Bucs to Ink Veteran Hurler

With just three weeks until the MLB All Star Game, our beloved Battlin' Buccos could pull off an intriguing free agent signing, as they are rumored to be in ongoing negotiations with the agent of veteran closer, Kenny Powers. Powers, recently released from Seattle, at one time possessed a fastball clocked at 101 MPH, although scouts say he's only capping out in the high 80's these days. The one time phenom has been a fading star over the last several years, just the type of bargain the thrifty Bucs are always on the lookout for.

With all things considered, Powers' physical stature is still quite intriguing. The fires of competition appear to still be burning inside the guy, and he diligently maintains an at-home conditioning program while he awaits that big phone call. Check out the training video that Post-Gazette tracked down this morning. Imagine this stud in Black and Gold.

A Look at the Rook

In the midst of cranking out one of my rare evening posts, I thought I'd get everyone up to speed on how rookie phenom Drew McCutchen is looking through his first three weeks in the Bigs. I must say, so not bad. Check out his baseballreference.com link and you will see some interesting numbers. Despite a very meager strikeout/walk ratio and some relatively low power numbers, the rest of the picture is pretty darn good. 5 triples in 19 starts?! Really? That translates to, oh, about, 40 three baggers over a full season! Amazingly, Mac already leads the NL in that category, thus either saying something about his fleet feet or the disappearance of triples in modern baseball.

More interesting are his production numbers. With 15 RBI's in 19 starts, he once again is projecting out to around 120 ribbies over a full season. In the National League, 70 RBI's in a season is more than acceptable for a leadoff guy, and anything over 85 or so is pretty good. Again, I realize that we have only seen Drew Mac for three weeks, but the fact that he's knocking in runs at this regularity is refreshing.




lets hope Mac hits better than he shaves

What's even more refreshing is this faint scent of hope lingering above the PNC Park bleacher section these days. Dare I dream, but at this point next season, the Buccos order could start like this: McCutchen, Sanchez, Doumit, and Alvarez. Beyond that depends on the long term situation of the Bros LaRoche and whether the Bucs' front office is going to pull the plug on projects Steve Pearce and Neil Walker. Who knows, at least it will be a younger and harder hitting team to not go see.

Oh, Those LaRoche Boys

Remember the good ole' days when you only had to worry about one LaRoche in the lineup? Doubling that equation is almost too much to handle. All Things LaRoche is the story probably best suited for reality TV, or even a prime time soap. If it isn't the cold streaks followed by torrid nights, it's the gold glove efforts followed up by evenings of zany fielding gaffes.

At this point in my blogging career, I really have no way to summarize the existence of the LaRoche Brothers. Certainly they are not the Waners, the Dimaggios, or even the Giambis. If Adam was a thoroughbred, he'd be what the race folks refer to as a 'front runner'. In other words, the horse that performs mightily when he's out front and is under no pressure. If Andy were a race horse, well, he'd probably have been put down by now, but hey, the world always needs more glue.

Last night's installment of the LaRoche Chronicles was really no oddity, regardless of how bizarre the box score reads. A slugfest by big brother followed by fielding woes by baby brother. Please pass the Tumms. One can only wonder if 2010 will bring us a third LaRoche.

QUICK HITTERS:

• How about that Zach Duke? The left arm of God has once again logged another quality start. Can you believe that Duke has 25% of the Bucs total wins and is on pace for an 18 win season?


• Andrew McCutchen should already be working on his acceptance speech for the NL Rookie of the Month for June. Next stop, ROY???

Mistake By The River

The greatly ballyhooed and well over hyped turnpike series between the Cleveland Indians and our lovable losers, aka, the Bucs, commenced last evening with a whimper, then a bang, and then another whimper. Sadly, the bang and the second whimper both belonged to MLB's poorest excuse for a cleanup hitter, Mr. Adam LaRoche. Much ado about nothing.

That LaRoche leaves the bases jammed during a rally in the bottom of the ninth is as equally typical as it is inexcusable. We can all banter back and forth regarding organizational philosophies, and what the definitions of words like "now" and "near future" are, but the bottom line here is that situations like last night are games that can be won, and just aren't. Last night's loss has nothing to do with the trade of Nate McLouth, the trade rumors of Jack Wilson and Freddy Sanchez, or whether the Bucs are serious about latin American superstud, Miguel Sano. It's all about execution. Something that is expected from stars and role players. Ask the guy across town who, like LaRoche, also wears #25 and some facial hair. The similarities end there. You'll probably find him sipping something frothy out of a rather large silver trophy right now. He'll tell you all about execution.

