State College some time in 2010. Other news: Caribbean Series The Dominican Republic lost their first game of the series on Friday, as Puerto Rico took the 7-3 victory. �Dominican reliever Juan Perez gave up an RBI ground out and an RBI single in the 6th inning of that game. �Mexico scored the winning run in the bottom of the 10th to beat Venezuela 3-2 on Friday. �LF Mike Ryan scored Venezuela's first run with a solo homer in the 2nd inning. �SS Luis Cruz singled for Mexico but didn't score. � On Saturday, the Dominican Republic came roaring back after their loss, posting 10 hits in a 7-2 win over Mexico. �The Dominicans scored in 5 innings. �Mexico scored their two runs on a home run in the 1st inning, but were held to just 2 hits over the rest of the game. �The Puerto Rican team's 7-1 win over Venezuela kept them in contention for the series championship -- if Puerto Rico wins and the Dominican Republic loses on Sunday, then those two teams will be tied at 4 wins and 2 loses. �The Venezuelans were held to just 4 hits and scored only one run, which came on a sacrifice fly in the 5th. �Puerto Rico scored 3 runs in each of the 5th and 6th innings, and SS Luis Figueroa contributed an RBI single in the 3rd.

I just stumbled upon some video from the Arizona Fall League, via John Sickels' website. This was posted back in November, but I...

As I went to bed last night, I had a couple of tentative ideas on how I would spend my Saturday morning. First on...

While we're waiting for spring training to start.... Let's begin looking at some of the minor league prospects in preparation for the 2010 season. �These will not be in any particular order, though we'll generally go from the lower levels to the upper levels. To get started.... Rogelios Noris OF�Rogelios Noris is the hometown hero who made his Mexican Pacific League debut for Los Venados de Mazatlan this winter. �Noris, who will turn 21 next month, hit .333 for Mazatlan, including 3 doubles, a homer, and 2 RBI in his rookie MPL experience. �Noris also made his US debut in 2009, after two seasons in the Venezuelan Summer League. �In 41 games for the GCL Pirates, he hit .250, with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 6 homers, and 24 RBI. �His 51 strikeouts (.375 % of ab's) is clearly a concern, but he did drop that rate to 27% in Mazatlan. � He'll need to work on some plate discipline in 2010, to drop the strikeout rate and increase his walks (11 in 2009). �Noris might be ready for A West Virginia, but might benefit from some time at (Short Season) State College. �He's getting a little bit "old" for the Gulf Coast League at this point. Other news: LHP Bobby Livingston, who pitched in Indianapolis in 2009, has signed a contract with the Mets for 2010. �He made one start for the Indians, after being acquired from the Cleveland organization on September 1st. �That one start was in the 16-inning marathon on Sept 4th , when Livingston pitched 7 innings and allowed one earned run and one unearned run on 6 hits and 2 walks, with 3 strikeouts. �He left the game long before the fun was over. Caribbean Series The Dominican Republic (Escogido) has won all three of their games so far in the round-robin tournament, while the other three teams -- Mexico (Hermosillo), Puerto Rico (Mayaguez), and Venezuela (Caracas)-- all have a 1-2 record. �A few former Pirates/Indy Indians are involved in the series. �C Carlos Maldonado has appeared in all three of Venezuela's games, but has just one hit in 10 at-bats, plus 2 walks and 4 strikeouts. �OF Mike Ryan went 2-for-4 in Venezuela's first game, but has been 0-for-9 with 5 strikeouts in the next two games. �SS Luis Figueroa had 3 hits and a walk for Puerto Rico in last night's win over Mexico, bringing him to 4-for-12. �2B Luis Cruz is 1-for-8 for Mexico, with an RBI in last night's game. �(The winning team from each country is allowed to pick up players from other teams in their own league to play in the Caribbean Series, so not all of these players are with their original winter league teams.)

I am looking back to 1996, the last time the Pirates attempted an all-or-nothing rebuilding project.  You can find previous installments of this series...

