The Sports Monitor

OK, here's something positive about the Pittsburgh Pirates. They made the right moves with qualifying offers to catcher Russell Martin and pitcher Francisco Liriano. Both players rejected the $15.3 million, one-year deal by Monday's deadline. Martin's choice was a no-brainer. He'll get some serious coin real soon. Liriano? Can't blame him. He could have taken the money and hoped for a big offer next season. But I'm guessing he'll do better. The Pirates will get a draft pick as compensation if Liriano and Martin sign. So the Bucs have covered their bases, so to speak. It's better this year, than, say, last year when they passed on A.J. Burett and got nothing when he signed with the Phils.

So, now where do Pirates fans stand when it comes to A.J. Burnett? Burnett reportedly will get $16 million for one season with the Phillies. Who's happy for him? Who still thinks the Pirates made the right choice? I disagreed with the Pirates not making a $14 million qualifying offer to Burnett after they passed on him. Now, after seeing him sign for $16 million, nothing has changed. The Pirates could have had Burnett for a discount, if you call $14 million a discount. If Burnett passed, the Pirates wouldn't have been on the hook. Now, they're out a first-round pick because of the Burnett Blunder. Yeah, go ahead and rave about the Pirates and their management team. They're still cheap. Nothing has changed my mind  that their decisions are primarily based on finances, not winning.

Why are so many people defending the Pirates with their decision to pass on making a qualifying offer to A.J. Burnett in the offseason? I don't get it. And maybe it's not 'so many.' Maybe it just seems that way with members of the media defending the cheap regime of the Buccos. But, again, I don't get it. The Pirates could have offered Burnett $14.1 million. Burnett could have passed. Nothing lost there. In fact, the Pirates could have looked much better by saying we're trying to spend money. On top of that, the Pirates could have received draft-pick compensation if Burnett signed with another team. Another plus for the team. And, these days, $14.1 million for Burnett is the going price, or even a discount for pitchers with a low ERA (3.30 for Burnett) and a high strikeout total (more than 1 per inning). And don't tell me the rotation is strong without him. I don't see how you can be comfortable with Charlie Morton, Wandy Rodriguez and Ed...

Opening day used to be a holiday for me. I had quite a stretch of going to opening day games in Pittsburgh. In a 25-year stretch, I believe it was 24 opening days. The one I missed, I was living in Indiana and couldn't make the seven-hour drive to the opener. That's changed; I have a new streak going. I've missed three straight openers. And it looks like I didn't miss much Monday. It's just one game, but opening day gets all the attention. And that attention wasn't too good. The Bucs had their best pitcher, A.J. Burnett on the mound and they lost to the lowly Cubs. Jeff Samardzija improved his career ERA to 4.01 after his eight shutout innings. Go Bucs. Am I a bad fan? I think not. Is it a boycott? I don't think so, although some might interpret it that way. I just choose not to give Bob Nutting any of my money. Nutting is all about the money. I'll chose to do the same. I'll keep my hard-earned dollars and spend it somewhere e...

Wow. I was truly wrong about this year's Pittsburgh Pirates. A little more than two weeks ago, I though the Bucs were on the right track this season. It took me a little bit of time, but I was there . Again -- wow. I was wrong. Maybe I should have waited a little longer. Then I would have seen this epic collapse coming. The Pirates enter Monday night just two games over .500. I'm not thinking playoffs anymore. I'm not sure they finish with a winning record. Clint Hurdle doesn't have a magic touch. James McDonald isn't anywhere near the pitcher he was in the first half. He doesn't even look like a major league starter at this point. A.J. Burnett hasn't been the stopper either. There was a seven-error game, bad managerial moves (suicide squeeze?) and yesterday's meltdown by minor league pitchers called upon to protect a lead against the Cubs. This has been a complete and utter disaster. The joy of the first four months of the ...

Who says baseball players aren't tough? Newly acquired Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett broke the orbital bone when a bunt bounced off his face. He'll miss up to three months. When Steelers linebacker James Harrison suffered the same injury, he missed four games. You decide.