A guy like LaRoche can put up 25 homers and 85 RBI's year after year, but until he starts getting that base hit when the game is on the line, he's just another mope trying to fill up a stat sheet...holding down the cleanup spot on a 70 win team in the process.

Quick Hitters:

• Remember a young, flashy, top of the rotation guy named Ian Snell? Naw, me either. Sadly, the mercurial Snell is probably another bad start or two away from complete obscurity.
• How about Pedro Alvarez getting bumped up to AA Altoona after less than a half season of pro ball? Alvarez will most likely be a September call up when the rosters expand to 40, and he very well may be in a Bucco uni on opening day 2010. Oh crap, and I just bought my Andy LaRoche jersey...

Maxed Out

It's a red letter day for all you Max Starks fans...all 10 of you. The Steelers just announced that Starks will be signed to a long term deal, holding (no pun on the use of that word) him in town through the 2012 season. With Starks being an adequate, at best, offensive tackle, the real victory for the North Shore boys is the cap room the deal will free up for 2009. Since the team was already on the hook for Starks' franchise player tag and the nearly $8 mill in salary that comes along with it, the savings towards this year, under the new deal, may be as much as $4 million. Hopefully, that extra cash may be used in re-upping tight end, Heath Miller.

now that God has sent him the contract, maybe he could send him some skills

A Great Day for a Parade

Another championship game. Another trophy. Another parade. Another entry in the scrapbook of our lives. History continues to develop in this never ending dreamlike year of 2009. Thanks to our very own A Dawg for submitting some cool glimpses of a great day...

Pascal Dupuis showcasing new body art

Mama Malkin eyes a new dispenser for her borst soup

priceless

A Great Day for Hockey

What a glorious morning! Break out those vintage "City of Champions" tee-shirts, crank up the old Sister Sledge records, and pour yourself a frosty I.C. Lite (the beer drinker's beer), because your Penguins just refused to be outdone by your Steelers! Now, your Pirates...well, that's another story...

Check out this congratulatory article written by a Cleveland blogger, and then the civil unrest he inspired with his readers. If you feel spoiled as a Pittsburgh fan, you should. The last five months in our sports lives have been nothing short of incredible. And don't sweat those Buccos...as Meatloaf soulfully crooned, "Two outa three ain't bad".

QUICK HITTERS:

• Kudos to me for calling Mad Max last night. Let's face it, though, predicting Max coming up big on a big stage is like forecasting that MP will be piss drunk by 9 pm on any given night. No real stretch.


• Mario still looking dapper, now hoisting the cup in his Armani suit! I still say that the NHL should require that all owners appear in at least one playoff game. Think we'd have the upper hand?


• What more can be said about talisman extraordinaire, MA Fleury. Just six days after being chased off the ice, he responds with Roy-esque dominance while staving off elimination in consecutive games. Well done, Flower. You were my choice for the Conn Smythe.


• Rumor has it that the NHL front office guys are considering re-naming the dinky runner up trophy the "Marian Hossa Cup" (picture below). Hey, Marian where is that $34 million you scorned?? Oh, yeah, I forgot, in Mario's wallet...which he now keeps on his desk next to the Stanley Cup!

The Hossa Cup will be awarded to runners-up, losers, and douche bags

The Jilted Lover

Have you ever been cheated on? Of course you have. What red blooded American man hasn't had his life destroyed at least once by a conniving bitch? Have you ever been downsized, or dealt with in an unsavory manner by your employer? I'm sure you have. The fact that you're reading this blog during prime business hours tells me that you're probably not a cracker jack worker bee. I'm guessing that your car doesn't spend many days parked in the employee-of-the-month spot.

How does this make you feel? Whether deserved or not, no one likes to feel scorned. Put yourself in the shoes of Buccos pitcher Jeff Karstens. Holding down the fifth spot in the Bucs' rotation all spring, Karstens was served a little notice when the team traded for Braves' prospect, Charlie Morton. In fact, Morton was given the start last night, as Karstens was sent to the bullpen for middle innings, long relief, and mop up duties. In the baseball world, Karstens was handed the classic, "I just want to be friends" line.

Well, as luck would have it, new-guy-in-town, Morton would blow out his hammy after one whole inning. So guess who gets the call to get his hiny loosened up and out to the mound...pronto? You guessed it, the previously scorned Jeff Karstens. I guess that's the equivalence of getting that call from your ex-lady and hearing that she's just discovered that her new man lives with his mom, fantasizes about Hannah Montana, or experiences occasional erectile dysfunction.

