Pirates fire GM Littlefield; interim replacement is Graham

Links (13)

We Will Fire David Littlefield
Published 9/7/2007 by Andy Smith at Bugs & Cranks
... I wasn’t alive the day Germany surrendered in WWII. I wasn’t alive the day the troops came home from Vietnam, and I’m too young to remember the fall of the Berlin Wall. But I am alive and aware today, the day that after six long and often torturous seasons, the Pirates finally fired General Manager Dave Littlefield. Yes, the rumors are true. Less than 24 hours after two of his top pitching prospects were strafed for 11 runs by the Cardinals, Pirates ownership told Littlefield to pack up his shit and go home. ...

LITTLEFIELD OUT
Published 9/7/2007 by mondesishouse at Mondesishouse.com
... As of 11:01 AM, the Post Gazette is reporting that Dave Littlefield has been fired. I expect the streets downtown to empty in a Mardi Gras-style celebration. ...

Pirates Fire Dave Littlefield
Published 9/7/2007 by Tim Dierkes at MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com
... The reign of terror is over - the Pirates have fired GM Dave Littlefield.  He'd been the team's GM since July 31st, 2001. ...

Pirates change captain of ship
Published 9/7/2007 by Erick Smith at Sports Scope
A seventh straight losing season has ended the tenure of Pirates general manager Dave Littlefield. Brian Graham, the team's director of player development, takes over on an interim basis. Pittsburgh was 442-581 during Littlefield's. The future of manager Jim Tracy will be determined by principal owner Bob Nutting after the season. Tracy's contract runs through 2008.

Published 9/7/2007 by Robert R. at Al's Ramblings
Friday, September 07, 2007 (9/07/2007 11:08:00 AM) - Robert R. David Littlefield fired from the Pirates . It was inevitable. Despite drafting early for years, there's really not a whole lot to show for their efforts in the minors. There was the Rule 5 fiasco of a few years back. They've been talking for years about building around young pitching but still rank 13th in ERA. Their #1 draft pick this year already looks like a Chad Green/Antoine Williamson level mistake. Their offense has been predictably bad for years and they've never been good at developing players with plate discipline. Their free agent pickups have been the bad, generally old veterans who were blocking the way of the few promising players they had. Jim Hendry took Littlefield to school a few years back. And they've overvalued players like Jack Wilson for no good reason. There's really no reason that he's kept his job this long. They really need to bring ...

The End Of Dave Littlefield’s Charmed (Professional) Life
Published 9/7/2007 by GC at Can't Stop The Bleeding
... Never let it be said the Pittsburgh Pirates don’t hold their managers or executives accountable for the team’s won-loss record. They just don’t do so for a very long time. From the Post-Gazette’s Dejan Kovacevic : ...

Pirates fire Dave Littlefield
Published 9/7/2007 by Adam J. Morris <info@lonestarball.com> at Lone Star Ball: Front Page Posts
Pirates g.m. Dave Littlefield has gotten fired. ...

Pirates Fire GM Dave Littlefield
Published 9/7/2007 by Rob at 6-4-2 — an Angels/Dodgers double play blog
... , the Pittsburgh Post-Dispatch reports that the Pirates have fired GM Dave Littlefield, whose combined teams since 2001 have run up a 442-581 record, and never once had even a breakeven season. The interim GM is former director of player development Brian Graham. The team is also looking for a CEO since the exit of Kevin McClatchy. Perhaps of most interest to this blog, though, is the fact that Jim Tracy still has one more year on his contract, but I have to believe Tracy's a dead duck after this season.

He's Gone and We'll Likely Get Nothing in Return: Typical Littlefield Transaction
Published 9/7/2007 by Pat at Doubt About It
... He's gone. In all honesty, I just want to focus on the NFL and Sam's amazing chart he compiled. But you can expect much more on this after the weekend. Oh, and the stache is going to PNC Park today to ask about the job. I'm not even kidding. He is at PNC Park as we speak. ...

Littlefield FIRED!!!!
Published 9/7/2007 by Econolodge <info@buccosdugout.com> at Bucs Dugout: Front Page Posts
... Now there's a new game we can play: who's going to be the next GM? I'm holding out hope for Paul DePodesta, but with our current manager that likely is not a possibility. Then again, maybe this signals the deathknell of Tracy as well.

Jack Wilson: The Trade Rumor That Just Refuses to Die
Published 9/7/2007 by Ian Casselberry <info@blessyouboys.com> at Bless You Boys: Front Page Posts
 Despite Dave Littlefield's dismissal in Pittsburgh today, the Freep's Jon Paul Morosi is keeping his torch alive ...

Pirates Fire GM Littlefield. Graham Replaces as Interim
Published 9/7/2007 by Maury Brown at The Biz of Baseball :: Business of Sports Network
... The Pittsburgh Pirates, facing the seventh consecutive losing season, Pirates principal owner Bob Nutting fired general manager Dave Littlefield, installing Brian Graham, who is the team’s director of player development as the interim GM until a replacement is found. As reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: ...

Good Things
Published 9/12/2007 by E.L.M. at El Lefty Malo
... * By a length and a half, the best decision of the year was trading Matt Morris for Raj Davis and the ex-PTBNL Spanky McFarland. As we’ve documented, and as the Pirates proved by firing the man on the receiving end just a month after the trade, this coup was more a matter of someone else’s mental midgetry. But hey. We’ll take it. And every time Raj Davis does ...