This week, I can finally cross another thing off my "Things to Do Before I Die" list, I took a trip to Bradenton, Florida to check out the Pirates Spring Training. I was able to weasel a couple of extra days out of a business trip to Tampa for some baseball. The result? I had a fantastic time. The weather was beautiful and I was able to squeeze quite a bit into the two days I had in town.

I may post some commentary later, but in the meantime check out the photo gallery of the shots I took down there. I was able to take a bunch of shots from the Pirates/Devil Rays game at McKechnie Field on March 8th, as well as my two short visits to Pirate City on March 8th and 9th. Enjoy the shots!

I fear they will take advantage of the good will of the people who continue to show up," he continued. "For my money, that's disrespectful. At some point, you either have to write the check or do something and not assume, well, we're OK and, ultimately, the franchise is valuable, anyway

Wow. Batman has beaten a number of formidable foes over the years, but turning the tide on the Bucs' 13 consecutive losing seasons may be too much for even him.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

East
New York Yankees
Boston Red Sox
Toronto Blue Jays
Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Baltimore Orioles

Central
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Indians
Minnesota Twins
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals

West
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Seattle Mariners
Texas Rangers

MVP Vladimir Guerrero
Cy Young Rich Harden
Rookie of the Year Ian Kinsler
Manager of the Year Joe Torre

NATIONAL LEAGUE

East
Atlanta Braves
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Washington Nationals
Florida Marlins

Central
St. Louis Cardinals
Houston Astros
Chicago Cubs
Milwaukee Brewers
Cincinnati Reds
Pittsburgh Pirates

West
San Diego Padres
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Francisco Giants
Arizona Diamondbacks
Colorado Rockies

MVP Albert Pujols
Cy Young Jake Peavy
Rookie of the Year Ryan Zimmerman
Manager of the Year Bobby Cox

POSTSEASON

ALDS White Sox over Yankees
ALDS Angels over Red Sox
ALCS Angels over White Sox

NLDS Cardinals over Dodgers
NLDS Braves over Astros
NLCS Cardinals over Braves

World Series Angels over Cardinals

Also of interest is the topic of the team's recent veteran stopgap spending spree:

One argument against such spending is that this money, if funneled instead to the developmental level, would create an immense pool for signing amateurs.

"With a team like Pittsburgh, that's what I'd be doing," one National League executive said. "At the lower levels, they can compete financially with anyone. Not in the bigs. You're just throwing the money away instead of continuing to build."

Couldn't have said it better myself. Once the season kicks off, I'll be rooting for every player in a Pirates' uniform, but the acquisitions of Sean Casey, Jeromy Burnitz, Joe Randa and Roberto Hernandez still leave a bad taste in my mouth. It doesn't matter if the team breaks the .500 barrier if there is no foundation for continuing success.

While I agree with most, if not all, of Charlie's points, I still can't help feeling optimistic about the upcoming season. I have no logical reasons for my optimism, nor do I expect any miracles this season. No, my optimism is the kind of blind optimism that most baseball fans feel this time of year. The optimism of limitless possibilities. Of course, it's all nonsense. Deep down, I don't expect this team to do much to abate the downward spiral the orgainization has been in. No matter. I intend to wallow in my optimism for the time being. It won't be long before the bitter reality comes crashing back in.

In the same column, Gammons polled over 50 executives, managers, coaches and scouts on several questions. Mike Gonzalez ranked seventh among those players thought to be the most likely to breakout this year (Jose Castillo received an honorable mention). Oliver Perez and Kip Wells received honorable mention for those players most likely to have the biggest comeback this year.

As I mentioned in an earlier post this off-season, I am somewhat alarmed by the lack of depth in the organization. The talent falls of rather quickly after blue chippers Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker. Small market teams can't sustain success without a steady stream of talent coming up through the system and the Bucs just don't have it right now.

How did this happen? Bad luck? Poor scouting? Those things surely played a part, but I see the problem as mostly a philosophical one. The organization has displayed tendencies time and time again that are counter-productive to maintaining a good farm system. Take the draft for instance. The front office has approached the draft as it were actually split into two separate parts. The Pirates seem to place utmost importance on the first round (which is not entirely unreasonable), but then they seem to view the rest of the draft as merely an opportunity to fill organizational needs with players of limited upside. How else can you explain drafting limited players like Taber Lee and Brian Bixler so early in the draft. This year they wasted a second round pick on Brad Corley (who by all accounts would've lasted another couple of rounds) when a polished hitter like Stephen Head was still on the board. Look, draft failures are common. There are no givens in the draft. But it's almost criminal the way the Pirates treat the draft after the first round.

