By Dejan Kovacevic | 11:30 a.m. Tuesday
Click here to submit question.
We have Qs, about the Dominican series ...
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Q: Hey, DK, great to have you back and hope you had a good vacation from the beat.
It's very unfortunate to see what the previous administration did to our Latin American operations, but it seems like hiring Rene Gayo was the right move. Do you know why Gayo, who got talent for the Indians (who seem like a very, very well-run organization), stayed with the Pirates even though the organization didn't treat his department very well? I think it shows a lot about the man that he stayed with the organization.
Marc Graham of Mount Washington, Pittsburgh
KOVACEVIC: Someone with Gayo's reputation in the industry always is going to get nibbles here or there, and I have cause to believe that was the case late in Dave Littlefield's tenure. But he stayed put, from the way I understand it, mostly out of loyalty to his staff that is spread out across Latin America, as that map in the paper showed yesterday. Many of his lieutenants came over with him from Cleveland, and their livelihoods, to a large extent, are linked to his. If he pulls up roots, he does not do so alone.
That said, as I type this, Gayo sounds plenty satisfied -- extremely satisfied, actually -- with the support he is getting from the top.
Now, the next step, as he would be the first to point out, is for Gayo to produce at something comparable to the level he did in Cleveland.
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Q: What plans, if any, do you have of following the career arc of Sadid Frias? Could we get an occasional update as he progresses through the system? This kind of longitudinal story would be great to see.
Seth Weidner of Lansdowne, Pa.
KOVACEVIC: That is a neat idea, Seth. I thought about that briefly in leaving his home, thinking I might well never see him again or even hear his name, but that was about the end of it until your Q.
Yeah, that seems doable. I will try to come up with something. It might not be very personal, as it would be tough to communicate regularly with someone who knows so little English, but for sure some numerical updates will be available once he starts DSL play next summer.
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Q: Hey, Dejan, great piece about the inroads the Pirates have made in the Dominican.
Your article from 2006 with Gayo mentioned two players who Rene was enamored with back then: Starlin Cespedes and Alex Vargas. What became of these two? Is there any way to get an update?
Jay Yovanovich of Raleigh, N.C.
KOVACEVIC: Sure, and it should lend a sobering note to anyone getting too hopeful about Frias or any of these kids ...
Cespedes was covered in Part 2 of the series, a massive disappointment for Gayo -- second only to Yoslan Herrera in that category -- after really just giving up on the game shortly after arriving in Bradenton and failing to adjust to the culture. He now is back in the Dominican in the Nationals' system.
Vargas has batted .300 and .285 in his first two seasons in Bradenton, with a little pop. But that comes with the huge asterisk that he is now 22, which is quite old for the Gulf Coast League. Moreover, he plays first base, which means he has to hit at an extraordinary level to make it.
One thing to bear in mind, though: Gayo never signed a kid to a six-figure bonus -- to my knowledge -- until this calendar year.
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Q: Hi, Dejan. A hearty welcome back. You've re-entered the scene with a big splash with the Latin American articles. Fascinating.
My question so far is this: How in the world did we end up with Rene Gayo, whose hiring seems to be well above the level of any other decision made by the previous management regarding Latin America?
P.S. Regarding the Q&A, is it going to be phased out in favor of all of the other online features? I thought I detected some movement in that direction.
Marda Hook of Wexford
KOVACEVIC: I have heard that there was a little bit of a disconnect in Cleveland that led to Gayo and the Indians going separate ways. Very quickly, Littlefield hired him.
But, before praise is dished out, it bears repeating that the position of Latin American scouting director was vacant for nearly two years before that.
Vacant, I say.
As for the Q&A, I get other questions like that, and I am not sure I understand. There are exactly the same number of Q&As -- Tuesday through Friday -- since the blog arrived as before. The format is the same, too. The only difference, Marda, is that it is published within the blog as opposed to the old format on our regular Pirates page. But, even there, we keep a separate set of links to the newest ones.
No, nothing will change with the Q&A. Nothing at all.
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Q: Dejan, I'm a huge fan of the Buccos and also your work on the Buccos. So glad you're back in print and on the blog.
Hey, thinking seriously of a trip to the D.R. in January or February and would like some more info on you and your wife's trip and to know if it's possible to contact Mr. Gayo and maybe observe some of what you got to see. Or to at least see the facility and maybe catch some sort of baseball while we are there.
I am a local high school and sandlot baseball coach with five kids
Dan Palm of Belle Vernon
KOVACEVIC: As noted in the item here earlier in the day, I cannot recommend a trip like this hardly enough for the baseball diehard. And, with daily nonstops from Pittsburgh International Airport to Punta Cana -- $400 round trip - it is less time-consuming and maybe even less expensive than, say, a flight to Las Vegas.
The airline is called USA 3000, and this is their site.
But here is the catch: As all these athletes correctly advised beforehand, if you choose to drive from the coastal resort region of Punta Cana all the way across to Santo Domingo -- four hours, four zillion potholes, a few goats and almost no directional signs with no Mapquest available -- you are an epic fool. I have spent a good amount of time in Europe, so I was at least somewhat braced for the ridiculous chaos on the roads, but I would not advise anyone to make this drive.
Which means that one should either find a domestic hopper from Punta Cana to the capital, or change planes somewhere in the U.S. that will get you right to the capital.
As for Gayo and the academy: Not even Gayo knows his schedule that far in advance, as one of the stories detailed. He has little idea where his next tryout is even upon landing in a given country. And the academy will have nothing more for you to see in January or February except for construction and a whole lot of really thick, sticky mud.
If you want to see baseball in the Dominican, though, all you have to do is get around and keep your eyes open. It is everywhere, even in the narrowest streets of the densest areas. From an academy standpoint, all of the academies on the road that links the Pirates' new place to other teams has all kinds of year-round action. (We visited the Red Sox and Royals places, toured inside and out, and there were nice enough.) Also, formally, it is supposed to be quite the spectacle to attend a Dominican Winter League game, though we unfortunately missed out on that with two rainouts in as many nights at the stadium shared by Escogido and Licey.
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PHOTO of Frias: Dali Kovacevic/Special to the Post-Gazette
Posted
Dec 02 2008, 11:30 AM
by
Dejan Kovacevic