Bucs are building anew from within

By ED PUSKAS Tribune Chronicle Sports Editor
The Pittsburgh Pirates have perhaps the best ballpark in the major leagues. Most people who visit PNC Park fall in love with it.

It has been a while since a baseball team Pirates fans could love has played in Pittsburgh.

The Pirates didn’t make a lot of attention-grabbing moves toward changing that over the winter. In fact, the team that finished 68-94 a year ago entered spring training largely unchanged in terms of on-the-field personnel.

But owner Bob Nutting did shake up the front office and changed the dugout leadership.

Frank Coonelly signed on as the team’s president. General manager Neal Huntington — late of the Cleveland Indians — comes from a small-market organization that has enjoyed success and remade itself in order to create a new window of opportunity.

John Russell replaced Jim Tracy as the manager of the Pirates. In winter caravan appearances in Trumbull County in January, Russell mentioned feeling good about the burgeoning relationship between himself, Coonelly, Huntington and Nutting.

‘‘When we talked, we connected really fast,’’ Russell told a Tribune Chronicle reporter.

Impatient Pirates fans aren’t going to want to hear it, but front office and on-the-field leadership being on the same page is just as important — if not more moreso — than throwing money at free agents, especially for a franchise trying to reverse years of losing.

The Pirates have had a losing record in each of the last 15 seasons. If it happens again, they’ll match a major-league record for futility.

Nobody, aside from the Pirates’ rivals in the National League Central, wants that to happen. But the fact is, splashy turnarounds don’t generally happen in baseball the way they can for NFL teams with a good draft and a few key free-agent signings.

It isn’t uncommon to see an NFL team go from a 3-13 season to a playoff berth a year later. But baseball teams generally do not surge from 68-94 to a wildcard berth or contention for a division title.

But that being said, if the Pirates follow the Indians’ blueprint and build from within via the farm system, they’ll likely set themselves up to eventually put a team on the field that compares favorably to its PNC Park digs.

It’s about good decisions. The Pirates made more than a few bad choices over the last 15 years. Remember Derek Bell and Pat Meares? They weren’t alone in contributing to the fall of a franchise with a storied history, but someone thought putting them in a Pirates uniform was a good idea.

The good news is that the Pirates already have some useful tools at hand in their rebuilding project.

Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny were among the best young pitchers in the NL a year ago. Zach Duke has looked good in spring training. If he pitches half as well as did as a 22-year-old rookie in 2005 (8-2, 1.81 ERA in 14 starts), and veteran Matt Morris has anything left, the starting rotation should be solid.

The Pirates’ offense should be better, especially if outfielder Jason Bay (.247, 21 HR, 84 RBIs) bounces back from the worst season of his career. No Pittsburgh hitter had more than 21 home runs or 88 RBIs, and among everyday players, only second baseman Freddy Sanchez hit better than .300.

Bay’s biggest contribution, however, could come in a trade. His named was mentioned in rumors all winter, but nothing happened. If he stays healthy and regains his stroke, a contender could come calling and provide the Pirates some prospects.

The Indians — who will again try to platoon David Dellucci and Jason Michaels in left field — reportedly had interest in Bay.

If the platoon fails again and Bay is healthy, the time could be right for a trade that could help both the Indians and Pirates.

epuskas@tribune-chronicle.com'>epuskas@tribune-chronicle.com