Pirates Q&A with Dejan Kovacevic

Friday, September 08, 2006

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Q: Dejan, with the Bucs now playing above-.500 baseball since the break, coupled with the September expansion of rosters, I was wondering what the Pirates consider more important the rest of the year, evaluation of players or winning games?

Kevin Van Asdalan of Banksville, Pittsburgh

KOVACEVIC: If the answer had to be one or the other, Kevin, I would say it leans toward winning.

From the standpoint of which personnel they are using, on one hand, you see Ryan Doumit out there regularly at first base. That obviously is a move aimed at the future. On the other, you still are not seeing Jose Bautista out there daily. Or, really, much of the recent callups except when absolutely necessary. Clearly, if the Pirates were doing nothing more than spring training type of evaluation, you would see much more of the experimental thing going on.

From another standpoint, though, it could be argued that winning right now is a method of development. Most of the Pirates' diamond, even the established guys, ranges from somewhat young to really young. As we saw in the first half of this season, this group was not exactly adept at pulling out the close ones or coming through when needed most. That tendency -- almost in bizarre fashion -- has reversed itself 180 degrees with the 12-2 record in one-run games since the break. Hence, winning now might mean more than, say, checking out Rajai Davis in center field.

This much I can tell you with certainty: The players -- the ones who count the most -- are enjoying the winning quite a bit.

Q: There was no champagne Tuesday night, but I did have a Michelob Ultra. We may not finish out of last place, but one day out of it did feel nice after 138 games in last place. Die-hards have to find bright spots wherever they can.

Dana C. Lane of Shirleysburg, Pa.

KOVACEVIC: Cheers, my friend.

Q: As you mentioned in an earlier column, the Pirates have one too many infielders, each of whom should be attractive trade-bait for a young left-handed power hitter. If you were GM, which infielder would you be most likely to offer along with which young starter?

Jack Belkin of Philadelphia

KOVACEVIC: To clarify first, Jack, I never said the Pirates had "too much" of anything. They are where they are in the standings for a reason and, other than young left-handed starters, they do not have more of any commodity than any contending team out there.

Rather than tell you what I think on this, I will try to provide a glimpse into the Pirates' thinking, which is infinitely more relevant:

Jose Castillo is the most obvious choice as odd man out, and he undoubtedly has frustrated management no end. Just seeing again his raging inconsistency on this road trip provides a reminder. To be sure, there are those in the organization who would welcome moving him, taking Freddy Sanchez to second base and using Bautista at third. (Or someone else at third and Bautista in right field, but that is another conversation for another day.)

At the same time, there are those who think it would border on insanity to move Castillo, given his potential and the chance he could blossom elsewhere.

Be sure that no decision has been made in this regard and that a tug-of-war is likely at the organizational meetings that follow the season.

As for starting pitching ... as always with the Pirates, they would be immensely reluctant to part with any of them. There is some thinking, too, that they might not be able to afford the luxury until they know more about Sean Burnett, John Van Benschoten and whoever they might acquire through free agency. And, of course, by the time those types of things are clearer, it probably is too late to involve a pitcher in any trade for a left-handed bat. Had Burnett performed better in Class AAA than he did, the decision would have been easier. He did not, though, and the expendability looks limited.

Q: Dejan, the Pirates seem to have cured the one-run loss disease that plagued them the first half of the season. The next glaring weakness is the total ineptitude against left-handed pitching, 9-34 for the season. Does the coaching staff have any answers for that record? Is batting practice always thrown from the right side and if so, have the coaches considered getting someone to throw BP from the left?

Brian Dulski of Bethel Park

KOVACEVIC: You know, as you mention it, that actually is the case: There are no left-handers throwing BP, where there used to be at least one with Spin Williams doing it.

Maybe you are onto something.

Or not.

I get lots of e-mail about that record vs. left-handers, but the far more telling figure is how the Pirates actually fare against left-handed pitchers. And you might be surprised to know that their .290 team batting average against lefties is second-best in the National League, their .355 on-base percentage is fifth, and their 42 home runs are fourth. In violent contrast, those numbers against righties are a .258 average that is 13th in the league, a .321 on-base percentage that is dead last, and 83 home runs, also dead last.