The other philosophical problem comes in how the Bucs acquire talent through trades. The Pirates have traded off a decent amount of talent over the last four years, and in some cases they have severely hampered themselves by always insisting on "major league-ready" players. Under normal circumstances, I would generally agree that "major league-ready" players are preferable to players in the lower minors. The best example of this kind of deal is the deal that sent Brian Giles to San Diego for Oliver Perez, Jason Bay and Cory Stewart. Perez had some major league experience but had yet to establish himself. Bay was the classic "major league-ready" player. He was a talented player trapped at AAA who was clearly ready for a major league role. However, this kind of situation isn't always available. And when the market isn't going to bear an acceptable "major league-ready" player, a general manager must be creative enough to get some kind of talent in return. Littlefield has not shown this kind of creativity. Instead of insisting on "major-league ready" players for a guy like Kris Benson, Littlefield should have changed course and looked for younger players with higher upside (albeit with higher risk). Aramis Ramirez, Kris Benson and Jason Kendall have all been shipped out without anything to show for it. Other players were kept only to walk away with nothing to show for it later. You just can't bleed talent like this and no expect to succeed.

Take a look at a team like the Indians. They are a young team on the rise. However, unlike a team like the Twins, much of the Indians' young talent originally came from other organizations. Grady Sizemore, Coco Crisp, Travis Hafner, Jake Westbrook and Cliff Lee all came in "fire-sale" type deals. The Indians have replenished their organization by plucking young talent from organizations hungry for their departing veterans. The Bucs have not been able to do that and it shows.

The Pirates have made some noise this off-season by bringing in veterans like Sean Casey, Jeromy Burnitz and Joe Randa. And yet, most, if not all, of these players will be gone after this season. And then what? It is a bit hard to send in the next wave, when the well is dry.

I'm not trying to pee on anyone's parade, but I get increasingly uneasy the more the hype grows. I believe that one of the toughest feats in major league baseball is for a young pitcher to successfully establish himself. To say that Duke took the first step in that process last year would be a huge understatement. He was simply fantastic. But he's not there yet, and it is entirely possible that he will take a step backwards before he takes another step forward.

All I am saying is that the guy has only 14 starts under his belt. It is not going to do him or anyone else any good to put undue pressure on him while he gets his major league feet under him. Let's back off the guy and let him do his thing. Odds are, there will be time enough in his career to lavish him with the appropriate accolades and kudos.

According to the article, Dave Littlefield, said his next target is to find a reliever with major league experience closing out games. For God's sake, WHY?! Consider the fact that none of these "proven" closers are really that proven. Let's face facts. Braden Looper, Roberto Hernandez and Antonio Alfonseca are not really going to put fear in the heart of too many opposing teams. Why throw money at mediocrity? Especially when the team has a number of holes to fill?

Unless you have a stud closer (of which, there are very few), it just doesn't make sense to go after these types of guys. If you want a mediocre closer, why not just create one by finding a guy on the scrap heap? Sound far-fetched? It's not, really. The Brewers have displayed a talent for doing just this the last couple of years. First, they come up with Dan Kolb. Then, after shipping him out (and bringing in value for a guy that previously had none), they come up with Derrick Turnbow. Heck, even the world champion Chicago White Sox came up with Bobby Jenks, who had never closed before. These types of experiments are not always successful, but the investment is negligible.

In recent interviews, Littlefield has indicated that Mike Gonzalez and Salomon Torres will get looks at the closer role. Gonzalez has been the organization's heir apparent for the role for the last several years. I think Ian Snell also could excel in the role. These guys should have a chance to win the role.

I say, invite some intriguing guys to camp, and throw the role up for grabs. The closer role isn't the missing ingredient that's keeping this team from contending. Come on, let's get creative here. Don't throw some of the organization's limited resources at players with limited value.

Much has been said and written about the current glut of major league ready youngsters the Pirates have at their disposal. However, I am very concerned about where the next wave is coming from. Granted, Walker and McCutchen are two very nice chips to have on your side and I look forward to following their ascent up the organizational ladder. However, two prospects does not a system make, and right now the system looks very thin behind those two guys.

Sure, the outlook of things could change if a handful of guystake a huge leap forward in their development, but as of now, it don't look good. A sign of a good system is one that can produce a pipeline of talent, not just a one-time geyser. Littlefield is in the final year of his contract and I believe his fate should not be tied to the success or failure of the big league club, but whether he can turnaround the downward spiral of the farm system. Otherwise, the organization is just likely to remain on the treadmill of futility it has found it's self on.

The Bucs have some work to do this offseason. There will be some big decisions to make. Youth has been served and it will be interesting to see whose stock will rise and fall through their performance in the Winter Leagues. Some veterans will likely be sent packing, most notably potential arbritration casualties Kip Wells and Craig Wilson. I'm sure there will be no lack of things to talk about.

I've been somewhat lax on my commentary of late (as I have been most of the season). I started a post on the Tracy hiring several times in the last couple of weeks, but scrapped 'em all. I hope to get my act together and post some thoughts on it in the coming weeks.