It's a well-known fact the Pirates are just about the worst teams in Major League Baseball. That fact, however, is not readily apparent from looking at certain segments of the team.

For example, a club that was 30-60 wouldn't figure to have two All-Star quality players, but the Pirates did in Jason Bay and Freddy Sanchez.

Offensively, the Pirates are not a juggernaut, but going into this weekend's games against Washington they were sixth in team batting (out of 16) and seventh in home runs, which is not what you'd normally expect from a team with such a miserable record.

Likewise, the bullpen hasn't been dominant but nor has it been disgraceful. The Pirates relief corps was fourth in the National League in earned run average and closer Mike Gonzalez picked up his 14th save in 14 tries Friday night.

Which means, beyond a doubt, the major reason for the Pirates stunningly inept season has been its starting rotation, which has been six degrees south of awful.

Consider these statistics:

Pirates starters were 15th in ERA in the National League, 16th and last in opponent's batting average (a robust .303), 16th in walks and 16th in walks and hits per inning.

They were 14th in innings pitched, which means they are taking their starts not nearly deep enough into games and putting additional pressure on the bullpen.

While the wretched seasons of Kip Wells and Oliver Perez are a factor in dragging down the team numbers, the other starters also have not helped. Official individual statistics only include pitchers who have thrown as many innings as games their team has played. There are only 46 such pitchers in the National League and the Pirates have three of them: Zach Duke (6-8), Paul Maholm (3-8) and Ian Snell (8-6).

All three rank near the bottom in most important categories.

In earned run average, Dukes was 40th, Maholm 38th and Snell 29th.

In opponent's batting average, Maholm was 46th, Duke 42nd and Snell 39th.

In opponent's on-base percentage, Maholm was 46th, Duke 44th and Snell 39th.

In the case of Duke and Maholm these numbers are particularly alarming since both were so outstanding as rookies last season. Duke was 8-2 with a 1.81 ERA; Maholm 3-1 with a 2.18 ERA. There was a belief the two would flourish even more under the tutelage of new pitching coach Jim Colborn. It hasn't come close to working that way. No one expected the kind of results Duke and Maholm had in 2005. Young pitchers have a tendency to be inconsistent. But nor did anyone expect this much decline.

Despite the numbers, manager Jim Tracy claims not to be concerned. Speaking of Duke and Maholm and other young Pirates, he said, "I can't sit here and say any of them have gone backwards [in their development]. In fact, I think they've gone forward."

Say what?

Asked specifically about Duke and Maholm and without their won-loss record being mentioned, Tracy said, "To say they've done well or poorly based on the number of games they've won or lost is not really the way I look at it."

Duke was mediocre again Friday night in a win against the Nationals. In 5 ²/₃ innings he allowed three runs on seven hits while walking four and striking out two. Although he frequently has been effective, he has been nowhere close to the dominating pitcher he was last year.

"Inconsistency has been hurting me all year," Duke said. "I have that one inning where I kind of lose my feel for it and that's really unacceptable."

The only positive about Maholm, who is scheduled to start this afternoon against the Nationals, is that he's gaining experience pitching out of jams. No pitcher in the league puts more men on base.

Neither Duke nor Maholm overpower batters. Both must rely on finesse and a good defense. Part of their problem has been the lack of a good defense. Neither shortstop Jack Wilson nor second baseman Jose Castillo is having the kind of season in the field they had last year. They aren't getting to as many balls and their double play magic is not there.

Tracy said he did not want to point fingers but noted, "In order to make them [Duke and Maholm] as good as they can possibly be, you have to make plays for them. That's not asking too much."

The young pitchers need better defense behind them but they also need to give better performances themselves.

Very few young pitchers have a steady upward curve in the development. There are good starts, bad starts; good months, bad months; good seasons, bad seasons.

This season is another step in the maturation process for these two, as well as for Snell and recently recalled Tom Gorzelanny.

Duke, extremely poised for 23, takes a mature approach.

"It's a learning process," he said. "I can't be disappointed with what's in the past. There's nothing I can do about it. I have to be optimistic about the future."