Now, how that translates into that terrible record when a lefty starts against them ... you can take that up with the Geek.

Q: Dejan, am I the only Pirates fan who is terrified that the MVP of our Class AAA Indy Indians was Carlos Maldonado, after batting .283 with six home runs and 47 RBIs? Is this really all we have down there?

Ryan Sweeney of Columbus, Ohio

KOVACEVIC: I must admit hesitating as I typed that into the Notebook the other night after the move was made. Obviously, the numbers are not outstanding.

I can tell you that, from a talk I had with Maldonado on Wednesday, his primary goal for the season was to pump up the average, even if that came at the expense of the limited power he had shown in previous years. As a result, he pretty much reinvented his swing, started driving more to the opposite field, shortened things up all around.

We are not likely to see much of him down the stretch, it would seem, with 78 catchers in the fold. But it does bear watching how he does.

Still, as you seem to see for yourself, the well of position players at the top two levels is extraordinarily dry, with the notable exceptions of Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker (and an honorable mention to Brent Lillibridge, promoted just this week to Altoona after a very, very good season in Class A).

The Pirates' explanation for this, you might have read, is that the move of several players to the majors over the past two seasons is to blame, and that it takes time to replenish. Upon closer inspection, though, the more direct reason appears to be a very poor draft in 2002 preceding a good one in 2003.

Q: Dejan, the Pirates will head into the offseason with a number of important decisions to make. The decision on Chris Duffy is key. He has really cut down on his strikeouts, though he does not have a very high on-base percentage. Has he shown the brass enough to hold center field for next year?

Jack McElligott of Lafayette, La.

KOVACEVIC: Not yet. And no, not even after the mind-boggling game he had yesterday.

He might have shown some modest signs of improvement at the plate, but measuring improvement with Duffy this season means starting at .194 and working your way up. He still strikes out once every five times up, including five more Ks on this road trip. And he still does not walk nearly enough to compensate for his lack of average. As noted the other day, his two-walk output on Monday was his first of the season. (Only the sixth for the Pirates out of the leadoff spot.)

I did not see how Duffy was going to prove much in the second half, even if he repeated his .341 performance of last year. There are a lot of questions, and the eyebrows -- fair or not -- might have been raised even if he had done extremely well, if only because of Adrian Brown, Tike Redman, etc.

What will the Pirates do?

Sounds like another one of those tug-of-war subjects for the organizational meetings.

Q: One month later, the Pirates, surprisingly, seem to have done a decent job at the trade deadline. Xavier Nady has turned out pretty well, the relievers seem to be major-league material sooner rather than later, and all three will be on the team for at least three more years.

However, I am still scratching my head about the Shawn Chacon trade. I think he could be a good reclamation project in a stress-free environment with a decent pitching coach. And he has shown he can excel in the highest-preasure places to pitch: Coors Field and Yankee Stadium. But I don't understand trading for him. He was obviously going to be released after the trade for Cory Lidle, and Craig Wilson should have fetched much more than a dead man walking.

How, oh, how could this be the best Littlefield could get? Was he just in love with Chacon like he was with Nady? Do you have any inside information to shed light on this most puzzling riddle?

Stephen Morrow of Friendship, Pittsburgh

KOVACEVIC: The best information I have from the Pirates is that they felt Chacon was the best offer they had on the table for Wilson, so they took it. On one hand, they wanted Wilson out. On another, they hoped that maybe Chacon would come here and have the same light flick on that led him to a fine 2005 with the Yankees. Obviously, that has not happened, and the injury -- whether a surprise to management or not -- has not helped.

Do not expect to see Chacon back in 2007.

Q: Dejan, my question pertains to the MLB draft and international players. My understanding is that the draft is for U.S. players only and players outside the U.S. are basically free agents that can be signed by any team.

If that is the case, wouldn't the internationalization of the draft be a small step toward competitive balance between small- and large- market teams? An international draft seems to work for the NHL. It seems to me that the Penguins never would have had a chance to get Evgeni Malkin if the NHL worked under the same rules and economical climate as MLB. He probably would have signed with a team like the Rangers or Red Wings.

Has this ever been mentioned during labor negotiations?

