Trade Andrew McCutchen?
Sure. Just make sure to get value for him.
The problem with trades is people tend to focus only on who's leaving. McCutchen has obviously been the Pirates' best player and was a key part in ending 20 consecutive years of losing.
Maybe his career decline has started, but he's still only 30 and figures to have some production left.
The meaningless phrase "face of the franchise" has been repeated often, but that actually carries little weight.
Jason Kendall was once as ubiquitous as McCutchen, and look how that ended.
The Pirates are in a tough position with a limited budget and a divisional opponent, the World Series champion Chicago Cubs, who have an open checkbook.
The idea is to keep the Pirates competitive rather than abruptly fall off a cliff as they did in 1993 after too many of their better players departed.
You can trade a high-profile player and do well. There was anguish when Tony Pena was sent to St. Louis on April 1, 1987. But Andy Van Slyke was a reliable hitter and Gold Glove center fielder, Mike Lavalliere was a solid platoon catcher and Mike Dunne provided a good rookie season before arm troubles derailed his career.
Trading Jason Bay didn't work out so well. The Pirates got nothing of value in return. It was a wasted opportunity.
Trade McCutchen? It could be the right thing. It all depends on what the Pirates can get for him.
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--PICK ONE
Eli Manning and Ben Roethlisberger face off this afternoon in a game that is meaningful to both teams.
The two quarterbacks don't match up that often, but the storyline is always the same since they were both first-round selections in the 2004 draft.
Manning was the first overall pick, chosen by San Diego, then traded to the New York Giants by prior arrangement. Roethlisberger was the 11th player chosen, grabbed by the Steelers seven picks after the Giants drafted Phillip Rivers and shipped him to San Diego in the Manning deal.
Last week, longtime NFL journalist Gary Myers was asked to use the benefit of hindsight and tell which quarterback he would pick.
His answer was Manning. He cited Manning's durability (he has never missed a start) and the absence of the off-field problems that are part of Roethlisberger's record -- a motorcycle accident and two allegations of sexual misconduct.
Both Manning and Roethlisberger have two Super Bowl rings. Roethlisberger played in a third Super Bowl that the Steelers lost.
Manning was the MVP in both of his Super Bowl appearances. Roethlisberger played well in one Super Bowl, poorly in the other two.
Roethlisberger has reconfigured his personal life after some unsavory episodes. Manning, playing in New York's harsh spotlight, has been scandal free.
So who was the better pick? They're both headed for the Hall of Fame. Neither team has any buyers' remorse 12 years down the road.
If you want to talk about regrets from that draft, it starts and ends with the Cleveland Browns' selection of Kellen Winslow Jr. right before the Steelers took Roethlisberger.
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--ELBOW ROOM
MLB will have five more years of labor peace after agreement was reached on a new contract with the Players Association.
The big issues have been well-covered. The devil is in the small details with the new deal.
Every home clubhouse must now have a chef. The Pirates have been ahead of the curve on this. For the past several years, they've had a chef on duty daily and a nutritionist who visits regularly. Players no longer hit the Wendy's drive through on their way to the park.
Then there's this provision:
The teams must provide each player with two seats on the buses to spring training games.
Maybe they need that extra seat for their wallets?
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