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It is the time of spring where it is easy to read an awful lot into an awful little, but I found it interesting that the Pirates chose Nate McLouth and Ryan Doumit to be the designated hitters for that intrasquad scrimmage yesterday.

Not because they were the only major-league position players used, but it seemed -- maybe, possibly -- to set the stage for Doumit (a switch-hitter) taking on McLouth for the left-handed hitting reserve outfielder spot. Doumit, of course, can catch and play first, too. Might just come down to who hits better this spring.

Or none of it could matter at all. I happen to be of the view that McLouth's spot on the roster is solid, though there are some who feel otherwise.

Who knows?

Bring on the hated Manatees!

Q: Hi, Dejan. How well did the players accept the speech given by management?

I picture the scene from "Major League" where the owner tells her players the organization is doing all it can with the resources available, but it would help if she could just get people to come out and watch them. I also picture the players reacting the same way as the ones in the movie did.

Any truth in cinema?

Gregg Fouch of Imperial

KOVACEVIC: There might have been, Gregg, but I did not detect anything but satisfaction from the key players with whom I spoke afterward. And these were guys -- Jason Bay, Zach Duke, Salomon Torres -- one can count on for the straight stuff in any situation, as their history shows.

There is no doubt that the players want to see proof, though, and that will come not in the form of good communication or a good speech, but in terms of a real commitment if and when the team is legitimately ready to contend.

What if the Pirates are five or seven games above .500 as the trade deadline nears? (We know there could be roughly $7 million in leftover money, anyway, but playing along.) Will ownership step up and commit the money needed to acquire a rental-type player in a trade for the stretch drive?

How about if the team were to look promising over the course of 2007 and would be much better served by adding through free agency than a trade? Will ownership step up?

And how about when 2009 comes and so many players, including Bay, can leave through free agency?

Ultimately, ownership -- especially in the inequitable, uncapped world of Major League Baseball -- is measured by money spent.

Q: Dejan, I agree with the general notion that Ryan Doumit would be better utilized as a bench player than as back up catcher, but here is a revolutionary idea: Why not use him in both roles?

I know the conventional baseball wisdom is that the backup catcher needs to be held back for emergency situations, but how often does such an "emergency" actually arise? I probably watch 50 games a year and can never remembering it happening. I'd like to see Doumit get as many at-bats as possible, and it seems like adding 20-25 starts at catcher to pinch-hitting and spot starts at first base and right field would be a big help in this regard.

Ted Schroeder of Point Breeze, Pittsburgh

KOVACEVIC: Tracy believes in the concept of a backup catcher available to him on the bench, so debating this probably will have the same feel as debating Jack Wilson in the No. 2 spot of the batting order.

The Pirates' issue is that they do not have a No. 3 type such as Craig Wilson or Rob Mackowiak to catch if the sky fell in, although I would be at least a little surprised if Jose Hernandez could not catch if asked. As such, Tracy's plan is to have a backup ready to him, whether that is Humberto Cota, Einar Diaz or Carlos Maldonado.

That is one thing, but here is the main thing, which you left out of your equation: Tracy places a great premium on catchers handling the pitching staff. That was evident when, for that reason mostly, he banished Cota to fourth-string for the final six weeks of last season. He wants his backup to play most afternoon or getaway games to give Paulino a break, and he expects that guy to match Paulino's passion for the handling of the staff.

Can that backup commit himself to Tracy's satisfaction if he is playing two other positions?

That definitely is part of this.

And there is this, too: The Pirates want Doumit to hit this spring -- and stay healthy -- to earn that roving duty. If he does not, I would expect Doumit and not the other three to be the backup catcher.

Thing No. 10 that I miss about Pittsburgh: If it is Wednesday -- and it is -- then it has to be my weekly visit to Eide's Entertainment on the Strip/Downtown edge.

In the three locations it has known over the past three decades -- one on which was facing Federal Street on the current site of PNC Park, the other on Penn in Downtown -- I have been going every week since junior high school for my fix of comics. And, incredibly, so many of the faces among the workforce there remain the same all these years later. Their expertise in the industry is without parallel, and they share it without the snarky stereotype of those comic-book guys you see in Kevin Smith movies or on "The Simpsons."

I get around to comics shops pretty much everywhere I travel, including one here in Bradenton, especially on a day such as this when the new Green Lantern is due.

Until tomorrow ...