Mike Sullivan of Ross Township

KOVACEVIC: You raise a couple of small points I want to make before I answer, Mike:

1. The MLB first-year player draft, as it is called, is for players in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico. All players outside that are considered international and can go to the highest bidder, beginning at the very young age of 16.

2. No way I can let this one slip: Market size most often has little to do with the economic inequity in MLB. It usually is about the ownership's approach toward spending -- or investing -- in their existing customer base. Hence, a market such as St. Louis -- identical to Pittsburgh in nearly every way -- has a payroll that is nearly double that of the Pirates'.

3. I enjoyed your point of reference of the Red Wings as an NHL big spender. It is one that is cited often in the hockey world. Meanwhile, people in baseball still refer to the Tigers as some "small-market" surprise. Unless Detroit shifts population from summer to winter, neither is accurate. Detroit is a middle market within the parameters of professional sports, when looking at population base. The reality is that Mike Ilitch, who owns both teams, finally decided to spend some money on baseball.

I agree with you wholeheartedly on the subject of an international draft, Mike. Given that MLB is not exactly on the cusp of adopting the type of fair economic systems we now see in the other three major professional sports, it should take every other step imaginable to level the playing field.

There is another reason I feel this way, too: Currently, all MLB teams are investing millions upon millions of dollars to teach, feed and house young baseball players in Latin America while doing very, very little of that right here in the U.S. As a result, we are seeing the Latin talent pool swell while the national pastime suffers at the youth level, by every account.

Here is why: Teams know they can build an advantage by signing Latin teens and developing them on their own, essentially creating their own "draft picks," if you will. Hence, you see academies all across the Dominican, Venezuela and pretty much everywhere below the border at this point. In North America, everyone draws from the same pool, so no one needs to take the extra step of teaching the game to impoverished youth here rather than abroad.

It is surprising to me that there is not more of an outcry about this.

At any rate, the Pirates' stance on this long has been that they have no problem with the international signing process because, as they have put it, they can compete with anyone financially if they find a player they truly covet. But this stance was shaped when the top Latin signings rarely crossed into six figures. Now, those are routine, though, and the Pirates might be expected to change that view.

Q: Aloha, Dejan. As the season winds down and we again wait till next year, a thought: Will you be returning to cover the Pirates next year or are you looking for another position within the sports department of the Post-Gazette or elsewhere?

Herbert L. Swanhart of Waipahu, Hawaii

KOVACEVIC: I hope to be doing exactly what I am doing for a very long time, Herbert. I have enjoyed this beat beyond words.

In closing ...

The Cubs' announcers, positioned right next to the press box at Wrigley, were wearing Roberto Clemente replica jerseys -- the great 1971 models -- all through the Clemente Day broadcast in Chicago on Wednesday night. Very cool.

Upon walking out of the place, I looked at the ground and saw that all the game tickets for that night had Clemente's 21 and an image of him printed on them. And this happened at all MLB games. Cooler still.

It is amazing to me, the almost mythical proportions that the man has taken on at the national level. There is no corner of our country you can go where a baseball crowd would not stand still at the mention of his name.

But, really, the part that amazes me even more is the grip that he still has on Pittsburgh.

No, not the continuing reverence and respect. We tend to hold our civic treasures dear through many generations, whether that regards sports or life.

It is the cool factor that gets me.

Let's face it: The Pirates are patently unhip in Pittsburgh right now, no matter how you break it down. Take it from someone who can compare after a few days in St. Louis, where it seems to be a local crime if you are not sporting red on game day. In our town, you simply do not see kids wearing the garb anywhere around town -- including even to PNC Park in most cases -- and you almost never get the sense of some sort of public vibe about the team or any individual player, even when that individual excels as Jason Bay and Freddy Sanchez have.

But Clemente? Hip as ever. Maybe hipper by the day. Walk around with regular old Pirates garb, and some wise guy with a beer held up to the belt and a Steelers tousle cap might give you grief, make fun of you and your favorite team, in that order. But walk around in a No. 21 jersey or some other Clemente apparel, cap or whatever, and it is still cool.

Just one person's view. A feel thing, nothing scientific, and I thought I would share.

As always, responses are encouraged.

Until next week, by which time Salomon Torres will still be really good ...

First published on September 8, 2006 at 12:00 am