Pirates talk twice with Loretta

MUA-HA-HA-HAAAAAAAAAAA!

That's what I'm talking about. Baseball talks with an FA. Suddenly the sun is shining just a little bit brighter!

(And for the rest of yinz I could give a flip where the ants are marching)

I know he is considered a 2nd baseman,but if he signs for a couple years could the Regime be considering offering Sanchez as bait for a SS if Jack gets shopped? Or is he also being thought of as utility and occasional SS?

PoH: I'm not so sure I'm excited about the FA in general, but this item should encourage the "we aren't talking to ANYBODY... WAAAHHH" types... (And really, back to work...  really...  I mean it!)

Anybody want to tell me how excited to be over a potential backup middle infielder with declining pop who's older than I am?

I would think that he would be an insurance policy for Sanchez if his shoulder is not right, and/or he continues to hit like he did in 2008.  Freddy is not good enough defensively to play SS regularly, so I would not consider him a replacement for Jack Wilson if he gets traded.

Somebody can check the stats on Loretta but I'm thinking he's been a Pirate killer for a long time ... Let's get him on our side of the field. Maybe we'll thrown in one more bag of balls than someone else ... Just don't give 'em my supply of Clark Bars!

Hmmmm-Loretta?

They could dump that wannna be 2B MLB'r Sanchez...

Yippeeee! IMO.

I know there are a million signs from last year that Freddy couldn't play SS anymore, but until I see that it is permanent situation, I would at least try him out at short for awhile in ST.  He played only short before he arrived here.

Ooohhhh...very interesting!  

It sounds like a potential replacement for Gomez or Rivas, with the veteran infielder off the bench, to me.

Welcome to the Asylum, InClemente!

Definitely would see him as a bench guy, but his numbers on offense are better than Freddy, Jack, or Andy's last season.

Again!  Every time I write something positive about Freddy, BK jumps in there before me.  With the opposite opinion!

It's a conspiracy, Capn. As Garth Brooks used to say, Billy's "Got Friends in Low Places."

JJ, hit it!

Signing Loretta does not mean any particular player will go--Loretta can play several positions.  Also, at 37 he is not a long term solution.  

@InC--1st post makes you an official Inmate of the Asylum. Welcome aboard.

Plenty - You're skeerin' me again with that MUA-HA-HA-HAAAAAAAAAAA! of yours again.

Although we've put in for one, we don't have a resident priest in the asylum yet to keep your head from going round-and-round.

And if I remember right, the priest didn't do much for LInda Blair anyway! (Billy, PLEASE don't play that Exorcist clip again. That almost scared me right off the blog one night!)

@Capn--Freddy.

Sorry girlfriend. ;-)

I am heartened that the admin is talking to a Pirate killer. Truly.

Loretta is a known quantity, which contributes to his value as a backup for Sanchez.  .350 OBP, average defense, and a little below league average offensive production from a 2B is nothing to be ashamed of.

Also, thanks for the welcome.

PoH -- The Ants Marching thing is a COURTESY so that folks will all stay together and we don't have to check five or six places when there's breaking news to follow along.  

IMO to come to the PBC Loretta would need to hear he has the opportunity to start. Everyone else is in a playoff position that he may not mind riding the pine and filling in from time to time knowing that he is probably in the hunt from opening day.

PoH -

>>And for the rest of yinz I could give a flip where the ants are marching.<<

Hey, are you out to hurt my feelings today? First, I offered you macadamia fudge and then you gave Baywatch the squeaky forehead kiss. Now you are blowing off the ants marching. I'll have you know I invented that last summer and licensed it to the blog so people could announce that a new thread had appeared. (We look like ants marching from one sandhill to another.) I think I'm just going over to the corner and pout for awhile.  ;-)

Welcome Clemente

BK--In Clemente Weather is blog that you can add to the links

inclementeweather.blogspot.com

If Mike Lange had posted this thread, would it have been titled "Look out Loretta"?

My view of talks with Loretta depend on two things: (1) whether we actually sign him and (2) is he going to be a back up or is he the missing key piece to trading Jack Wilson?

I am not convinced we are going to get good value for Jack, but of course, that's just conjecture on my part. I would rathar see Jack stay on than just dump him for chaffe like we did Salomon Torres. If we sign Loretta and he becomes our starting shortstop, that does not solve any problems because there still will not be a quality SS in the system to replace him in 2010.

If he can at least repeat last year there is a chance we get a suppl. pick.  Trade Freddy, sign Loretta for one year stop-gap, get a suppl. pick, and have Ford ready for 2010, sounds fine by me.  Loretta could be trade bait at the deadline also.   I like the idea of signing him.

Not to mention that both Arizona and LA are closer to home for him...that could be a factor.

But it's possible he'd take a bench role...maybe there's something there we don't know about.  

Loretta is obviously far from the second-coming but when in the line-up he is a legitimate #2 hitter, which the Pirates lacked last year. As pointed out, he had a decent OBP and  beyond that, is a good contact hitter who hit .309 with runners on base last year.

DK's killing us this afternoon LMAO...He is definetly in gear today with all the new threads.

@InClementeWeather--Please EM me your contact info

Full Name

and Contact EM address

billabraham2004@yahoo.com

Lorretta's pretty interesting ... He definitely did the role thing with the Astros, for two years, but the year before that he was the starting second baseman in the All-Star game, while with the Red Sox.

2003-04 were the only years he played in 150 games, with the Pads, making the All-Star game in 04. He had career high 16 home runs that year.

The years before that, 1995-2001, he was with the Brew Crew, and hit 150 games only once. Injuries?? Interesting career.

@G-Man - "If we sign Loretta and he becomes our starting shortstop, that does not solve any problems because there still will not be a quality SS in the system to replace him in 2010."