Just in case you're counting.... the minor league Opening Day is 9 weeks from today. The Pirates have added three more players to their minor league ranks: Anthony Norman is a 25-year-old outfielder from California. �He went undrafted out of UCLA, where he hit .270 in his third season on the team (2006), with 7 RBI. �The Angels picked him up in 2007 and he spent the season with their Arizona (Rookie) League team, appearing in 44 games. �He hit much better -- a league leading .362 average, with 4 doubles, a whopping 10 triples (also leading the league), and 33 RBI. �His OBP of .440 was third in the league. � �Norman was named the Arizona Rookie League MVP, as well as the Topps AZL Player of the Year. �All that earned him a bump up to A+ in 2008 (plus one game at the A level, in which he went 1-for-3). �At �A+ Rancho Cucamonga, Norman �showed more power, as he hit .257 with a .381 OBP, including 16 doubles, 9 triples, 15 homers, and 44 RBI. �He struck out 76 times, though. �Norman also showed some speed on the basepaths, with 36 steals. � The 2009 season began with Norman back at Rancho Cucamonga, where he struggled in the opening weeks of the season. �He hit .194 in April, with just 2 doubles, one homer, and 6 RBI. �May was better, with a .273 average, 2 doubles, another homer, and 12 RBI. �That gave him an overall .238 average, with a .326 OBP. �He also made one appearance on the mound, probably in a blow-out situation; he pitched 1.1 innings and walked 2 batters, but did not give up a hit or a run. �Norman was released by the Angels at the end of May, but was picked up by the St. Paul Saints in the independent American Association. �He appeared in 39 games for the Saints, and hit .264, with 11 doubles, 2 homers, and 19 RBI. �The Pirates have signed Norman to a minor league contract (no invitation to major league spring training), hoping that he regains his earlier form. �He will probably be assigned to the new A+ Bradenton Marauders, at least until the Pirates see what he can do. Infielder Kevin Melillo is a minor league veteran who will be 28 years old in May. �The Florida native�can play anywhere in the infield, though he spent most of his time at the corner positions in the recent past. �Melillo was the Oakland A's 5th round pick in the 2004 draft, and he remained in their system, working his way up, through 2007. �His batting average tailed off as he climbed higher in the organization, though, and his strikeout totals grew. �In 2007, at AAA Sacramento, Melillo hit .262, with 27 doubles, 6 triples, 10 homers, and 55 RBI, plus 54 walks and 100 strikeouts. �He made his major league debut in June 2007, when he appeared in his one and only game for the A's, and walked in his only plate appearance. �(Quick quiz -- how many players in major league history have done that? �Answer at the bottom.) �Melillo was back in Sacramento at the beginning of the 2008 season, where he hit .260 in 38 games, with 5 homers and 17 RBI. �That stint included a 10-game hitting streak. �He was traded to the Blue Jays and assigned to AAA Syracuse at the beginning of June and finished the season there, hitting at about the same clip: �.257 average, 9 homers and 36 RBI in 68 games. He signed a minor league contract with the Brewers for 2009 and was assigned to AA Huntsville. �For the Stars, Melillo hit .249, his lowest season average as a pro. �The season began reasonably well, as he hovered around the .275 mark for the first three months, but he slid down to .238 in July and to .143 in August. �The totalled 52 RBI for the season, with 22 doubles, 3 triples, and 9 homers. �If the Pirates figure Melillo to be a third baseman, he'll be standing in line in Indy.... more likely he'll be assigned to AA Altoona, and made to prove that last year's AA performance was just a fluke. Billy Killian was the Padres' 3rd round draft pick in 2004. �The Illinois native played for two seasons in the Padres' organization, mostly with their Arizona Rookie League affiliate. �His second stint in Arizona (2005) was his best, hitting .287 with 10 RBI in 32 games. �He was�moved up to Low A Eugene for 14 games in 2005, but hit .189 there. �He also made a cameo appearance with the AAA Portland team in 2004 (at age 18), and played in 3 games, going 1-for-7 at the plate. �Killian was traded to the Rangers before the 2006 season, and split that year between Low A Spokane and A Clinton. �He began 2007 in Spokane again, then was traded to the While Sox, but appeared in only 31 games during the entire season. �The White Sox placed him in A+ Winston-Salem for 2008, where he hit .206 while appearing in 47 games. �Killian moved on to the Baltimore organization for 2009, and played all season for A+ Frederick, but only got into 33 games. �He hit .216, with one double and 9 RBI. �Killian is reported to have a good arm, though it isn't much help when he's sitting on the bench. �Expect to see him as a back-up in West Virginia or Bradenton. Going elsewhere: �Infielder Angel Gonzalez, who split the 2009 season between Altoona and Lynchburg, has signed a minor league contract with the Nationals for 2010. �He struggled all season, hitting just .138 in 29 games for the Hillcats and .192 in 172 games for the Curve. Quick quiz answer: �Five players in MLB history "enjoy" the distinction of having made just one plate appearance and walked for their major league careers. �Kevin Melillo is #5; �Bill Veeck's friend Eddie Gaedel (wearing uniform number 1/8) was #4 on August 9, 1951. �#3-- Joe Cobb (Detroit), April 25, 1918. �#2 -- Bill Batsch (Pittsburgh), September 9, 1916. �#1-- Dutch Schirick (St. Louis Browns), September 17, 1914.

