PITTSBURGH -- The Pirates have traded first baseman Adam LaRoche to the Red Sox, according to multiple reports.

Pittsburgh will receive Double-A shortstop Argenis Diaz and Class A right-hander Hunter Strickland, Boston radio station WEEI reported.

The deal is expected to be announced shortly.

Pittsburgh was known to be looking for a suitor for LaRoche, who is earning $7.05 million this season and will be a first-time free agent next season. The Pirates were not expected to make a strong attempt to resign him in the offseason.

Speculation that LaRoche was on his way out first surfaced on Wednesday morning when the Pirates did not post their lineup until less than one hour before the 12:35 p.m. ET scheduled first pitch.

Diaz, who was signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in 2003, is hitting .253 with 24 RBIs in 76 Double-A games this season. Diaz, 22, split last season between Class A and Double-A.

Strickland, an 18th-round pick in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, is 5-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 18 appearances (12 starts) at the low Class A level. He has 51 strikeouts and 13 walks in 83 1/3 innings.

LaRoche, mired in a July slump, has hit .247 with a team-high 12 homers and 40 RBIs this season. In Boston, he'll be reunited with former Pittsburgh teammate Jason Bay, who was dealt there at this time last season.

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How many times can the Pirates rebuild? I thought they had an okay nucleus this year and were maybe a player or two away from being in the run in this bad division. They are 8 1/2 games out right now, and probably won't lose 100 games this year, id say that's a step in the right direction. But this season they have traded Nate McClouth, Adam Laroche, and Nyjer Morgan. This is the worst franchise in all of sports. Congrats on securing your 17th straight losing season.

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+1 Type Pirates GM Audible Laughter into google or espn and read the story.


Here's the good part of that story...I realize its a couple years old...but its an indication of how the Pirates do business

from the article
Littlefield out as Gm
While Littlefield stressed in 2001 he would build from within, that go-with-the-kids philosophy repeatedly got sidetracked by poor choices or injuries. The Pirates frequently drafted pitchers in the first round only to have them develop arm problems -- Bryan Bullington, Brad Lincoln, John Van Benschoten -- or passed up better prospects for money reasons, such as catcher Matt Weiters in this June draft.

Many of Littlefield's moves seemed dictated by money, either that the Pirates didn't have or declined to spend. He traded run-producing third baseman Aramis Ramirez to the Cubs in 2003 so they wouldn't have to pay him the rest of his contract, a deal Littlefield told colleagues he despised making.

"Kevin has explained the reason the trade was done," Littlefield said. "I work for ownership, and I do what I have to do to accomplish the task. Those are things you have to live with, are part of the job."

Littlefield got mileage out of bargain-priced players -- Reggie Sanders, Matt Stairs, Kenny Lofton, Jeff Suppan -- and made some excellent trades for Jason Bay, Freddy Sanchez and Adam LaRoche. But there were some curious player decisions, too, such as the signings of retreads Joe Randa and Jeromy Burnitz a year ago for a combined $10 million.

Padres All-Star pitcher Chris Young was given $1 million-plus by the Pirates to pass up the rest of his college basketball career, then was dealt away in late 2002 for reliever Matt Herges. Herges was promptly cut during spring training.

Littlefield's failure to protect some top prospects and keep marginal ones led the Pirates to lose five of the top six picks in the 2005 winter-meeting draft, resulting in audible laughter in the New Orleans hotel meeting room.




Also, props to both Frank and Db for not making a stupid "they still have 1 La Roche" reference

Where are the Cubs in this Pirates firesale? Don't we have another Bobby Hill we can send their way?

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Im guessing Lions and Clippers fans laughed when reading that.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

They have both been to the playoffs at least once in the last 17 years.

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...and the pirates draft well and seemingly purposefully trade away talent that can win.

Growing up,I hated the fuckin' Buc's...I'm glad they suck every year!
Did not like the stupid catcher,Manny Sanguillen or those big sluggers that kicked the Cubs ass every year. Stargell,Cobra Dave Parker,Richie Hebner,Richie Zisk,Roberto Clemente,Al Oliver. Man,they had a ton of 'em and that was just Parker & Stargell!

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

Jimmy Ive never seen someone enjoy being "the old guy" as much as you

keep on keepin on

The Clippers have never won their division in 30+ years. The Lions havent been a contender in 50 years. The Pirates have won a World Series. Clippers and Lions have never even been to a Finals or SB. Its frankly not even a contest.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

Well,not THAT old !

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

When the White Sox were in Minnesota about 2 weeks ago, I heard rumblings that the Twins might be talking with the Pirates about acquiring veteran second baseman Freddy Sanchez. Although Alexi Casilla is back up after a stint at their Triple "AAA" team, the Joe Cocker-looking Ron Gardenhire has been using mainly Nick Pinto at second even after Casilla was recalled.

That's Nick Punto, puto.

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That's E1 if you're scoring. Thanks, Douchebag... Freddy Sanchez is expendable after he refused the Pirates' offer over the weekend...

Werent the lions contenders in the Kramer-Moore era?
Clippers were good two years ago

The lions are terrible...but they way Pittsburgh goes about their business is extremely embarassing.

Hiring John Russell who had like a 340 winning pct in THE MINORS.
Trading Mclouth and Morgan
Trading Everyone

They seem to do this every 3-5 years. They build a decent young nucleus, and then poof, gone.

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Major League Baseball's poor excuse of a "Commissioner", Allan H. Selig, should wake up, clean his glasses and step in situations like what the Pittsburgh Pirates have done every year since a certain dickhead named Barry Bonds was hitting homers at the old Three Rivers Stadium. The Pirates are part of what's wrong with MLB, and they play in a relatively new ballpark, PNC Park, to boot. It seems like since the last time the Pirates were in the National League Playoffs in the early '90s, 1992 I'd like to think, they've become a lot like the Montreal Expos were in developing young players. While the Expos morphed into the Washington Nationals now, the Pirates constantly seem to have no trouble developing young ballplayers, but end up trading them away for younger prospects later. One of my big problems since Selig took over as "Commissioner" is that he NEVER believes in something other MLB Commissioners before him had. That's the "best interests of the game", and Allan needs to have the balls to intervene to stop teams like the Pirates, Nationals, Florida Marlins and other small market teams from constantly developing young players and basically putting NOT one penny back into the on-field product. That's very bad for baseball, and the next "Commissioner" needs to put a stop to it! I thought "Commissioner" Selig wanted to downsize teams a few years ago...

They were my favorite team growing up! Hebner a grave digger,he probably could get a job at Burr Oak. You're forgetting Big Bob Robertson, Steve Blass, Doc ( Curlers in his hair ) Ellis
and Kent Tekulve We are family!

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I'm going to bounce from the spot for awhile but I will be back at some point to argue with you about this hoops stuff again. Playoffs have been great this season. See ya up the road.

I'm out.