Pirates decide on GM and lose 7th in a row

The Wind was blowing out at Wrigley and an old friend was the culprit in a 13-8 loss this afternoon to the Cubs.
Aramis Ramirez belted a pair of three run shots to pace the Cubbies and made Buc fans think about the days that he manned the hot corner for us.
Paul Maholm(10-16) was pounded in for the second time in his two starts since returning,lasting just 2 innings and allowing seven runs.
Perhaps Maholm still isn't at top health and if that is the case,why risk further injury for a few meaningless starts?
Xavier Nady hit his 19th homer of the year and knocked in 3 runs,while 5 Pirates each had 1 RBI.
Series continues tomorrow afternoon in Chicago.

The bigger news of the day though was back in Pittsburgh,where the Pirates are going with a surprise choice as GM .
Neal Huntington,advance scout and special assistant to GM Mark Shapiro with the Cleveland Indians appears to be the selection.
This is a surprising choice because his name was not being bandied about and to be honest-I haven't heard much about him.
But as I delve into his background,it appears to have a strong emphasis on scouting and player development and appears to be able to accept the knowledge of the stat guys as well.
Nice balance of both worlds and I think that really is the best way to go.
Being able to use and accept both styles helps accumulate as much information as possible to make proper decisions.
Also,it appears that Huntington has been involved with Cleveland's drafts and the Indians farm system is consistently among the best in the business.
Charlie ,over at Bucs Dugout, speculates on how the unheralded Huntington could have gotten into position for the job and his theory makes sense.
An outside the box hire for sure and with the jury still out for sure,I like the move.....

Pitching Matchup

Pittsburgh: Zach Duke (3-7) at Chicago: Rich Hill (9-8) 1:05

Bullpen Notes

I attempted to get a picture of Neal Huntington to post,but could not find one of him on Google.
Perhaps he is a background person,unlike the Captain,who loved get his picture taken all the time.

WBC Heavyweight titlist Oleg Maskaev has pulled out of his defense one week from Saturday vs top contender Samuel Peter due to a back injury.
Peter's camp is attempting to have the WBC bring in another contender to fight Peter on the same day for the "interim" title.
I am disappointed in the injury,but I hate "interim" titles and other nonsense.
Bring in a contender to fight Peter (The fight is on Showtime) to showcase your fighter and build interest in him.
The WBC should then re-schedule the title fight for an exact date and Maskaev cannot defend the title,he relinquishes it......

The Big Ten Network has a poll for the best mascot.
I think you know who we voted for,but the Big Ten is loaded with cool mascots.....

Watching the latest weekly episode of Presidential Libraries,This week's episode is the
Harry Truman library in Independence Missouri.
Good stuff.........

No recipes thus far,Come on guys,I need your help!!

Until tomorrow

Photo Credits
Ramirez-Jonathan Daniel-Getty Images
Truman Library-Truman Library