wewill1992: I was at the game yesterday, and definitely noticed much more participation last year. What else can you say about the Pirates going above and beyond yesterday?

Dejan Kovacevic: First off, apologies for the tardiness. I was on the phone and had to put another Alvarez thing up on the site. I will make it up to you at the end. ... The participation was much greater, and that included Jack Wilson, Paul Maholm, Matt Capps, John Russell and others going way above and beyond in terms of meeting, greeting and the like. It was also interesting to see how Russell stood at the top step during the early phase, as if to make sure everyone was out there.

SeanE: Hey DK: Simple question: Who Blinked? Seems like it was the Pirates but considering the crazy nature of MLB rules I truly have no idea.

Dejan Kovacevic: Depends on your view. Not sure who placed the first call to get this going, but I am sure that both sides had everything to gain by getting it done. And I would not underestimate the potential role that MLB and the union might have played, too. That arbitration case was setting up to be this epic battle with huge legal costs and almost-as-huge ramifications on how the rules are applied. They might have wanted this done more than anyone.

CoolCatCoonelly: I have to disagree with the postgame "thank you" being better than last year. Aside from the jersey giveaway, Ian Snell, Matt Capps, Jack Wilson and John Russell were the only ones seen outside of the dugout.

Dejan Kovacevic: Sounds like you were there, so your viewpoint counts as much as mine. But I can definitely point out that you missed a few players, notably Maholm.

jimb056: Hi Dejan, What do you suppose Scott Boras gained in all this except to antagonize the Pirate faithful and give his client a vacation?

Dejan Kovacevic: Boras' perspective was that his client did not get a fair negotiation period because the Pirates and MLB orchestrated extra time on the deadline. He wanted a fair period.

MazisBack: Hey DK, Thank you for this chat and for the blog. Has there been any disucssion not so much about the Nyjer Morgan incident, but about Russell martin's comments? Seems like if this were New York this would be a bigger deal than has been discussed so far?

Dejan Kovacevic: I addressed this in great detail on the blog yesterday. Check it out. Not too far down on the list. Bottom line: Nothing happened. No arrest, no detaining. Nothing. That would be an even smaller deal on the New York crime blotter than in Pittsburgh, one suspects, being that no crime -- not even a ticket -- was involved.

SeanE: DK: If the Pirates are seeking a top prospect for Wilson in the offseason he may very well be back next year. I love Jack, but I don't know that he nets a big return. First, he is 31 and coming off a lost year due to injury. Teams may view him as past his prime as there is lots of mileage on those legs of his. Second, for all his defensive excellence Wilson is only average or slightly above average offensively. Hits for decent average, but very few walks, low OBP and no power. Third, there are few if any internal options to replace him in Pittsburgh which means (and you have said so yourself) we would need a SS in return. Problem is, that teams hate to trade SS prospects, especially ones viewed as major league ready. Call me in the minority, but unless the team is willing to accept a meager return, I expect to see Wilson in the opening day lineup next year.

Dejan Kovacevic: Your question presumes that the Pirates would be motivated by getting a prospect, as opposed to freeing up the cash.

steve_o: With the purported Alvarez signing, where is Coonelly's indignation at now, and does this harm the Pirates credibility in future negotiations with agents and high draft picks holding out for higher signing bonuses?

Dejan Kovacevic: There is no signing, purported or otherwise. When a contract is signed, there is a signing. The sides agreed to financial terms, as the article stated, and the signing is pending the physical, the actual signing and, most immediately, the resolution of the MLB-union grievance. That's the update I was just working on for the main site.

jeremy: Dejan - I haven't seen this mentioned in any of the coverage, so I felt the need to point it out - did anybody note Jack Wilson stopping just short of 3rd base on his way off the field to scoop up a handful of dirt? I felt it very appropriate for him to take a little of the stadium with him, as those who have watched him play have taken much away from the ballpark .

Dejan Kovacevic: I did not see it, Jeremy, but you are one of many fans in attendance who have emailed me this morning about it. Sounds very much like something Wilson would do.

PirateApologist: Hello, Dejan. I apologize if you already reported it before, but is Jose Tabata playing anywhere over the winter?

