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Pirates Make Mistake With Russell

Authored by Douglas Benton - 6th November, 2007 - 11:17 am

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The Pittsburgh Pirates have a history of winning baseball. They won five World Series titles in their franchise history, the latest coming with the “We are Family” team in 1979. They were in the NLCS as late as 1992. However, they have had 15 straight losing seasons, and while they should be commended for not standing still with this problem, the hiring of John Russell as their new manager won’t change this ugly trend.

First, let’s outline a job description for the Pittsburgh Pirates. They have a young team with pieces talented enough to contend. There isn’t a lot of can’t miss talent left in the system, but the major league roster needs more seasoning as opposed to molding.

For hitters, you have to start with outfielder Jason Bay, who is a budding superstar that is just getting the national recognition he deserves. I also see outfielder Xavier Nady, infielder Freddy Sanchez and first baseman Andy LaRoche as proven major league bats. The biggest chore for Russell is deciding who to start at shortstop: Jack Wilson or Cesar Izturis.

However, it is the pitching that will be the biggest challenge for the new staff. The staff is very young but talented with Ian Snell, Tom Gorzelanny, Paul Maholm and Zach Duke. Some critics of former manager Jim Tracy said he didn’t manage his young staff well, so the pressure is already on Russell to develop his young starters better.

In lieu of these facts, I think Russell’s inexperience in the major leagues and somewhat sub-par minor league record leaves me questioning the first major decision of new General Manager Neal Huntington.

I would have rather them go after someone with a strong pitching background who was more familiar with the major league game. Some names that came to mind were Chicago Cubs’ pitching coach Larry Rothschild, who has managerial experience as well, or Giants' pitching coach Dave Righetti, who deserves a chance at managing after a very good playing career and strong work with the Giants.

Now, I applaud the Pirates for not going the retread route but rather going for fresh perspectives and ideas. However, this is a reach by any definition and will, at the very best, keep Pittsburgh stagnet during Russell’s tenure in the Steel City.

What do you think about John Russell’s hiring? Email your thoughts to Douglas.Benton@realgm.com

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