PITTSBURGH PIRATES
匹茲堡海盜隊
Length of streak:
15 straight losing seasons
勝率未達五成的時間：
連續十五個球季
Last winning season: 96-66, 1992
最近一次勝率超過五成的球季：
96勝66敗 1992年
General managers:
GMs
Cam Bonifay 1993-2001
Dave Littlefield 2001-07
Neal Huntington 2008-
Five bad moves
五個不對的決策
1. Keeping Andy Van Slyke instead of Barry Bonds.
Van Slyke was wildly popular with the fans, he
wasn't half the diva that Bonds was, and his asking
price was much lower. But when Pittsburgh chose to
keep Van Slyke after the team's stretch of three
straight division titles (1990-1992), it ranked as
one of the worst decisions in baseball history. The
Pirates haven't had a winning season since.
1. 選擇留下Andy Van Slyke，而非留下Barry Bonds
Van Slyke在過去的日子裡，受到廣大球迷們的喜愛。 他也
不像棒子爺那麼堅持要當球隊裡的老大，而且他所要求的價
碼比棒子爺低很多。 但是當海盜隊在他們連續三年贏得分區
冠軍後，選擇留下Van Slyke的這個決定，在棒球歷史上是最
糟糕決策的其中之一。 海盜自從那個決策以後，至今仍未達
到球季五成勝率。
2. Sticking with Cam Bonifay for too long as GM.
Bonifay took the reins in 1993, inheriting a suddenly
talent-starved team that had just lost the future all-
time home run king. But in his eight years as general
manager, Bonifay got stuck in the mud and never dug
himself out. Failing to rebuild the farm system, the
Pirates tried to compensate by dishing out big contracts
to mediocre players (Mike Benjamin! Pat Meares!! Kevin
Young!!!) and gigantic contracts to players a step above
mediocrity. The six-year, $60 million contract he gave
Jason Kendall remains one of the worst deals of an entire
generation.
2. 堅持讓Cam Bonifay 當GM太長的時間了。
Bonifay接手管理球隊是從1993開始的，接手了一支突然間變成缺
乏天分的球隊，而且這支球隊才剛失去了在未來可能是大聯盟全壘
打王的球員。 但是在Bonifay管理球隊的這八年來，他就像卡在一
灘沼澤裡，而且從來就沒有試著轉換自己的處境。 海盜隊藉由向平
凡球員(Mike Benjamin! Pat Meares!! Kevin Young!!!)和好一點的
球員送出大張合約來補償在重建農場方面的失敗。 Bonifay給 Jason
Kendall一張六年60M的合約仍然是最糟糕的買賣之一。
3. Sticking with Dave Littlefield for too long as GM.
His trade record was a mixed bag, with some successful
moves (acquiring Jason Bay from the Padres, albeit only
after San Diego refused to give up Xavier Nady) balanced
by a few stinkers (tossing future All-Star pitcher Chris
Young overboard for Matt Herges). His greatest downfall
was his woeful drafting and development record: The team
exited the Littlefield era with a farm system in no better
shape than it had been 6½ years earlier, despite owning
top-10 draft picks every year.
3. 堅持讓Dave Littlefield當GM太長的時間了。
他的交易紀錄是混雜難以評論好壞了，如：從教士隊獲得Jason Bay，
即使在他們拒絕放棄Xavier Nady，這些成功平衡了不少的錯誤，
如：將未來明星投手Chris Young丟出海盜船外以便於獲Matt Herges。
他最糟糕的方面是在他悽慘的選秀和球員發展的培育上。 海盜隊離開
了Littlefield世紀後，農場的動物們並沒有比六年半前好，雖然每年
都獲得前十選秀的順位。
4. Drafting Bryan Bullington No. 1 overall in 2002.
Littlefield's draft record was best exemplified by
taking Bullington, a college pitcher projected more
as a safe, back-of-the-rotation starter than an ace,
over the consensus top talent, B.J. Upton (who went No. 2
to the Devil Rays). Other first-rounders Littlefield passed
up that year: Prince Fielder, Jeff Francis, Jeremy Hermida,
Scott Kazmir, Nick Swisher, Cole Hamels, James Loney, \
Jeff Francoeur and Matt Cain.
4. 在2002年第一選秀順位上選了Bryan Bullington
選了Bryan Bullington就是Littlefield錯誤選秀的最好例子。
Bryan Bullington，一個被高估比一般Ace還好，可以當做先發輪值
之一的投手，他的天分是被高估和B.J. Upton一樣的(當年被魔鬼魚
以第二順位挑走)。 當年第一輪Littlefield沒挑被別隊挑走的有，
Prince Fielder, Jeff Francis, Jeremy Hermida, Scott Kazmir,
Nick Swisher, Cole Hamels, James Loney, Jeff Francoeur and Matt Cain.
譯者：Bryan Bullington大聯盟的成績，Littlefield的選秀大概就只能哭哭崩潰
W L ERA G GS IP H R ER HR BB SO
Career 0 3 5.89 6 3 18.1 25 13 12 3 6 8
5. Selling the franchise to Kevin McClatchy.
In a sense, it's hard to call the McClatchy Era
a bad move. A team can pick its players, coaches,
manager, GM, scouts and other personnel. But it can't
pick the people who run the whole show, and therein
lies the problem for many teams, especially the Pirates.
The head of a publishing empire, McClatchy headed a group
of owners who did everything on the cheap from 1996 to
2007, even after a beautiful, new, taxpayer-funded stadium
landed in their laps. Everything from choosing signability
over talent in the draft to sticking with the team's
ineffectual GMs too long can be blamed on hapless ownership.
5. 將球隊經營權賣給Kevin McClatchy
一般來說，很難the McClatchy Era稱為一個不對的決策。 一支球隊
可以挑球員、教練，總教頭，GM，球探，及其他的人事佈局。
但是他們不能挑選負責這整個球賽轉播人員，這個問題也同時存在
於不少球隊中，特別是海盜隊。 身為球隊公開的所有者，從1996到
2007年以來，McClatchy指揮了一個做什麼事都是為了省錢的管理
團隊，甚至在一座漂亮全新，由賦稅人建立的球場已經在他們的管理之下。
任何事從在選秀會選了高估的球員到堅持長時間讓沒有效率的GM管理球隊，
都可以歸罪於球隊的所有者。
球隊最低潮的時候：
在2001年球季的第二天到最後一天面對小熊隊，海盜隊因為
13-2的結果受到打擊，也是他們第一百場落敗的球季。
這也是十六年來第一次海盜隊輸了一百場的比賽。
Favorite whipping boys:
Derek Bell, Kevin Young, Pat Meares, Mike Benjamin,
Lloyd McClendon, Jim Tracy, Cam Bonifay,
Dave Littlefield, Kevin McClatchy.
最該打的小孩們：
Derek Bell, Kevin Young, Pat Meares, Mike Benjamin,
Lloyd McClendon, Jim Tracy, Cam Bonifay,
Dave Littlefield, Kevin McClatchy.
Notable quotable:
"Nobody told me I was in competition. If there is
competition, somebody better let me know. If there
is competition, they better eliminate me out of the
race and go ahead and do what they're going to do
with me. I ain't never hit in spring training, and
I never will. If it ain't settled with me out there,
then they can trade me. I ain't going out there to
hurt myself in spring training battling for a job.
If it is [a competition], then I'm going into
'Operation Shutdown.'"