Dejan Kovacevic: OK, a little confusion here today, obviously, with the football and baseball chats colliding in the same chat room. So, now that we are rid of all those people with the little yellow buses on their heads, we can get started ...

CyBixler: Dejan, with the recent struggles by Karstens and Ohlendorf, I'm less enthused about the Nady trade (despite Tabata's finish in Altoona). Do you know why the original package of Kontos and Coke was revised?

Dejan Kovacevic: Kontos, by all accounts, was the injury issue. And the Yankees liked Coke more than people might have suspected at the time, I am told. ... As for Karstens and Ohlendorf and, really, everything else about these trades, enthusiasm in one direction or the other is ill-advised this early. And that includes some of the overboard enthusiasm I heard from readers when Karstens was flirting with history.

bozoman: Will the Pirates let all of their arbitration players go except Doumit and McClouth and go into the free agent market?

Dejan Kovacevic: No. The default mode, as has been laid out for me, is that they will look at all eight of these guys carefully. No more, no less to share on that.

Fire_Lanny: Why did the Pirates draft Lincoln over Lincecum?

Dejan Kovacevic: We could do this all day. Very obviously, they were not very good at drafting, in the first round or any round.

PirateApologist: Hello, Dejan. Can you recall any incidents of Pirate players being booed on the road such as you were describing today on the blog?

Dejan Kovacevic: The Pirates' players barely get recognized outside city limits, much less booed. The only one booed all year was Doug Mientkiewicz in Fort Myers, spring home of the Red Sox, presumably because of the World Series ball controversy.

BenderHeel: Are the Pirates taking a longer look at Morgan, as opposed to someone like Pearce, to see if he can finally stop over-sliding second base?

Dejan Kovacevic: There surely is more involved than that, but I think it does speak to their confidence level in Pearce that is not out there every day. If not now, when?

Count_Chocula: Will the fan base even care in 2009?

Dejan Kovacevic: By definition, a fan base will care. The question is how much it will shrink.

BenderHeel: So is the excuse that Ohlendorf is "fatigued", or is it that he just doesn't have major-league stuff? He was hit hard in the minors too, giving up a good amount of homeruns, so it's no surprise that major league hitters are also teeing off. I suspect that an additional 4 mph on his fastball won't change that either.

Dejan Kovacevic: You can call it an excuse if you choose, obviously, but the difference is closer to 6-7 mph. And, for a young pitcher accustomed to working with a very high power level, that takes quite some adjustment to be precise enough to compensate.

CyBixler: If you had to put a number on it, what percentage would you guess Alvarez is a member of the Pirate organization?

Dejan Kovacevic: Not sure. Precedent shows it would be pretty striking for the arbitrator to legislate the Alvarez case specifically in terms of a remedy, but no ruling requires Alvarez to sign a contract he does not want to sign.

BenderHeel: Quite a simple question: why isn't Steve Pearce playing anymore? I don't get it at all ... but especially after he got his first home run!

Dejan Kovacevic: Not much about that home run should change anyone's mind, for better or worse. It has been known for years that Pearce can hit dead-red fastballs up and over the plate a long way. That is exactly what he did in Houston. The work he needs to do is to become a complete hitter, with some semblance of an approach. There are scant signs of that.

CyBixler: Who will be the Pirates starting SS in 2009? By the way, sorry to hear you missed your first earthquake when you were in SF last week. If it makes you feel better, I missed it too.

Dejan Kovacevic: It probably will be someone not as good as Jack Wilson. ... I was there for the quake. Just had no idea it happened, unlike others in the box.

bucsfan: How many of the players currently on the 40-man roster do you think will still be there next February? I think as many as 12-15 will be removed.

Dejan Kovacevic: Check the Notebook today.

Fire_Lanny: Are you on the San Diego trip?

Dejan Kovacevic: You bet. Five separate trips to the five series in the Pacific/Mountain time zones this year. Have I mentioned that at all this summer?

jal: Have you gotten any new info on Ohlendorf's performance--for example, was the problem with his release--something that can be worked on-or is the reason for his lack of vlocity and control unknown

Dejan Kovacevic: The game story today details all the views on Ohlendorf's issues, notably the possible fatigue.

baseball: In your professional opinion is the major league club any closer to being a championship caliber team than it was a year ago?

Dejan Kovacevic: Unequivocally not. The 2008 season has represented, at the major league level, a step backward.

Fire_Lanny: Do the Pirates play the AL West next year? I am hoping they do because then the schedule maker can include 2 more west coast trips than this year.

Dejan Kovacevic: How kind. ... No, funny man, the match is with the AL Central, so the extra trips will be to Minnesota, Chicago White Sox and Detroit.

BenderHeel: Which of the current relievers do you think will be back next year? It'll be interesting to see how the 40-man roster shakes out.

Dejan Kovacevic: Matt Capps, John Grabow, Denny Bautista, Tyler Yates, Sean Burnett, Craig Hansen and someone else. Pretty much the same guys, from that list. But expect, as with any bullpen, for a whole bunch of extras to be included in the competition.

Bucco: Did Matt Caps have any issues after his 2 inning outing the other day. He seems to be back in form and I'd hate to see them burn him out in meaningless games.

Dejan Kovacevic: Thought the same thing that night. Judging by a very wide smile that night, surely related to how well he pitched, Capps was fine.

Fire_Lanny: Where is the best coffee in San Francisco?

Dejan Kovacevic: Little shop about the size of a bathroom right at the downtown end of the cable-car line. Just to the left of the turnaround.