Aha, G-Man, that's where we have you ... That be a year away, and ye do underestimate the greatest management team in baseball! We'll probably have that Rays shortstop we wanted in our hip pocket by then ... or JJ Hardy or somebody!

G-Man -

I didn't know what it meant. Srsly. I was not a late night blogger in season and there's no explanation in the last 45 days of what that means that I could find readily.

I told you on the other thread, you had me at "macadamia." And as for the BSKOF - I bestow two - one for the fudge and one for the unintentional hurt.

Chicken on the Hill -

first, I have to say I agree with you on the Loretta hitting. Second - your screen name is so hard on me. SO hard. I keep thinking of the Chicken on the Hill chicken strips and fries to die for at PNC. I can't get that again until what - April? Yoi. Way to keep the chubby girl of the forum thinking about food. Attaway.

And yet one more time, Ants Marching!

==========================

www.youtube.com/watch

His stats are at least as good as Sanchez. Plus a better OBP AND he WILL take pitch and even though Freddy is in his early 30s and ML is 37 it would be nice to have a good back up,because for all we know Freddy could be gone by mid August.Plus he'll be a lot cheaper than Sanchez. A win- win situation IF they sign him.Could be good in the clubhouse too.

Can't lose,sign him!

It has come to my attention that THERE IS YET ANOTHER THREAD.

Does that mean we march or am I a slow learner? Am I on the forum short bus... or should I be???

Loretta's stats:

www.baseball-reference.com/.../loretma01.shtml

PoH -

Oh, it's okay about the ants. I was just whining. You were not a regular blogger among us way back when that started. Actually, Baywatch BK deserve most of the credit. I just did it one time and they got tickled with it and have carried it forward.

All is forgiven. I don't think anyone else has ever received TWO BSKOFs in a single day. Life does not get much better than that. Just to show my appreciation, in addition to you becoming my cousing and getting the fudge, I'm going to use my government spy connections and send someone to "pay a visit" to your inlaws.

There, There now G-Man ... two squeaky kisses for you. Feel better? I was just about ready to hit the post button, to transfer to you the squeaky kiss she gave me ... though it may have earned me a hap cap, I don't think it would have been as effective.

The effect of kisses appear to be ...

PoH -

Regarding all the threads and where should we be: the asylum does not behave like most blogs. Typically, people post on multiple threads about things just relevant to that thread. Here, we just go on and on about everything and tend to migrate over to the newest thread just to simplify our ongoing verbosity. So, in general, when there's a new thread. move to it. The exception is the "Other Stuff" which, by definition, is not usually baseball related.

@G-Man - "Just to show my appreciation, in addition to you (Plenty) becoming my cousing and getting the fudge, I'm going to use my government spy connections and send someone to "pay a visit" to your inlaws."

ROTFLMGluteusMaximusOff!

Baywatch -

Hey, buddy. That's awfully thoughtful and generous. I am happy to present you with the first Hap Cap of December for that.   __/_H_\

PoH -

>>in addition to you becoming my cousing<<

Just to clarify, the familial role of "cousing" is unique to the G-Man family. It came into existance because I seem incapable of typing the word "cousin" without adding a "g" at the end.

G-Man -Some of the new bloggers don't know about you being a secret agent.Do they know the punishment for revealing any secrets related to you?

Nor do threads die an instantaneous death once the ants have gone marching, sometimes they linger

Maz -

>>Some of the new bloggers don't know about you being a secret agent.Do they know the punishment for revealing any secrets related to you?<<

Funny you should mention the punishment. The old punishment for outing the G-Man was being sent to Gitmo and interrogated/waterboarded by Cheney's goons. But the new and even more gruesome sentence is being sent to spend the weekend with Plenty of Hope's in-laws.

G-Man-

Rumor has it Cheney uses water boarding himself for a relaxation tool

G-Man: <Plenty of Hope's in-laws.>  You're eeeeeeevil. *mwahahahaha*

Folks take it from me - don't cross G-Man, that punishment is brutal.

G-Man,

Hey Cuz! Thanks for adopting me and POH.

BTW, "...the new and even more gruesome sentence is being sent to spend the weekend with Plenty of Hope's in-laws...", which, of course, are now YOUR inlaws, too, courtesy of the adoption into your family (and also my inlaws, now that I think about it...).

Another eventful day in the Asylum.

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As for Mark Loretta, I'm not too thrilled by the prospect of signing him. Since he wouldn't be any long-term solution to anything, I think signing him would only take playing time away from some of the other players we already have, and need to put out there in order to see what they can do. I most definitely do not see him as an improvement over Freddy. Freddy scalded the ball in the second half. He's only two years removed from winning a batting title, for crying out loud. And just because his name isn't Brandon Phillips doesn't mean his defense isn't fine.

However, if Loretta were to be signed to replace Rivas or Gomez (and IF he were sanguine about such a limited role), and also if he came at a six-figure salary, then I could be persuaded. Anything that crosses the seven-figure threshold would put a lie to what the front office has stated about not spending money on stop-gap free agents at the expense of growing the club organically.

Freddy's defense has declined along with his BA. He is horrid as a #2 batter: won't take a walk' bunts terribly because he just doesn't want to. swings at anything between the white lines. Trade him, PLEASE!

Sorry, just not a Freddy fan at all. Great in the community for sure, just not that great a player. IMHO

JL -

>>which, of course, are now YOUR inlaws, too, courtesy of the adoption into your family<<

I checked Virginia Commonwealth laws and the in-laws of a cousin are not officially related to me. Whew! For a minute, I was afraid they might be headed here for Christmas.

I don't know which thread to post this in, so I'll double post...I'm so confused.    ;-)

www.kauaiworld.com/.../doc4933893632860713636717.txt