[Lefty Noob]

The ex-Pittsburgh manager clearly blames Dave Littlefield and the Pirates ownership for his losing record as the Bucs manager.

"How much better could we have been if we could have held on to players? Jason Schmidt? Aramis Ramirez? Even Kris Benson?" McClendon told the Associated Press today.

"My fate was probably sealed when we traded away the franchise player [Ramirez]... Even today, that's tough to swallow because he's such a good player. That was awfully tough. That really set us back because of what he was starting to accomplish at a power position, and we haven't been able to replace that."

"It seemed like every year, we lost half of our players at the All-Star break," McClendon added. "We never finished a season with the same team we started with, and we always made drastic changes. People don't realize how tough that is."

Interestingly enough, he also dodged questions about whether or not there was anyone in the Pirates organization who might have betrayed him, or been happy to see him fail. And he also brings up that Zach Duke and Ian Snell didn't like the "old school style" of McClendon or his pitching coach, Spin Williams.

URL: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_yl...v=ap&type=lgns

It's a fascinating article. Check it out and let me know what you think about Lloyd's comments.

[EmpireWF]

I don't know much about him as a manager but he did get shafted as far as the players go. They dealt everyone away for practically nothing...except when they got Bay. How did management expect to win by putting young and frankly, under-skilled players on the field?

But hey...their ballpark is one of the best in the NL

[Lefty Noob]

I'm a Bucs fan, and let me tell you, that Ramirez trade was a killer. He was supposed to be the face of that franchise for years to come. And look at how he's blossomed in Chicago!

Since then, we've kind of gotten used to it. Like last year, when they made a big deal about signing Matt Lawton, you just knew he wasn't going to finish the season as a Pirate. Hopefully this year's different, but I won't believe it until I see it. It's hard to win when your team's basically a revolving door for talent.

Lloyd was an excellent manager who seriously got shafted, in my opinion.

[wvuauthor]

I agree that Ramirez has turned into a solid power hitter, but I think Pirates fans get caught up in this a little bit much. He is a good player, but nothing great. I like what the Bucs have right now, and I think they have a lot of chemistry on this team.

I am hoping for big things this year...

[Lefty Noob]

But you can't deny that a lineup that included Bay, Ramirez, Lawton, Wilson, Kendell would've been awful nice last season. Sure, it probably would've never happened in reality, but its nice to dream!

[wvuauthor]

True! Us Pirates fans have to learn to have big dreams, because most of the time they are crushed right before our eyes.

[BigBadBuc]

I don't think that any manager during that time period would have succeeded in all fairness to McClendon. The Pirates were bottoming out financially. Most of their decisions revolved around money issues and very little of it made baseball sense.

BBB

[wvuauthor]

It was a nearly impossible situation. If you do not have the players, you do not have the players-it is that simple. Hopefully things have turned the corner.

[Lefty Noob]

I don't think that any manager during that time period would have succeeded...

That's my point, 3B. I think McClendon actually did better than most would have. I'm kind of sorry to see him go, even though I do have high hopes for Tracy. The bottom line is to win and draw in fans, you need to pay some players. If you don't get and keep good players, you won't win, and fans won't care enough to buy tickets or merchandise, so then you can't afford to get and keep good players.

Ultimately, though, you just need to risk losing money so that you can try and make some, and hopefully win a few games in the process! Maybe this year, that happens?

[BigBadBuc]

Lefty.

I agree. You have to at least take some calculated risks in 2006 and 2007. There is the possibility of that occurring next year because I think that 2006 will be a revenue rich year for the Pirates.

BBB

[wvuauthor]

You are right, it should be a revenue rich year. I don't know if you guys have ever been to PNC Park but it is beautiful. If the Bucs can put a competitive team on the field, there is no reason they should not be able to draw fans.