// Much of the 1996 rebuilding effort was made up of major trades that saw veteran Pirates leaving the city of Pittsburgh. Before...

“This is a growing process for us. We're not going to turn this thing around in one year. We have a five-year plan...

The Winter League Playoffs are over... and the winners are waiting for the Caribbean Classic, which begins on Tuesday. PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE PLAYOFFS -- Mayaguez wins 4-1 Indios de Mayaguez 3, �Criollos de Caguas 2 �(14 innings) This drawn-out contest was decided in the top of the 14th, �when Mayaguez scored on two singles and a sacrifice fly. �Caguas also managed a single in the bottom of the inning, but left the runner on base. �Mayaguez had scored their first two runs in the 4th on a single, a triple, and a sacrifice fly. �Caguas caught up with a run on a hit batter and two singles in the 7th, and two walks and a single in the bottom of the 9th. Caguas 9, �Mayaguez 2 Los Criollos got some revenge the next night, scoring in the first four innings, plus two more in the 7th. �SS Luis Figueroa scored twice -- once in the 1st, when he reached on a fielding error, stole second, advanced to third on a throwing error, and came in on a sacrifice fly; then again in the 3rd, when he led off with a walk, and another walk and two doubles followed. �This was Caguas' only win in the series. Mayaguez 8, �Caguas 6 Mayaguez ended the series with a hit-a-thon, stacking up 21 hits. �Los Indios scored first, with 3 runs in the 3rd and one in the 4th, then one more in the 7th inning. �Caguas scored one run in each of the 3rd and the 5th, and one more again in the 7th, on Luis Figueroa's RBI double. �Back-to-back homers by DH Cesar Nicolas and LF Aaron Bates tied the score at 5-5 in the bottom of the 8th inning. �Each team scored a run in the 10th inning, Mayaguez on a double and two singles, and Caguas on a walk, a wild pitch, and a single. �Los Indios won it with a single, a double, a single, a walk, and a sacrifice fly in the top of the 11th for the final win of the series. DOMINICAN LEAGUE PLAYOFFS -- Leones del Escogido wins 5-4 Leones del Escogido 4, �Gigantes del Cibao 3 �(11 innings) Juan Perez took the loss in this game. �The score was tied at 2-2 after 5 innings, and that tie lasted until the top of the 9th, when 1B Wilson Betemit homered for Los Gigantes. �Escogido responded with a run in the bottom of the frame on a single, a throwing error, and an RBI ground out. �Neither team scored in the 10th, and Los Gigantes put a runner on in the top of the 11th, but he was caught stealing. �Perez came on to pitch in the bottom of the 11th, and after one out, he gave up a double. �He got a ground out, which moved the runner to third, and two walks loaded the bases. �A walk-off single brought in the winning run. Los Leones 5, �Los Gigantes 2 Juan Perez got a chance to redeem himself in this game, though he could not lead his team to the win. �He did pitch a 1-2-3 inning for Los Gigantes in the 6th. �Escogido scored 3 runs in the 2nd inning, on a solo homer, two doubles, and a single. �Los Gigantes were held to just two singles over the first 7 innings (and one was erased with a double play), but finally got onto the scoreboard