Someone Get The Pittsburgh Pirates Owner A Teleprompter

Because everyone has become mute to Pittsburgh Pirates majority owner Bob Nutting, we felt it would be important to take a look at what he said in a headline story on the teams website today.

“I’m really looking forward to that. Everybody is looking forward to next season,” Nutting said in an interview with MLB.com at MLB’s Owners Meetings in Scottsdale.

Nothing to be seen in the first two sentences.  Seriously, who isn’t looking forward to the next season?  Ok, maybe Rod Barajas.

“We need to move forward in 2013. I really think we have a lot of opportunity to continue the momentum we’ve built the last two years. And that will begin on Day One in Spring Training.”

…move forward.  (that’s where all of our photoshops have been targeted.  As predicted, Bob Nutting’s focus will be forward.)  Good one Mr. Nutting.  Borrow the Presidential motto whenever possible.

Building on the momentum begins on Day One in Spring Training.  That’s right, because there hasn’t been much strategy involved this winter has there?

“I spent some time with [manager Clint Hurdle] during the holidays, and he is an absolutely focused team leader. The question is how do we make sure we start off on the right tone and are mentally and physically prepared to play 162 games?”

Aha!   It took six sentences to get to Clint Hurdle.  And…..then the owner of the team asks a question.  He asks a question….shouldn’t Mr. Nutting being setting the tone to ensure the right tone is set?  Shouldn’t the majority owner provide the direction for the team to be mentally and physically prepared to play 162 games, not asking questions about how they ensure that it occurs?

So to answer your question Mr. Nutting the best way to start off on the right tone is to invest in player acquisition, increase dollars spent on advanced scouting, ensure that the players on your roster are treated with the utmost respect and want to do anything to win games. 

I guess the question really is why in the name of sweet baby Jesus are you asking such a question?  

“It’s crystal clear (To who? We’ve seen plenty of conflicting commentary on the topic and when the opportunity existed at PirateFest to have all of the decision makers on the same stage, you were ghost.)  we’re not running a boot camp, a paramilitary operation,”

Um…Mr. Nutting.  Nobody is confusing you the Pirates prospects with SEAL Team Six.  Don’t mean to burst your bubble sir.   

 “The focus must be (what? well why isn’t it then???) and has been on baseball.  (oh yeh, that sounds real convincing.  So if my son tells me his focus must be on his studies and then follows that up with it has been on his studies…uh…I am not buying it.)

Competing on a championship level is the single-minded focus. (No idea what that sentence means.  Good words with you are not) But getting to that point clearly is about more than simply rolling balls out and having people do drills.

SMOKE GRENADE!!!  GAS!  GAS! GAS!

Now that we’ve put on our mask….

We agree that it takes more than rolling balls out and doing drills.  But shouldn’t that be absolutely perfected before talking about focus?  The Pittsburgh Pirates struck out at an alarming rate, lost games at a Major League Baseball setting pace, but suddenly we are talking about the nation’s military?

I’m so confused.

We agree that the United States military does a tremendous job with 18 to 22-year old men.  I was one of them, the system is one that is tried and true.  But…..

“We need to make sure we find the right balance,

is it me or does he say balance a lot?

and if that balance

wait…it’s not just me

includes drawing lessons from a group like the Navy SEALS — an elite organization that has mental toughness and performs at the highest level — can we learn from that? Yes.”

Sure we can learn from the military.  How about that pitching staff?

The SEALS are an amazing organization, no question Mr. Nutting.  How about that pitching staff?

“I believe that our primary responsibility is to develop baseball players to play baseball and win championships at PNC Park.

FINALLY!!!   Tell us more…tell us more…

If

So there is a doubt that we might not??

we can find the appropriate balance,

told you it wasn’t just me…

where we have the safety of our players utmost in mind, that we have the baseball development utmost in mind, we can supplement that baseball focus with additional drills for team-building training.”

This guy just exudes confidence as a leader doesn’t he?

Why is it hard to find the appropriate balance?  Can’t that be something determined by the majority owner OF THE DAMN TEAM?

“We’ll never apologize for any affiliation with the United States military in our mental conditioning” —

Sometimes, and maybe it’s just me, but when someone says they will never apologize, doesn’t it seem like they just apologized?

“I think Neal has it exactly right,” Nutting said Wednesday. “We train well.

Umm…excuse me Mr. Nutting, you have never had a winning ballclub.  Ever.  It’s hard to say you do anything well.   

I have a lot of personal respect for the military; my brother-in-law just retired from the Marine Corps, a fighter pilot.

Please thank him for his service from all of us at RumBunter.  Now that he is retired will he be assisting you in your efforts with the Pittsburgh Pirates baseball club?

We do a lot of work with veterans and would never put ourselves in position to disrespect them.

I find this amusing.  A ton of organizations utilize some type of military-like training.  It’s been happening for a long time.  So…again, we say, I don’t think anyone is confusing the Pirates prospects with SEAL Team Six. 

Frankly, I believe it would be wrong to think that an elite program in another area does not offer lessons we can learn about driving mental toughness. There have been some creative ideas, and we do need to make sure we find that balance.

Again, I have zero confidence this elusive balance Mr. Nutting talks about will ever be found with him at the helm.

“The training our guys went through last summer isn’t boot-camp training.

(No shit.)

We need to make sure we’re not cutting off good, valuable training tools and techniques. But we don’t want to

(then why don’t you say the organization is not going to?)

swing too far; we need to make sure we understand we are focused on baseball.”

I’m done.  Mr. Nutting had a perfect stage at PirateFest last month to address the thousands of supporters of the franchise including the season ticket holders on hand.  He didn’t.

He didn’t because he isn’t a leader.  He is a follower.   Just look at the comments about the banlance (again with the ‘b’ word) Bud Selig has created at the end of the article.  As a hardcore baseball fan, I could give a shit less about balance within baseball.  We want the Pirates to dominate the game.  Own it.  Develop talent.  Churn out wins.  Defy the odds.  Repeat.

When Mr. Nutting talks…. what gives you any indication that dominance will happen?     It’s all about balance with Mr. Nutting.

If these few sentences from the luxurious resort in Scottsdale…. the first sentences we have heard from the majority owner in weeks, don’t convince you he is a failure as a leader, I am not certain just what will.

And that sucks.  It sucks real hard.

We’re telling you, a teleprompter fixes all this shit.