I liked last week's Nate McLouth trade better from the Braves' point of view and felt that the Pirates didn't get a particularly good package of prospects in return, so it's tough to blame his ex-teammates in Pittsburgh for being upset about McLouth's departure.
With that said, their collective reaction might be just a bit over the top. For instance, here's Adam LaRoche on the trade:
It's kind of like being with your platoon in a battle, and guys keep dropping around you. You keep hanging on, hanging on, and you've got to figure: How much longer till you sink?
And here's how Dejan Kovacevic the Pittsburgh Post Gazette described the clubhouse scene:
In one corner of the Pirates' clubhouse at PNC Park, the small, circular metal table between the stalls of relievers Sean Burnett and Jesse Chavez had a candle lit atop it, adorned by the No. 13 of Nate McLouth and an accompanying photo of him in full uniform.
McLouth was well-liked by teammates and is certainly a solid player, but at the end of the day we're talking about lighting candles, laying out pictures, and comparing the trade to losing platoon-mates in battle because a non-contending team dealt a career .260/.339/.460 hitter for some prospects in the hopes of stockpiling enough talent to eventually have a winning season for the first time since 1992.
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So they (players) shouldn't be too upset, seeing that this type of player trade and shuffle has gone on for years....however, the players are only saying what the fans have been screaming for 16 years; when is the drain going to be closed??? We have had to endure such horrible baseball, all that we have left is to be able to hoot and holler for one or two players so when one of those favorites is gone there's not much left but the shouting at the owners. To move McClouth kills what little excitement there was at PNC.
True, the Pirates had enough talent to contend. They should never have tried to add multiple players with a chance to be good, and should have just taken a shot with McLouth.
</sarcasm>
Five years from now, this will look like a very good trade for the Pirates.