with a solo homer and another run on three singles in the 8th. �Escogido added two more runs in the top of the 9th to cap off their 5th win and the series. VENEZUELAN LEAGUE PLAYOFFS -- Leones del Caracas wins 4-3 Leones del Caracas 6, �Navegantes del Magallanes 3 Caracas was behind in this series, but came from behind with two wins in the last two games. �They took a big lead with 5 runs in the 4th inning, on back-to-back homers by C Carlos Maldonado (2 runs) and 2B Jose Lopez, then a walk and two doubles. �Another homer by RF Josh Kroeger added another run in the 5th. �Magallanes didn't score until the 8th inning, on a three-base fielding error and an RBI ground out. �A 2-run homer gave Los Navegantes two more runs in the 9th. �1B Yurendell de Caster singled for Magallanes in the 5th, but was out in a force play. Caracas 7, �Magallanes 2 C Carlos Maldonado was the hero of the series finale, with 4 of Caracas' 16 hits. �The first batter of the game, CF Gregor Blanco, got the fun started with a home run, and Maldonado's first single, plus another single, a double, and two errors gave Caracas 4 runs in the 1st inning. �Magallanes scored 2 in the bottom of the 2nd, on three singles (one by Yurendell de Caster), a walk, and a fielding error, but that was all they would get. �De Caster singled again in the 4th, and LF Mike Ryan doubled in the 5th, but both were left on base. �Maldonado singled again in the 5th, but did not score. �Jean Machi came on to pitch for Magallanes in the 8th, and Maldonado took Machi's first pitch into center field for a single. � A wild pitch and two more singles brought in Maldonado. �Maldonado also doubled to bring in two runs in the 9th inning, and Caracas had the series win. �Magallanes' starter, former Indy Indian (207) Jim Brower suffered the loss. MEXICAN PACIFIC LEAGUE PLAYOFFS �-- Naranjeros de Hermosillo wins 4-3 Naranjeros de Hermosillo 9, �Venados de Mazatlan 0 Mazatlan was shut out and held to just 5 hits and 2 walks. �Hermosillo plugged away, posting 13 hits and runs a bit at a time, ending with a 3-run homer in the 8th. Mazatlan 4, �Hermosillo 3 Los Venados got to Hermosillo starter Travis Blackley just a bit, scoring 3 runs in the bottom of the 3rd inning, on a lead-off homer and three singles. �Hermosillo scored one run in the 5th, on a single, an error, a walk, and a sacrifice fly. �They caught up with two runs on two doubles and a single in the 7th. �Mazatlan broke the tie in the bottom of the 8th. �DH Robert Saucedo led off with a single, and Rogelios Noris came in as his pinch-runner. �Noris moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt, and after a walk, he scored on an RBI single to give Mazatlan the win. Hermosillo 1, �Mazatlan 0 Hermosillo took the series win with just one run, even though they were out-hit 6-3. �Mazatlan starter Walter Silva pitched 8 innings and gave up just 2 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 7 batters. �But, the first Naranjeros batter to face him tripled, and a sacrifice fly gave Hermosillo their lone run in the top of the 1st. �Mazatlan put a runner on base in all but the 4th and 9th innings, but in only one of those innings (6th) were they able to put two runners on base at the same time.