View From The Crow's Nest
Latch on Major League Baseball
By Jim Lachimia

o   When Pirates' Director of Latin American Scouting Rene Gayo worked for the Indians, one of the players he signed was pitcher Fausto Carmona. Carmona was already 6'4" tall at the time, but he weighed about 140 pounds. "He looked like a scarecrow," Gayo said. Carmona ate mostly sugar cane growing up in the Dominican Republic and his teeth were rotted. But thanks to a few trips to the dentist, a nutritious diet, and serious strength and conditioning work, he went from throwing 78-81 mph to 89-91 mph in less than a year. Now Carmona weighs 220 pounds and the 23-year-old righthander can get it up there in the mid-90s. Gayo said the Indians gave Carmona a $12,000 signing bonus and paid several hundred dollars to fix his teeth. Six years later, he's a solid big league pitcher. Carmona went 14-8 with a 3.11 ERA in his first 25 starts for Cleveland this year. For a teenager coming out of Latin America, that's a best-case scenario.

o   Five disappointing aspects of 2007 for the Pirates: 1. Zach Duke spiraling downward (141 hits allowed in 93.1 innings). 2. Adam LaRoche's April and May (.214 batting average and 50 strikeouts). 3. Jason Bay's batting average dropping into the .250-range (entered the season a .296 lifetime hitter). 4. Chris Duffy not getting on base or using his speed enough in the lead-off spot. 5. Ronny Paulino failing to build upon his positive rookie year.

o   Five encouraging aspects of 2007 for the Pirates: 1. Tom Gorzelanny's emergence as the team's most effective and consistent starting pitcher. 2. Matt Capps showing he can handle the critical closer's role. 3. Xavier Nady developing into a bona fide run producer. 4. Paul Maholm overcoming a 3-10 start, and giving the team a third solid starting pitcher. 5. GM Dave Littlefield improving the overall talent base with the in-season additions of Matt Morris, Josh Phelps, Cesar Izturis and Matt Kata.

o   Rajai Davis, the player Littlefield sent to San Francisco in exchange for Morris, got off to a hot start with his new club, but he was expendable because the Pirates still have more than one center field prospect. Everyone knows about former first round pick Andrew McCutchen, and indeed he's the team's centerfielder of the future. But Nyjer Morgan-who has missed most of this season with a thumb injury-is also highly regarded. Manager Jim Tracy loved what he saw of Morgan during spring training. "He stands behind the second base bag and dares you to hit the ball over his head, and if you don't hit it over the fence, he can go and get it," the skipper said recently.

o   It's unfortunate that Kevin McClatchy will soon step down as the Pirates' CEO never having experienced a winning season. He's a good man, he tried hard and his love of the game is unsurpassed. But in the demanding and highly visible world of sports, that's not enough. Bob Nutting, who took over as the team's principal owner earlier this year, is not as outgoing or impulsive as McClatchy. Nutting is more steadfast in his beliefs and less likely to make moves for PR reasons. Word is he's a more demanding boss than the affable McClatchy. Quite likely, that's a good thing.