The last time the Pirates had a winning record was…eh…let’s not nitpick- it’s been quite a long time. Over the years plenty of stars have came through Pittsburgh only to watch ownership trade them away for young talent that flat out has not developed the way the Pirates once thought. Pirate fans have to wonder when ownership will lock up it’s young talent, spend some money, and bring back a winner to a once proud franchise. Maybe this is the decade.

Andrew McCutchen is on his way to being a sure super star…right? He had an outstanding rookie campaign in 2009 and showed flashes of brilliance. He’s going to be a terror on the bases, and he sure showed he could swing the bat a bit, while flashing what could be a real “golden” glove in the near future. I’m sure everyone has the same question running through their mind. When are the Pirates going to trade him to “start over?” Is it going to happen next year? Two years from now? 4 years from now? Well- I’ll what I can to silence Pittsburgh doubt, but I don’t think the Pirates are going to trade him and will look to lock up the youngster for a long time- similar to what the Rays did with Evan Longoria. Can I be sure in that statement? Eh- I’m trying to make myself believe it. Listen, the point of the statement is simply this- eventually Pittsburgh has to get out of it’s rebuilding stage and make a run. They have an outstanding stadium to say the least, and they have more money than they let people believe- it’s simply going to take a couple risky signings, and a couple other developments and Pittsburgh can definitely find it’s way back to the promised lands. It might take some time- but with McCutchen already there, and star number 2 on the way- it might be sooner rather than later.

Has anyone seen Pedro Alvarez take BP? Holy Cow. The ball jumps off his bat. Forget his superman strength, forget his high draft position, and forget the Pirates almost didn’t sign him due to some shady business going on by the ever popular Scott Boras. Just remember that this is the guy that’s supposedly going to save the franchise. Alvarez can rake- there’s no denying it, there’s nothing to be afraid of. He’s going to hit for a ton of power at the big league level- probably unreal power. The question is- when are the Pirates going to bring him up? Well- it’s time. The season is about here, and I don’t know (well…I do know how they COULD send him to AAA and it’s all economics) how they can tell their best hitter to pack up his stuff and head to AAA for more “seasoning.” The time is now for this young man to be recognized as one of the best prospects in baseball. He could bring a ridiculous amount of pop to a pretty pathetic lineup outside of a player or two, and with some insane talent, and some big games- maybe fans will remember that there is a baseball team in Pittsburgh. And if fans remember there’s a team, maybe ownership will spend some of that revenue. Anyone see the effect here? Maybe that’s a ton of pressure on a young kid, but he’s a man in a young man’s body. He’s ready physically and he’s ready mentally to show people that his BP power is the real thing. I hope that Pittsburgh can keep these young kids and return to some form of greatness in a couple years, because it’s going to be a shame if they’re both traded to bigger marketed teams- yeah I’m talking about you New York Yankees.