Wednesday, August 27, 2003

By Robert Dvorchak, Post-Gazette Sports Writer

Brian Giles has been such a cornerstone for the Pirates that Manager Lloyd McClendon tore up four or five lineup cards yesterday before hitting on a combination he thought might work without his most dependable, most productive hitter.

	"I know [the trade is] very difficult for people to understand, but the goal is not to be a .500 team." (Peter Diana, Post-Gazette) Click photo for larger image. The Giles' Legacy Trades: Royals acquire White Pirates Q & A with Paul Meyer

"It's a hard habit to break," McClendon conceded.

The long-awaited -- some might say inevitable -- trade happened yesterday when the Pirates dealt Giles, one of the elite players in baseball, to San Diego for starting left-hander Oliver Perez, outfielder Jason Bay and a player to be named (thought to be minor-league pitcher Cory Stuart).

Giles, 32, put up numbers that rank him with the all-time greats in franchise history, and the trade was comparable in many ways to the one in which Hall of Famer Ralph Kiner, the home run king, left the team in the early 1950s, It also rivaled the one in which Dick Groat went to St. Louis in the early 1960s and the one in which slugger Frank Thomas was traded in 1958, when the Pirates received three players from Cincinnati -- Harvey Haddix, Smokey Burgess and Don Hoak -- who helped them win the 1960 World Series.

"He's in a special category," General Manager Dave Littlefield said. "There's no doubt you hate to trade players like that. As we've said many times, we're looking to acquire players like that. But with the reality of where we're at, we just felt this was a guy that was going to enable us to acquire more talent, and that was the decision we made."

In a season and era of discontent fueled by losing, fans reacted harshly and negatively to earlier transactions made to free money and acquire younger, cheaper talent for a franchise bleeding red ink despite its new ballpark.

In addition, there's still a bitter taste from the last failed five-year plan, during which Giles was acquired from Cleveland in a trade for Ricardo Rincon. To unload a star like Giles may stir further cynicism, at least until Perez and Bay show what they can do.

But the Pirates were likely going to bob around the bottom until Giles' contract expired in 2005.

"In our opinion, we felt like this was the best deal to make for us. There's always speculation as to when it should be done. But we just felt that to acquire the type of talent we were able to get, that this made the most sense for us right now," Littlefield said.

"Brian is a cornerstone of the franchise. I know it's very difficult for people to understand [a trade], but the goal is not to be a .500 team. The goal is to be a championship team. The most important piece of that is to acquire more talent.

"It's evident in my eyes we need to get more talent to have someone build around to become a division contender. Although we hate to give up Brian, we think the players we're getting in return are going to be solid and possibly high-end big-leaguers as well."

The Pirates reportedly also were seeking infielder Josh Barfield, but San Diego refused to budge and the Pirates accepted this deal.

Giles, who returns home and will play in a new ballpark next season, left with mixed emotions.

"I signed a contract to try to bring a championship here to Pittsburgh. It just didn't work out for a lot of different reasons. I think that's the most disappointing thing .I really did want to get it done here in Pittsburgh.

"I understand the direction this organization is going in. They're trying to win. Dave's done a good job with the situation he's taken over. It's just not fair for me to sit up here and point fingers. There's a lot of different areas that we've had problems.

"It hasn't materalized like we'd like it to. They're going to get better. It's just a matter of time before they win here. It's just going to take a little longer than what the process was. I wish these guys luck."

A deal with the Padres had been discussed extensively since late July. Originally, the scenario had Jason Kendall leaving, too.

Complications arose because the two sides couldn't decide on how much of the $40 million owed to Kendall after this season would be paid by each team. Players have to be exposed to waivers after July 31, and in a waiver deal, a team is responsible for picking up a player's entire contract.

Giles said he and Kendall met with Littlefield a few weeks ago, and the message they received was that they wouldn't just be given away. What that means for a future trade involving Kendall is unclear.

Kendall would not comment on the trade or its impact yesterday.

In return for Giles, the Pirates get Perez, a 22-year-old left-hander who has a 98 mph fastball along with a tough breaking pitch and a good changeup. He is erratic with his control at times, but he has struck out 119 in 103 major-league innings this year.

"We feel he has a significant upside that will make him a top of the rotation-type starter in time," Littlefield said.

Bay, 24, played briefly with the Padres this year.He leads the Pacific Coast League with a .541 slugging percentage and ranks third with a .410 on-base percentage. He can play all three outfield positions, but the Pirates intend to use him in left field.

"We think he'll be very fine outfielder," Littlefield said.

As for the player to be named, the Pirates have six months to chose him, and his identity won't be officially announced until there is room for him on the 40-man roster this winter.

But Littlefield said: "We feel very good about being able to acquire this player. Hopefully, it'll be someone who will be in Pittsburgh soon."

Before his old teammates were done with batting practice, Giles' locker was cleaned out. He'll join the Padres for their game tonight at Arizona. Perez and Bay are expected to join the Pirates today.

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