Pirates fire Skipper Jim Tracy
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by Behbigben15
Here is a side note from the MLB playoffs, and all the hype involved in the MVP, and Cy Young chase: Pittsburgh Pirates fired manager Jim Tracy. I'm sure that a majority of you guys don't give a horse's ass about the Pirates. But me, being a Pirates fan, am writing about this. The Pirates were in need of a big change, even if it means firing Tracy after just two seasons. As of right now, it doesn't matter who is the manager of the Pirates, they just don't have the right guys in there to be a winning franchise right now. Tracy, and his Pirates went 67-95 in '06, and 68-94 this season. Consistent, but not in a good way. The Pirates' failure is certainly not Tracy's fault, right now, I don't think Joe Torre could coach the Pirates to a winning season. Tracy is a great manager, he had success with the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he managed for five seasons, combining for a record of 427-383 (.527 WP) as the LA manager. In LA, Tracy averaged around a 85-77, which, in the NL, is usually good enough for a playoff spot.
The Pirates will have a total new look for 2008, as they will have a new manager. Plus, they fired GM Dave Littlefield on Spetember 7th, and he was replaced by Neal Huntington. The new manager will make the decision of whether or not to keep any of the coaches. Tracy produced the shortest run of any non-interim Pirates manager since Bill Virdon, who was fired late into his second season in 1973. Tracy wasn't the only personnel in Pittsburgh that was fired today. Brian Graham (Senior Director of player development), Ed Creech (Scouting Director), and Jon Mercurio (Director of Baseball Operations).
The Pirates have now had 15 consecutive losing seasons, and aren't looking like they want to win anytime soon. The 51-year old Tracy may not manage next season. The Pirates sure have gone through alot of managers. Four have been fired during their 15 straight losing seasons alone. The only player(s) that has been looking good, is OFer Jason Bay, who has many more all-star game appearances yet to come, and he is their best hitter, and second baseman Freddy Sanchez, and SP Tom Gorzelanny. If the Pirates can pick up a couple big names, or at least some solid hitters this offseason, then that would be a tremendous start to the new era.
Here is a look at the Pirates 2007 stats:
Hitting (ranking in NL only)
BA: .263 (10th)
R: 724 (12)
OBP: .325 (13)
SLG: .411 (11)
OPS: .736 (12)
SB: 68 (12)
Pitching (ranking in NL only)
ERA: 4.93 (14)
BAA: .288 (16)
OPS: .799 (14)
SV: 32 (16)
WHIP: 1.48 (15)