Dejan Kovacevic: In Latin America, yes. The exact country escapes me.

bayport714: DK -- Who initiated the talks with Alvarez? I suspect the side that did is the side that was going to lose the arbitration. For Alvarez's sake, I hope he is Evan Longoria. -- Bayport out.

Dejan Kovacevic: That is unclear, even after several more conversations I had this afternoon. Again, though, I would look more toward the MLB-union side for the angle here.

chris: In your opinion will MLB invoke a hard deadline with next year's draft to avoid this mess again?

Dejan Kovacevic: Yes. When the commissioner is forced to testify over something like this, hard resolutions tend to follow.

chris: I couldn't care less who won or lost. I'm just happy that this ordeal is over and Alvarez will now be part of the organization.

Dejan Kovacevic: That sentiment seems to be the dominant theme in my inbox today. And, really, who loses in this? Maybe the player, for the moment, because he looks to Pittsburgh like J.D. Drew did to Philly a few years ago. But, as I have pointed out before, another well known athlete in these parts once refused to don his team's sweater when drafted -- in full public display -- and everyone here has gotten over it.

yzguy431: Were we duped, again, into thinking this team is serious about playing competitive baseball?

Dejan Kovacevic: Only time will tell. As I have written countless times in the past year, the proof ultimately will come when the Pirate spend up to the Brewers' current level.

jimb056: What do you expect next year's attendance to average?

Dejan Kovacevic: Less than 20,000 unless they have themselves one whale of a winter.

Lee_Tunnell: 2009 sounds like and feels like it going to be historically bad. Not only are the Bucs going to break the record for longest consecutive futility, but do it in record breaking style

Dejan Kovacevic: Based on what we have seen of these post-trade Pirates, no one could argue the point. The team has been mostly awful.

SeanE: DK: What makes this a valid contract? Instead of 2 minutes after the deadline it is negotiated 5 weeks after the deadline!

Dejan Kovacevic: Again, the contract is not valid until signed. As for the agreement, I keep going to back to the MLB-union thing. That is where I believe the push originated and, hence, one can deduce the blessing is there, too. The MLB and union are free to agree upon things as they choose.

Capn: While the moneys involved in this contract may be a wash over the years, the major league contract seems to stick out as exactly what the Pirates did not want to give. Is Alvarez so much of a sure thing that this won't matter much?

Dejan Kovacevic: The Pirates never had an issue with a major league contract and were on the record as saying so before the original one. Which allows me to make this point, as emphatically as possible: Major league service time means major league service time. I have read on the blog some angst over Alvarez's six-year clock beginning to tick right away. That is incorrect. It ticks the moment you see him putting on a Pirates uniform.

Lee_Tunnell: Dejan, any word from Xavier Nady or Damaso Marte what last night was like in Yankee Stadium?

Dejan Kovacevic: Have not spoken to either since the trade, but I did wonder myself when seeing the highlights late last night.

chris: Can we expect Pedro to start next year with the new Charleston affiliate?

Dejan Kovacevic: It will depend greatly on his showing this winter and next spring. The career path to follow, I think, was that of Matt Wieters, who started out with high A in Baltimore's system, completely obliterated it, then was promoted to Class AA and completely obliterated that, too.

kison25: Pirates delay paying. Alvarez gets higher guarantee than league minimum. A push. So is the fifth year at $1.6 million the win for Alvarez. That's a decent payday before arbitration. Then again, Boras and Alvarez just delayed him a year. So does anyone make out in this?

Dejan Kovacevic: The fifth year is key, yes, on the Alvarez side, as are the above-minimum figures in the 0-3 years in the majors. The best way to look at this, I think, is from the most likely career path for the player. If you think Alvarez will be in the minors for four years, the Pirates will have made out financially. If you think he will fast-track, as most do, the agent did well for his client in identifying that.

Fire_Lanny: How is Milwaukee? Is it a poor man's Pittsburgh?

Dejan Kovacevic: Not flying up until tomorrow. They have kind of a cute downtown, one neat little area. But no, it is not Pittsburgh by any measure.

jimb056: Any chance we'll get Dirty Doug back next year?

