The Pirates continued their yearly in season fire sale, sending All-Star second basemen Freddy Sanchez to the San Fransisco Giants for Tim Alderson.

Many are saying that the Giants overpaid for Sanchez, and we agree; Alderson was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect in the San Francisco organization entering this season. He has a 7-2 record and a 3.65 ERA in two minor league stops this season.

Via ESPN.com:

The Pittsburgh Pirates have dealt shortstop Jack Wilson and right-handed pitcher Ian Snell to the Seattle Mariners for shortstop Ronny Cedeno, first baseman Jeff Clement, and right-handed pitching prospects Aaron Pribanic, Brett Lorin and Nathan Adcock, the Pirates announced Wednesday.

The team said Cedeno will report directly to the Pirates, while Clement is headed to Triple-A Indianapolis and Pribanic, Lorin and Adcock are being assigned to Class A teams.

ESPN's Page 2 writer Johan Keri wrote a brilliant article over the weekend, detailing baseball's worst dynasties.
We here at 108 Red Stitches love to argue the oddities of baseball (stats/physical/emotional) and we overjoyed to see Keri's article. Here is a brief excerpt from his writings, with links and photos to accompany what we consider the best article on baseball so far this year:

BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Length of streak: 10 straight losing seasons
Last winning season: 98-64, 1997
General managers: Pat Gillick (1998), Frank Wren (1999), Syd Thrift (2000-2002), Jim Beattie/Mike Flanagan (2003-05), Flanagan (2006-07), Andy MacPhail (2007-)

Lowest moment: Facing the Texas Rangers at Camden Yards on Aug. 22 of last year, the Orioles gave up 30 runs, setting a modern-era record for a single game. The O's actually led 3-0 early in the game before allowing 30 straight runs in the 30-3 loss.

Favorite whipping boys: Peter Angelos. Every player, manager, GM and hot dog vendor who failed to do the job in the past 10 years is an extension of Angelos' reign of error.

Hope for the future? The 15-13 start is nice, but the Orioles probably won't see a winning season for a while. Nick Markakis and Adam Jones are great building blocks in the outfield, Luke Scott is an above-average player as the third outfielder, Brian Roberts and George Sherrill should fetch some interesting loot in a trade, and Matt Wieters is a potential franchise player a year away from taking over at catcher. After that, the closet is nearly bare, with a severe lack of pitching the biggest problem.

ETA for next winning season: 2012.

Length of streak: 12 out of 13 losing seasons, no playoff berths in 22 years
Last winning season: 83-79, 2003
Last winning season before that: 64-51, 1994
General managers: Herk Robinson (1995-2000), Allard Baird (2001-06), Dayton Moore (2006-)

Lowest moment: Following the first 100-loss season in franchise history in 2002, new manager Tony Pena improbably guided the team to an 83-win season in '03, dramatically raising expectations. The Royals responded with a 7-14 April in 2004 on their way to 104 losses.

Favorite whipping boys: Tony Muser, Buddy Bell, Allard Baird, David Glass, Angel Berroa, Neifi Perez, Lima Time!

Notable quotable: "We got the best high school arm in the country, and we got probably the best athlete in the draft. If somebody would have told me before the draft we were going to get Mr. Griffin and Mr. Crosby, I would have said 'You're nuts.'" --GM Allard Baird

Hope for the future? Plenty, actually. A top three of Zack Greinke, Gil Meche and Brian Bannister in the rotation suddenly looks really promising. Billy Butler hits like Ichiro, even if it also looks he ate Ichiro. Alex Gordon's a future star. Joakim Soria is a young, cheap, lights-out closer and the key man in a very good bullpen.

ETA for next winning season: 2009.

Length of streak: 15 straight losing seasons
Last winning season: 96-66, 1992
General managers: Cam Bonifay (1993-2001), Dave Littlefield (2001-07), Neal Huntington (2008-)

Lowest moment: Facing the Cubs on the second-to-last day of the 2001 season, the Pirates got crushed by a score of 13-2, their 100th loss of the season. It was the first time the Bucs dropped 100 games in 16 years.

Favorite whipping boys: 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.'" --Pirates outfielder Derek Bell's reaction to competing for a starting job with the Pirates in spring training 2002, after hitting .173 the year before. True to his word, Operation Shutdown never played another game in the big leagues.

Hope for the future? Ian Snell's a keeper in the rotation. Nate McLouth may be in the early stages of a breakout season. Ryan Doumit should be a solid run producer at catcher. Andrew McCutchen is a five-tool prospect in center field. But the biggest hope resides in the front office, where new GM Neal Huntington has surrounded himself with a top-rate staff of baseball minds who should help the Bucs get back on the winning track. It won't happen right away, though -- the Pirates have a terrible farm system for a team that has had so many high draft picks.

ETA for next winning season: 2010.

Name: Andrew McCutchen
Organization: Pittsburgh Pirates
Position: Outfield
Born: 10/10/1986
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Drafted: 2005, 1st Round (11th Overall)

The Pirates, mired in a "culture of losing", did everything necessary to purge the organization of the old regime this offseason. GM's, managers, farm directors, and the team president were fired, replaced, or eased out. The only holdover was the hot dog salesman in section 39.
The future for the Bucs, however, may begin to get a little brighter. McCutchen is the jewel of an otherwise barren farm system, outside of 1B/OF masher Steve Pearce.
Despite struggling in Double-A last season, McCutchen was promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis, playing in seventeen games. McCutchen caught a fire, batting .313, up from .258 in Altoona. In the Arizona Fall League, McCutchen helped his team win the championships, but his numbers again fluctuated. He finished the season batting .286, but hit .342 in the last 10 games of the season.
To say McCutchen is streaky, is an understatement.