Q: After having a disappointing season last year, what are the chances of Chad Hermansen contributing to the Pirates this year or in the years to come?
Brett Latta of Delaware, Ohio
MEYER: Chad Hermansen's situation is the question of the week. Perhaps 20 people submitted inquiries about the outfielder, but I picked Brett's question because it's representative and he's from my hometown.
Yes, Hermansen was a disappointment last year when he had the regular center field job when the season began. After late May, he spent most of the year back with Class AAA Nashville. And he's a lock to begin this season with the Sounds, too.
What people must remember about Hermansen, the Pirates' top draft pick in 1995, is that he won't turn 24 until Sept. 10. He still has plenty of time to make contributions to the Pirates. With Derek Bell signed for two years, Hermansen has an opportunity to re-start his career this season.
However, one has to think if Hermansen continues to struggle in 2001, he'd be a likely candidate to be included a trade next off-season.
Q: When Luis Sojo was traded back to the Yankees, he lamented that his Pirate teammates worried more about their stats than the only stat that counts -- wins and losses. To me, this is a major hurdle for this organization. What's the solution to this problem? And how much can Lloyd McClendon really be expected to correct it?
Mark Morabito of Camp Hill
MEYER: The solution to this problem is the same as it is with every team that's lost over the years - winning.
Nothing puts out all the annoying brushfires in a clubhouse like winning. Or at least contending. There wasn't any carping and complaining about parking problems at the stadium in 1997, for example. Mole hills don't become mountains when losses become wins.
McClendon's role in this is to re-focus his team on what it takes to win, not what it takes to lose. McClendon will do just fine in that capacity, and he'll have lots of help from his coaching staff and the veterans on this team. If the coaches and the players see that the manager cares, they'll care, too.
If the players want a healthy clubhouse atmosphere, they can build it - by getting key hits and fielding ground balls.
Q: Why is Jason Kendall undermining Lloyd McClendon after only one day of practice? He seems to be an intelligent player and should understand the value of physical fitness. I for one thought they should have let him go last year and this reaction simply reinforces my belief. Do we need a cry baby?
David Sauer of Pittsburgh
MEYER: You're referring to Kendall's comments made after the first pitcher/catcher workout last Wednesday. I wasn't there. You weren't there. We don't know how Kendall made his remarks. We didn't hear inflection.
There's nobody on the Pirates who wants to win more than Kendall. He could have been joking about all the running. Led by Tony Perez and Joe Morgan, the Cincinnati Reds in the mid-1970s "complained" about a ton of things. And they kidded each other unmercifully. If one didn't know how these comments were meant, one could have concluded they all were whiners and malcontents. They weren't.
No, the Pirates don't need a cry baby. And Kendall isn't one.
Q: What should Pirate fans expect out of Adrian Brown this season as the everyday center fielder?
Brent Williams of Rochester, Minn.
MEYER: A decent enough leadoff hitter who needs to play better defensively than he did last season.
After he assumed the leadoff position in July, Brown averaged almost a run scored per game. He gives the Pirates a base-stealing threat. He was a .300 hitter. He has one of the better arms in the outfield.
Thing is, there was some talk over the winter that if the Pirates really are to contend, Brown could be best used as a fourth outfielder. And if Hermansen - and Wil Cordero -- had succeeded last season, that's the role Brown would have filled. Derek Bell wouldn't be here. And John Vander Wal would be a pinch-hitter and part-time first baseman.
Funny how stuff happens, eh?
Q: Does Cam Bonifay consult with anybody when making free agent contract offers?
Rich Otterman of Pittsburgh
MEYER: The Pirate general manager has a stable of assistant general managers, special assistants to the general manager and scouts with whom he consults on just about everything. Perhaps to a fault.
At least one National League general manager has mentioned that it's difficult to get a trade done with the Pirates because Cam, who's intensely loyal to his people, seeks opinions from seemingly everybody in the organization before deciding whether to make a move.
Bonifay can argue that in the Pirates' small-market situation he can't afford to make a mistake. The Yankees, for example, can make a mistake and spend more money to correct it by getting another player. The Pirates don't have that luxury - unless you count getting outfielder Alex Ramirez for Cordero last season - but it does seem Bonifay deliberates a bit much.
Maybe he'd be better off consulting with two or three key people, then going ahead. Act now. Evaluate later.
Q: We've heard the downside of the decision to sign Derek Bell -- poor productivity at the plate the last two seasons and supplanting the productive John Vander Wal in the starting line-up. What is the upside to this signing?