Dejan Kovacevic: There is a chance, but management at some point needs to actually approach the guy about a contract. That has yet to happen.

wewill1992: If you took the money out of the equation, the Pirates and the Giants were equal losers in the Matt Morris trade, right?

Dejan Kovacevic: No way to take the money out of that equation.

curt_raydon_fan: If Freddy a salary dump, are we any better off in terms of a replacement than we are with Jack? May as well destroy our middle defense, too.

Dejan Kovacevic: That is the most pertinent point of all. I get the sense that people here would tolerate, maybe even embrace these trades so long as the players who came in return at least showed promise befitting those who left. When they see Andy LaRoche ... that hardly matches up with Jason Bay, no matter how many other facets are in the deal.

CoolCatCoonelly: Will we see Chris Duffy in a Pirate uniform again? What is his contract situation this offseason?

Dejan Kovacevic: He goes year by year, but he is in the system and his minor league rights are retained for now.

Tina_Fey: If management is motivated to trade Wilson more for savings than a prospect, could we see a deal as bad as the Salomon Torres one?

Dejan Kovacevic: The Pirates surely will want to do better. One would think they have a much sharper idea of how strongly Pittsburgh feels about Wilson after the scene yesterday.

Lee_Tunnell: Nate McLouth's comments comparing the Pens to the Bucs were quite interesting yesterday. Think management noticed?

Dejan Kovacevic: They read everything. No way they missed that one. At the same time, it was not as if he was taking some swipe. What he meant was what he said: He hopes the Pirates someday soon are similarly successful, so that this same group makes its way over to the ballpark. ... These guys, when they get to a Penguins or Steelers game, tend to get blown away by the crowds, as if they have gone to some other city to witness the event.

Fire_Lanny: Didn't you pick the Reds to win the division?

Dejan Kovacevic: Uh, next question ...

meestro: Do you expect Freddy Sanchez to be shopped in the off season. And do you think teams will be hesitant to bite because of his poor first half this season?

Dejan Kovacevic: "Shopped" is defined differently by everyone. Put it this way: Sanchez was off limits at the Winter Meetings last year. He might not be off limits this time.

Hurricane4857: Is Brandon Moss going to be the real deal in the Pirate's outfield?

Dejan Kovacevic: He has a ways to go. He has performed better than Andy LaRoche, and he shows some positive traits with his approach and some of his outfield play, but .219 is .219.

Giles__shower_kit: I don't care how it happened just as long as he will wear a Pirates uniform. Does he play in Florida this fall?

Dejan Kovacevic: Neal Huntington suggested yesterday that it was too late for that, but he said that before the financial agreement was struck. Today, nobody is talking about anything. I would look more toward Arizona or, more likely, Hawaii.

stevepearce4president: Dejan why are the Pirates not going into an all-out rebuilding mode? There is no difference to me between 50 wins or 70 wins, a losing season is a losing season. So there is absolutely no reason for the Bucs to be hanging on to any of the veterans; throw all the young guys out there and see who sticks.

Dejan Kovacevic: Which young guys? There have to be talented young guys for there to be a legitimate rebuilding. Or building. Or whatever you want to call it. Where are the potential replacements at shortstop or second base?

yzguy431: Do you think Jack Wilson is done here?

Dejan Kovacevic: I would think so, based on what I have heard, but things can change. And the market could dictate it. I know that the Pirates were plenty disappointed at the Wilson talks they had in advance of the July deadline.

JohnRussellsBroodingCharisma: Dejan, I hope I am not in the minority in welcoming the newest member of the Pittsburgh Pirates-finally some good news-I wonder how much the declining attendance figures & hopelessness bucco nation was facing next year entered into this decision?

Dejan Kovacevic: The decision had to be reached by multiple parties, so the team's feeling would not have been universal in reaching it. One more ...

Capn: Last chat?

Dejan Kovacevic: No. I have one of those insane overnight flights home from San Diego next Monday, so I might push it back a day to Tuesday in an attempt at actual coherence. But yes, there will be one more. ... Q&A returns tomorrow from Milwaukee.