In seriousness, some credit needs to go out to Karstens on this one. He jumped on the hill with short notice and pitched 4+ strong innings, propelling the Bucs to victory. All in all, I'm not sure what moral, if any, this story holds. Perhaps Karstens' strong effort was inspired by the feeling of scorn or betrayal. Maybe a little shake up was necessary to motivate the youngster to produce at the major league level. Maybe the Pirates' management will have an interesting problem soon. I just know that in 4 days, it's going to be interesting to see who takes the mound.

Karstens handled his 23 minute demotion to the bullpen with grace and dignity

A Date with Destiny

Perhaps it was the NHL equivalent of Larry Fitzgerald's dramatic (and for some, sickening) sprint to the endzone in the fourth quarter of Superbowl 43. Perhaps it was just prevention of an enemy's celebration on the home battleground. Perhaps it was just a strong individual effort from a guy who has been enduring a turbulent ride of highs and lows over the last 8 weeks.

However you need to qualify or quantify the Penguins' epic performance in last night's Game 6, the end result is all the same: series tied, dramatic Game 7 looming. Kudos to M. A. Fleury for ridding his heart and mind of the embarrassing thumping he took on Game 5. A goalie is like an accountant, when he's doing his job, you aren't thinking about him all that much. Fleury quickly re-established his teammates' (and more importantly, his own) confidence in his ability to slam the door, and by doing so, he's afforded himself one last shot at redemption in his own personal House of Pain, aka, Joe Louis Arena. Oh, and for the record, let's hope that our spry netminder doesn't require the assistance of Rob Scuderi's left skate on Friday!

Quick Hitters:

• Kudos to MP for calling the goal from Tyler Kennedy of Whoville.
• Is it just me, or does it seem like Fleury needs to fall and/or lose his stick at least once every night?
• A quick nod to defensemen Gill and Orpik for stepping up and playing sound and solid defense.
• Another shout to "interim" coach Danny Bylsma for once again instilling the confidence in his boys to play like killers.

Brooks Orpik demonstrates the classic glove-to-the-face defense, as seen on early Three Stooges films

Welcome to the 'Burgh, Kid

Rookie sensation Andrew McCutchen got his first true glimpse at the frustrations that teammates Freddy Sanchez and Paul Maholm have endured for years...wasted effort. McCutchen had the biggest night in his young career, going 4 for 7 with a double, a pair of triples, and 2 runs scored; all for not, however, as the Bucs squandered numerous opportunities before finally succumbing to the Braves 7-6 in 15 innings.

Ironically, Nate McLouth, another guy who has seen his performances wasted in a Pirates uni, rocked a homer off former Bucco and Altoona Curve mate, Zach Duke, in a winning effort. As they say, fate is not without a sense of irony.

Quick Hitters:

• With McCutchen replacing Nate, he joins Nyjer Morgan and Brandon Moss in the Bucs' starting outfield. This trio has a combined 1 whopping home run on the season. At this point last year, the starting outfield of Jason Bay, X Man Nady and McLouth already had over 30 combined dingers. Astonishing even for the Buccos.
• If you're feeling uneasy, you should. Mid-June is generally when the Bucs begin to entertain multiple losing skids. With no McLouth or Doumit in the lineup, it may just be a matter of time until the team is dozen or so games under .500
• 51 days until Latrobe!

Ass Cheek Zamboni Volume 2

I finally got the Candyman's shot on Helm. Enjoy...

Game On!

My texting happy niece would sum it up with three simple keystrokes...OMG. The voice on that really cool Vs. commercial would say it like this, "and don't be surprised if the little guy just decides to take a pass on yelling 'uncle', and now we got ourselves a game." Finally, to repeat myself from two mornings earlier: David just got a little taller, and Goliath just got a little smaller.

However you want to sum up the Pittsburgh Penguins memorable victory in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals is your business, but get Lord Stanley on the horn and tell him to order extra beer. The denial is now over. This is now a series. This is no longer the favorite vs. the underdog, the champion vs. the challenger, the veteran vs. the youth, or the confident vs. the frightened, this is now the tired vs. the emerging.

The Penguins are rallying in this series by living on both sides of blue. WTF??, you ask. I'm talking about blending highlight reel antics from the blue chippers with gritty, desperate efforts from the blue collars. The efforts are running deep with the skaters, and MA Fleury, well, he's been what a Stanley Cup hoisting netminder should be.

Enjoy your coffee with this little YouTube clip of a really big 67 seconds in Pittsburgh lore...

Nate Who??!!

Move over Sid, Geno, Jordan, and Santonio. Pittsburgh's got a new addition to the exclusive 25 and under sports phenom club: Andrew McCutchen. The Battlins' ushered in the Drew Mac era today by manloving the New York Mets, sans lubricant, 11-6 at PNC Park. How'd the rook look, you ask? Try two for four with a stolen base, and much more importantly, three runs scored. Three runs from your leadoff guy, huh? Imagine that.