Popthecork: Do you think there will be more dogs or people (not counting the pet owners) at the stadium tonight?

Dejan Kovacevic: Dog night? Really? I am guessing the crowd will be kind of like last night, and that all the crowds will be kind of small until Saturday (Free Bird!) and the typically excellent (in terms of passion and knowledge) crowd that shows up each year for the final home game.

maddamma: Dejan, have you overheard any discussions form Pirates brass about celebrating the centennial of their first world series championship in 2009? Then again, it's also the 30th anniversary of their last one. Might be nice to remind fans (and players) that there is a championship tradition with this franchise.

Dejan Kovacevic: That is very likely on the 1909 front. The 1979 team was celebrated quite a bit with the 25th anniversary, which is more of an anniversary-type number.

jal: Hearing anything about what the Pirates hope to get for Wilson-I assume they want to trade him rather than release him.

Dejan Kovacevic: They will not release Wilson. They were seeking good prospects in the discussions leading up to the July deadline, and that will not change. ... But they also will need to get a shortstop in that transaction or some other. There is no internal option that rivals Wilson, even in terms of potential. Not the type of position any team can afford to downgrade.

bjm: DK, If Adam LaRoche is not brought back who can play first?

Dejan Kovacevic: Mientkiewicz or Pearce.

Not_So_Jolly_Roger: Dejan, I was wondering if you saw any other players in the Pirates minor league system that could potentially be rule 5 players besides Walker, McCutchen, and Tabata. I couldn't think of anyone even remotely worthy of a Rule 5 pick, but thought maybe you might know about someone else.

Dejan Kovacevic: There are a couple possibilities, I have been told, but they would be more along the lines of Ronald Belisario, where you pretty much protect a guy because of his raw skills and hope the light flicks on. (Belisario's light remained off.)

Popthecork: Anything special planned for the last game of the season? I remember there being some moaning and groaning about the lack of postgame excitement from the players.

Dejan Kovacevic: Jack Wilson Day! ... No, seriously, it still will be fan appreciation day. The possible difference is that the coaching staff and players might actually show the fans some appreciation this time. (Wilson and a few others were the classy exceptions last year.)

maddamma: Assuming Jack Wilson is gone, does Luis Cruz's recent showing translate into him having a shot at the starting job next year? I have been impressed with his glove work.

Dejan Kovacevic: Cruz was in Class AA two months ago. Discussing him and Wilson in the same sentence really is kind of difficult.

LtCmdr_McHale: Sean Burnett seems to have turned it around in his last 5 outings any particular reasoning?

Dejan Kovacevic: Been a lot longer than that. Look up his game-by-game. Yes, there is a reason: Burnett credits Jeff Andrews for changing his position on the rubber to provide a better angle for his fastball and slider. And he has incorporated a changeup that he has used to retire righties. The latter has been especially important, he will tell you.

Fire_Lanny: Why did the Pirates insist in April that Gorzo was not injured? Everyone knew he was.

Dejan Kovacevic: The same reason that Gorzelanny insisted the same thing: He was not. As the season wore on, the shoulder tightened at times, but Gorzelanny has said himself that it was not an uncommon level of discomfort.

baseball: Is it pretty much a given that Wilson is going to be traded? The 2009 club could seriously be awful ... as in more than 100 losses.

Dejan Kovacevic: A very good maybe to both points. One only needs to project the math on these post-trade Pirates over a 162-game season, and the figures are awful.

Capn: It looks like Brandon Moss is afraid of the Clemente wall. Is there not enough padding for him?

Dejan Kovacevic: It is not an easy wall to play. Craig Wilson was very, very good at it, some might recall, because he understood all its nuances. On the ball last night, for example, it went very high off Manny Ramirez's bat and came down almost as a popup. Well, anyone who has sat near that wall knows that the upper part of it actually lips out over the field, so it is possible to lose sight of it. (San Diego has something like that, too, in left.) Moss has much work to do if he is to stay there.

jhjh: Could the 2009 Pirates be a historically bad team...1962 Mets bad? The staff, of course, is horrendous. And only three projected starters (McLouth, Doumit, and Adam LaRoche) are even close to major league average for their positions. I don't think I can recall a Pirate team being as bereft of talent as this one.

Dejan Kovacevic: It does not look encouraging.

Popthecork: Are we going to see CanonBall Crew Bobbleheads next year? I mean, we are certainly running low on players who actually deserve the honor of a bobblehead.

Dejan Kovacevic: There still is no Nate McLouth or Paul Maholm bobblehead. Nor a Honus Wagner, for that matter, should that 1909 team get celebrated.

Buc_teeth: I'm a fan of the Red Sox as well as the Bucs. Jason Bay has risen to the occasion and been a vital part of Boston's push to the AL East pennant. Speaking of that trade, who has more upside Moss or Hansen?

Dejan Kovacevic: Bay's performance in Boston is little different, statistically, than his performance this year in Pittsburgh, minus the slow April start. I would say Hansen has the greater upside because of the bite to his stuff, but both players have a ways to go. And, again, it is worth repeating that those two players were not alone in the Bay deal. Bryan Morris and Andy LaRoche came, too. ... One more ...

BenderHeel: Sure, the team may be historically bad ... but Nyjer Morgan won't over-slide the bag anymore! It's kinda of like last year's "the bunting has been good" progress ...

Dejan Kovacevic: Morgan has to deal with that "turbo-dirt," as he calls it, under his feet when he is running. ... Time to head out and beat all that traffic to the yard ...