2007 Pittsburgh Pirates season
| 2007 Pittsburgh Pirates | |
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| Major League affiliations | |
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| Location | |
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| Results | |
| Record | 68–94 (.420) |
| Divisional place | 6th |
| Other information | |
| Owner(s) |
Robert Nutting Kevin McClatchy |
| General manager(s) |
Dave Littlefield Neal Huntington |
| Manager(s) | Jim Tracy |
| Local television | FSN Pittsburgh |
| Local radio |
WPGB-FM (Steve Blass, Greg Brown, Lanny Frattare, Bob Walk, John Wehner) |
| < Previous season Next season > | |
The 2007 Pittsburgh Pirates season was the 126th season of the franchise; the 121st in the National League. The Pirates finished sixth and last in the National League Central with a record of 68–94.
The Pirates began 2007 with a new majority owner, Robert Nutting, and the dreary fact that they could surpass the Philadelphia Phillies as owners of the longest consecutive losing seasons record in baseball, having last had a winning season in 1992. However, in spite of finishing 5th in the NL Central, the Pirates were hoping that their 2nd half momentum from 2006 would carry over into 2007.
In addition to NL batting champion Freddy Sanchez and slugger Jason Bay, the Bucs acquired Adam LaRoche from Atlanta in January, hoping to boost offensive power. In addition, they re-signed pitcher Shawn Chacón, acquired from the Yankees last summer, and signed Tony Armas, Jr. to help bolster their starting rotation, led by Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny.
Just before the All Star game, team CEO Kevin McClatchy announced at the end of the season he would be stepping down from the position. He maintained that he would "remain as the active leader of the organization" to give the team ample time to find a successor and "ensure a smooth transition into the next chapter of Pirates history."
The Pirates' season started well, as they swept the Houston Astros in Houston for the first time since 1991, when the Astros played in the Astrodome. However, that initial success didn't carry for very long, as the Bucs proceeded to lose 11 of their next 13 games. The Pirates pulled out of their early slump to post a 12-12 record at the end of April. May, however, would to be quite tumultuous, as Tony Armas was sent to the bullpen for poor performance, Zach Duke struggled mightily, the bullpen blew several late leads, and closer Salomón Torres was stripped of his closer's duties, in favor of youngster Matt Capps after Torres blew a 2-run ninth-inning lead against the San Diego Padres on May 31.
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Wikipedia