The Trade That Saved Pittsburgh?

If the latest trades the Pittsburgh Pirates made finally turn their ball club into a winning team, they should erect a statue in honor of Ricardo Rincon.  We won’t know for a few years how these latest deals will pan out for the Pirates but it provides optimism for a team that has not had a winning season since 1992 — the last year of the Barry Bonds era in Pittsburgh.

Why should the team honor Ricardo Rincon though?  On July 12, 1997, Rincon pitched one inning of relief after Francisco Cordova pitched nine no-hit innings to register a combined no-hitter in a 3-0 win in 10 innings.  It was the last no-hitter in Pirates history but that’s not why Rincon deserves a statue.

On November 18, 1998, the Pirates sent Ricardo Rincon to the Cleveland Indians for Brian Giles.  Rincon turned in a decent career in Cleveland, Oakland and St. Louis but Giles flourished in Pittsburgh.  Giles turned in four consecutive seasons with at least 35 home runs and an average of .298 or better.  Near the end of his fifth season, the Pirates traded Giles to the San Diego Padres for Jason Bay, Oliver Perez and a player to be named later — Cory Stewart — on August 26, 2003.

Perez had two decent years in Pittsburgh before he was partnered up with Roberto Hernandez and sent to the New York Mets on July 31, 2006 for Xavier Nady.  This season, Nady was partnered with Damaso Marte and sent to the Yankees for right-handed pitchers Dan McCutchen, Ross Ohlendorf and Jeff Karstens and outfielder Jose Tabata.

On Thursday, the Pirates were involved in a blockbuster three-way trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox.  The big name of the trade was Manny Ramirez who was sent from Boston to Los Angeles but at the heart of the deal was the previously mentioned Bay.  Bay who was Rookie of the Year the season after the Pirates acquired him from San Diego and turned in All-Star performances in 2005 and 2006 was nearly an All-Star in 2008 and is now a starting outfielder in Red Sox Nation.  In return for Bay, the Pirates received outfielder Brandon Moss and right-handed pitcher Craig Hansen from the Red Sox and third baseman Andy LaRoche and right-handed pitcher Bryan Morris from the Dodgers. 

There’s no way to tell what this latest batch of prospects will bring the Pirates but it can all be traced back to their trade of Rincon in the offseason following the 1998 season.  Nearly 10 years later, Rincon has turned into eight players that the future of the team now hinges on.

Sure, the trade of Nady and Bay (along with Marte) almost guarantees their 16 ^th consecutive losing season and another frustrating year of more speculation of what the future might bring for the struggling franchise.  But look at it this way.  According to Baseball America , Andy LaRoche was projected to be the starting third baseman for the Dodgers and Jose Tabata was projected to be the starting right fielder for the Yankees.  In addition, Pittsburgh has five live arms to gamble on which is important for a team that owns the worst pitching staff in the National League.

If this latest trade for prospects works out for the Pirates, many will look back at the day the franchise traded away Jason Bay for a handful of prospects.  It is a move a decade prior that sent Rincon to Cleveland that started it all.