The Andrew McCutchen Signing: Not So Fast My Friend…… 3/6/12

NOTE: This is a a response to my good friend Dom Errico's intital report on the signing.  You can check it out first at: http://www.voicesays.com/

            On Monday Pirate fans received some well needed good news with the re-signing of All-Star outfielder Andrew McCutchen to a 6-year, $51 Million contract to stay in Pittsburgh.  At least that’s what we all hope. But let’s get past the All-Star break just to be safe.

Here's to six more years of seeing this!

            My good friend Dom and I disagree on what this actually means for the Pirates.  Trust me, as a teen who once became an Expos fan for half a season because I was so disgusted by Cam Bonifay, it is going to take more than just one signing to get me on the Neal Huntingdon bandwagon.  Not that he shouldn’t be given props for this signing, this could be the building of the foundation for a competitive team for years to come, I stress the “could” part.  But then again, it is silly to discount the 2 DECADES where Pirates fans have been disappointed, with just a couple deals over the last 2 years. 

           Where is a Derrick Lee?   Many thought him a key cog and aged leadership the Pirates could use.  Instead the Pirates get…Nate McClouth?   And here again, being a good fan, I used to love Nate, his hair flopping as he was running around the outfield during his first stay. And I really do hope Nate can return to form in the Three Rivers confluence.  But let’s be honest, Nate’s best season is .228 since leaving the Burgh.  My dear friend also pointed out Jose Tabata, and all Pirate fans have high hopes for Jose.  But injuries limited him to just 4 home runs last year against 61 strikeouts.  He will have to hit better than .266 and stay healthy to make those numbers work. I see little there to dispel the “blind haters” anytime soon.
          The talk in Pittsburgh in the offseason was the trade for A.J. Burnett. But I think that begs the question would the Pirates REALLY have picked him up if the Yankee’s weren’t footing the majority of the bill?  And Burnett has been less than dominating, even with one of the most feared line-ups in baseball and the most dominant closer of our time behind him, he still could only manage an 21-26 record over the last two years.  Now he goes from a lineup with pop to one with more of an intermittent sizzle and I believe you have a recipe for failure.  Not to mention a broken eye orbit he got while bunting (the Yankee’s haven’t had to do much of THAT over their history!) will keep him out 8-12 weeks.
          I will be there to support my Buccos in 2012.  And I hope they can mimic their first half success of 2010 without the late season demise.  I am also still hoping that the first jersey (Jason Hanrahan) I have bought since Jason Kendall, I can actually wear for a couple years while he is still there!  But I am far less optimistic that we will be comparing Neal Huntingdon to the movies version of Billy Beane or the real life Theo Epstein anytime soon. On this subject Dom, we’ll have to agree to disagree.