Are the Pirates Ready to Deal?

Stan McNeal - SportingNews.com

For the past several Julys, Jack Wilson has prepared for the Pirates to trade him. He and his wife, Julie, go through their home and sort through the kids' belongings and lighten the household load. Spring cleaning in the summer, so to speak.

"It works out because if you don't get traded, you have a really clean house," Wilson says. "So we've had a clean house for about four years."

When you play for the Pirates, getting ready to be traded is as routine as taking batting practice. The team has been in various stages of rebuilding for years. Wilson says he "can almost field an All-Star team" with teammates who have been dealt in his nine years with the Pirates. The club already has moved two starting outfielders this season, including one who had been its best player, Nate McLouth.

 Wilson is one of the fortunate -- or unfortunate, when you consider the Pirates haven't had a winning season since Barry Bonds was their left fielder. Though he has been a regular in trade rumors for years, he hasn't been traded. He is happy about that.

"We enjoy playing in Pittsburgh, so we really would like to stay here and raise our family," he says.

Wilson long ago grew used to trade speculation and accepts it as part of the profession. His only minor gripe has been a lack of communication from the front office. "You hear the rumors but they'll never confirm it," he says. "They don't tell us anything, which kind of stinks."

This year is different, though not because Wilson's chances of being traded are greater than usual.

This year is different because Wilson is in the last year of his contract and could be moving on after the season if he isn't dealt before the trading deadline. He has an $8.4 million club option for next season that the Pirates have no intention of picking up (they can buy him out for $600,000).

The Pirates made a surprising move last week by offering Wilson and the club's All-Star second baseman, Freddy Sanchez, contract extensions. The club finally seemed to seek some continuity. One catch: Both offers would result in substantial pay cuts. Sanchez was offered $10 million for two seasons, $1 million less than his present deal. Wilson was offered $8 million for two seasons, a serious reduction from his three-year, $20.2 million deal.

With July 31 looming, the club encouraged both to make their decisions sooner rather than later. Trading them, however, would be difficult because of finances. Sanchez has an $8 million option for next season that becomes guaranteed if he reaches 600 plate appearances -- a virtual certainty as long as he stays healthy. Wilson is due about $4 million for the rest of this season, a bit pricey for a shortstop with a .300 on-base percentage even if defense is his forte.

Wilson and Sanchez turned down the extensions after saying they either would accept or reject the offers as a package. Each had his own reason for saying no. Rather than take a pay cut now, Sanchez would be better served to go for his option and wait till next year to negotiate a new deal. Wilson realizes he will have to take a cut, but he wants to be sure the Pirates keep Sanchez. They are best friends and Wilson believes moving Sanchez would result in another step backward for the club.

The situation has become a bit messier than necessary. The Pirates say last week's offers have been pulled partly because Wilson and Sanchez did not make counteroffers. The players say they thought the offers were "take 'em or leave 'em." Both players and the club negotiated through the media, a tactic that Wilson and Sanchez said they won't continue.

Still, both players told Pittsburgh reporters Monday that they hope to remain with the Pirates for the long term.

In previous years, when July 31 passed and Wilson remained a Pirate, he was able to relax. "We know we're staying in our house," Wilson says. "We have a nice deep breath. OK, we can just play and enjoy being in Pittsburgh."

But this year, who knows?

Stan McNeal is a writer for Sporting News. E-mail him at smcneal@sportingnews.com.

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