Peter Hazelton of Columbus, Ohio
MEYER: We have heard from a lot of people moaning about the Bell signing. But Bell, who has a history of playing on winning teams, can bring something to this team that's been lacking. And, that is leadership. A good friend of mine who covered Houston when Bell played for the Astros told me Bell is a solid person with a great desire to win and a good feel for how to help get that done. I respect that.
Bell will be better defensively in right field than Vander Wal was. And Bell's recent rant about Vander Wal's comments about not getting to play as much should be taken as a positive, not a negative as some people have suggested in their Q&A submissions.
Something to keep in mind about the Bell signing, as well as the Terry Mulholland signing. What the Pirates must do first, before they can think about winning, is build a better clubhouse atmosphere. Both these veterans will help do that, and those contributions in the short run could lead to the Pirates making larger strides in the long run.
Q: The article in last Thursday's paper was interesting. Pirate officials commented on the off-season training and strength program many players went through, emphasizing the trunk, legs and abdomen. If the picture of Jimmy Anderson is any indication of the results of those workouts, the Pirates are in for a long season. Did Jimmy take part in off-season workouts? He could stand to do a few sit-ups!
Rick Miller of Crestview, Florida
MEYER: Let's give Anderson this - it would be difficult to STAND and do sit-ups. Now, about that picture. Maybe it was a bad camera angle. Or maybe it's as pitching coach Spin Williams said. Anderson, like Williams, doesn't have the most sculpted body to begin with.
But neither did Mickey Lolich when he pitched successfully for Detroit way back when. Neither did Rick Reuschel when he was a quality starter for the Pirates in the mid-1980s. And David Wells doesn't look too good when he pitches, either.
There were questions from his teammates about Anderson's work ethic last spring. But you can bet McClendon will make work a priority for Anderson - especially if the left-hander begins showing he can throw ground balls consistently.
Q: Even with the new stadium I don't think the Pirates can compete with the likes of the Yankees. It's a case of economics and maybe a salary cap. Baseball is in trouble if teams keep handing out contracts like those of Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. What do you think?
Mickey Johnson of Manassas, Va.
MEYER: Oh, I wouldn't mind having a contract like either of those two, but no question baseball is in trouble.
A salary cap makes sense, but that will never happen. And revenue sharing won't work, either, as long as the gap between payrolls remains the same. Say the Pirates raised their payroll to $70 million and the Yankees jacked theirs to $140 million. There's still a huge gap. The Yankees can pay more for players than the Pirates, so they'll get better players. Ad nauseum.
The real problem here is that if Rodriquez is "worth" $252 million over 10 years and Jeter is "worth" $189 million over 10 years or whatever, that pulls up the salaries of far lesser players. Comparatives are huge in baseball economics. And so a $3-million-a-year shortstop now can be "worth" $6 million a year. But he's still a $3-million-a-year shortstop. Or, really, less.
Q: What is the Pirates' slogan for this season? Last year it was "You gotta see 'em". I think it should be "New stadium, New family".
Bob Stover of Carnegie
MEYER: As of early this week, the Pirates hadn't unveiled a new slogan. Your suggestion is fine. Or a cynic could suggest, tying in with new PNC Park, "Pirates: No Chance." Or "Pirates: No Contenders." Neither of those would fly, though.
Bottom line? While having a new stadium is a definite, it's not clear yet if these Pirates truly will be a new family.
I'd say when the Pirates do trumpet a slogan for 2001, it will have more to do with the new stadium and the grass field and baseball-only facility and view of the skyline than it will with the team.
Q: I think that the Pirates will play more fundamentally sound baseball this year, but what do you think is a realistic goal in terms of number of wins?
Brian Devine of Oakmont
MEYER: Well, we could consult Kevin McClatchy and see what he thinks, but I think the owner is out of the prediction game this year. Remember his suggestion that the Pirates could win 90 games last season?
And predicting a win total for this bunch at this time is impossible because of all the "if" issues they face -- if Jason Schmidt is healthy, if Francisco Cordova is healthy, if Aramis Ramirez emerges at third base, if Derek Bell has something left, if the defense improves. . .and so on.
But let's say a lot of those "ifs" become reality? This team could win 81 games.
Interesting to note that in an inter-active poll on the Post-Gazette's Web site, more voters think the Pirates will finish in the middle of the pack this season (60 percent) than be contenders or doormats. And in a similar poll on the Pirates' Web site, 36 percent think this team will win between 78 and 84 games. Twenty-six percent think it will win 85 to 90 games.
None of this matters, though. Predictions about this team right now are likely to be as accurate as those five- and seven-day weather forecasts with which the local TV stations are so enamored.
Pirates Q&A with Paul Meyer 
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