Here's to another new beginning

Nate and the Irate

Unfortunately for the Pirates' front office, most of the Pennsylvania National Guardsmen are currently overseas engaging in the Global War on Terror. Luckily for the Buccos' brass, however, every Western PA sports fan is either focused on the Pens' Game 4 or Big Ben's tweaked knee, and therefore, the soon to be highly controversial trading of Nate McLouth is still relatively unnoticed. So maybe the potential riots will be minor, and our guardsmen won't be necessary.

For those of you that live your lives outside of the never ending saga of Pirate futility, let me break this news: the Bucs' just pulled off a trade to send the vastly popular All Star centerfielder to the Altanta Braves for three...you guessed it, prospects. In addition to the speed/power mix that Nate the Great displayed over the last few seasons, he'll be packing up his Gold Glove, as well. A nice commodity, given that his workplace, the PNC Park centerfield, was the most spacious in the National League.

Expect the scrutiny to be high on this one, but probably for the wrong reasons. This is not the classic David LittleBrain trade: quality for affordability. The Bucs' front office has maintained since their assembly in the winter of 2007 that long term competitiveness is the overall goal. Breaking the string of 16 consecutive losing seasons would be great for team and city, but it is clearly not the primary focus. GM Neal Huntington has eluded to 2010, but more like 2011, as the threshold to expect a winning product. With that being said, here are the reasons why this trade may make sense:

1. Despite his popularity, Nate is a good, but not great, ballplayer. Many baseball experts view him as performing near his ceiling, or in Buccos' brass lingo, at or near his highest possible trade value. If wins and losses in 2009 is not a concern, why not bring something in for him while he's still attractive? Again, I really enjoy Nate's game, but don't be shocked if he's a reserve or 4th outfielder somewhere in three years or so.
2. The real story here is a guy named Andrew McCutchen. For those of you that don't read this blog that closely, let me re-iterate that McCutchen is widely considered the best Pirate outfield prospect since Barry Bonds. Enough said, this guys needs to be in PNC Park getting regular at bats from real pitchers. This couldn't happen with Nate in his way.
3. Despite all those high draft picks that went into pitchers, the Bucs minor league system has virtually no quality arms. To get at least one, and possibly two, good arms, as well as an outfielder with a very high ceiling is a good thing for this team right now.

Who knows how this trade will impact us long term. The armchair and blogosphere Bucco critics are now conditioned to berate any trade that involves prospects in return. This criticism is genuinely fair, given that most of our blockbuster deals haven't panned out.

My thoughts are that if Drew McCutchen emerges, and performs as good, if not better than Nate has thus far in 2009, we may actually be better off right now. As always with the Bucs, only time will tell.

The Ass Cheek Zamboni

Hey, Hossa Fans! Here's the Asscheek Zamboni that your man now owns...courtesy of Mr. Brooks Orpik. Remember, we all know that Hossa loved the Penguins style, but he left to win...and to get his European ass laid out by the NHL's biggest hitter.



Now, can someone send me the link of Darren Helm getting his ass handed to him by #44...

We're just Mad about Max

Just call it getting it done. Marc Andre Fleury finally buckling down and making the saves that needed to be made, - getting it done. Captain Sid Crosby elevating his game, and by extension, his team, - getting it done. Matt Cooke showing his blue collar mates how to play relentlessly and desperately in a critical game, - getting it done. Last, and certainly not least, Max Talbot doing what Max Talbot does best, scoring the huge goal, - getting it done (twice).

The Pittsburgh Penguins restored a lot of respect and an equal portion of faith in their amazing spring story by notching a colossal win over the Detroit Red Wings last night at the Igloo in the pivotal Game Three of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals. David just got a little taller and Goliath just got a little smaller as our Flightless Birds have pulled within one home win of tying this series.

What more can be said about Mr. Talbot? A Dawg, PittsburghFan's local hockey expert, said it best last week, "Max may not score a lot of goals, but he scores BIG goals." Well said.

Quick Hitters:

• HBO ran Fred Claus at 8 pm last night. Karma? At this point, I can only watch the movie because super hottie Rachel Weisz renews my passion for busty British chicks.


• How about Candyman Brooks Orpik showing faggy Darren Helm (as he already did with Marian Hossa) how to execute the old fashioned asscheek Zamboni with his brutal neutral zone smackdown?


• Can anybody please tell Ed Olczyk that it's ok to not hate his former employers anymore? Ed, just let it go...