After the Pirates
traded star outfielder Andrew McCutcheon this week, fans were so upset they
started an online petition urging MLB to force Pittsburgh owner Bob Nutting to sell
the team. As of Wednesday, the petition
had some 28,000 signatures. Funny, but
MLB.com didn’t have anything about it, and neither did the Pirates’ website,
for that matter. No doubt they said
something about it on MLB Network.
Anyway, the Pirates
went twenty seasons, 1993-2012, playing under .500 ball. They followed that with three straight
playoff appearances good for one advance and now they’re back to losing. How often do you think the term “rebuild” has
been spoken by the various owners and members of the front office the past
quarter century? How often do you think
media and industry types crowed about the success of the latest rebuild? Probably close to 28,000, I’ll wager. Still, a petition, no matter how many
signatures, won’t accomplish much on its own.
Someone with money would have to step up and buy the team.
The Pirates have had
three owners/ownership groups during their travails; money alone won’t solve
the problem. The team needs not only new
deep pockets, but a brain to go with the pockets. Good luck with that.
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