A thick slice of the shabby recent Pirates history was out at second base on the PNC Park grass last night, and I'm not talking about Bobby Hill.

No, it was the other second basemen, the one wearing a St. Louis Cardinals' uniform, whose major-league career says so much about why the Pirates franchise is what it is.

The St. Louis second baseman was Tony Womack, a former Pirate of some distinction. In 1997, Womack was integral to the 79-win season that has been the franchise's best since 1992. He batted first, hit .278, scored 85 runs, led the league in stolen bases with 60 and made the All-Star team. The next season, he hit .282, scored 85 runs and led the league with 58 stolen bases.

Off the field, he was just as good. He became involved in the community, did charity work, was an excellent spokesman for the team and always was a gentleman.

Those things don't mean much if you can't play. And the Pirates' hierarchy, despite some numbers that said otherwise, didn't think Womack could play.

Which is why in February 1999, shortly after he agreed to a contract that avoided arbitration and would pay him $1.65 million, Womack was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

For nothing.

In return, the Pirates received Paul Weichard, a long-since released outfielder who amounted to absolutely nothing, and pitcher Jason Boyd, who has been slightly better.

If the Pirates had been in a financial crunch -- as they were last season when they gave away Aramis Ramirez -- such a deal might have been understandable. But they decidedly were not.

Just two months later, they bestowed a four-year, $15 million contract on Pat Meares.

Those two moves, the trading of Womack and the signing of Meares, were the beginning of the end for general manager Cam Bonifay.

Meares, as is well known, had a hand injury and never approached mediocrity with the Pirates. Womack has continued his distinguished career; the Pirates have been continually searching for a second baseman.

Since Womack was traded, the club has used 18 second basemen without finding one it could keep. It's possible that Jose Castillo, who usually starts at second base this season, is the answer. But before anointing him, it's wise to remember another player who came after Womack: Warren Morris.

His tale is worth noting. In 1999, almost everyone thought the Pirates had their second baseman of the future when Morris emerged to surprisingly hit .288 with 15 home runs and 73 RBIs. Morris, who now plays in Class AAA, has had 984 major-league at bats since that rookie season and has hit only 11 home runs.

There were other reasons the Pirates traded Womack. There was a belief he wasn't quite good enough in the field and he didn't get on base enough to be a standout leadoff hitter.

The Pirates were partially correct. Womack didn't make it as a second baseman. He made it as a shortstop. For the world champions.

After spending a season in the outfield with Arizona, Womack took over at shortstop. He wasn't Ozzie Smith, but he was good enough to help the Diamondbacks win the World Series in 2001. His on-base percentage never reached the level expected of most leadoff hitters, but the Diamondbacks liked the speed he put at the top of their lineup.

His tying double in the ninth inning of Game 7 against the Yankees' Mariano Rivera set the stage for the Series-winning hit by Luis Gonzalez.

Womack appeared to be finished last season. Arizona traded him to Colorado and the Rockies traded him to the Chicago Cubs, who did not offer him a contract this season. He recovered from Tommy John surgery in October to go to spring training with Boston but not well enough to make the team. He was traded March 21 to St. Louis and was reborn. He won the second base job and was batting .305, with a .347 on-base average going into last night's game.

"If I'm healthy, I can still play this game," Womack said. "People said I couldn't come back from Tommy John surgery in five months and I did. If you take care of yourself, do the right things and someone gives you the chance to play, you can make it back."

Not surprisingly, Womack bears no grudge.

"Pittsburgh will never be out of my bloodstream," he said. "I'll always have a place in my heart for the Pirates. They drafted me, they gave me a chance to play every day, they let me make a name for myself so other teams might want me."

Drafting him and letting him play were the right things. Letting him go, history tells us, was definitely the wrong thing.