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I just recently did a TD on the topics of worst run franchises (http://www.fannation.com/throwdowns/show/74080)

Unfortunatly, my competition didn't take it as serious as I hoped he would.  Since it wasn't a great argument against me, I feel like I must blog about it to vent about my frustrations:

The Pirates have had 15 consecutive losing seasons...and next year there will be no chance of hitting .500..so we will tie the MLB futility record.

The worst part about it is that the Pirates organization seems to be taking no steps to try and remedy the situation.

It started with hiring Connelley, a guy who recently got demoted from assistant GM in cleveland.  Let me reiterate this: Cleveland didn't see it fit to give this guy the number 2 job...and yet we gave him the number 1?  What bothers me about this, is that there has to be some better canidate out there then this bum.  They wanted him because he worked under Littlefield or something like that.  Great, we have a culture of losing, and we are making hires that understand that culture of losing.  Maybe this guy will try to convince Roger Clemens to come to us, or maybe Ken Griffey Sr.

Now they hire John Russell as the coach, just a couple years after feeling he wasn't good enough as a third base coach! Ottawa, the team Russell coached last year ranked last in ERA, WHIP, strike outs, and shutouts...and they finished 55-89. I guess the Pirates wanted to hire a guy who is used to losing.  Our own AAA team had a record better than this guy, so this hiring is mind boggling.  I mean they may as well put me out there in the dugout, because I have just as good of a chance of managing the Buccos to wins as this guy does.

I don't even want to get into the awful player signing and decisions we have made over the last 15 years.  It all started with (and it kills me to say this because I hate this guy) Barry Bonds.  Not saying Barry would have saved our franchise, but once we let him and Leyland go, we decided to take on the longest rebuilding period ever. 

FYI: 4 MLB franchises have been created since the Pirates last had a winning season.  Of those 4, 3 have made the world series (Florida, Arizona, Colorado), 2 have won world series (Florida and Arizona), and 1 has won mulitple world series (Florida). 

 If expansion teams can build (note: not rebuild, or in Florida case, build then win, then rebuild then win) why can't the Pirates.  Our problems are so many, that multiple things need to be done.  And it all starts at the top with ownership...