The Pirates did absolutely nothing to improve in the off-season. The poor people of Pittsburgh will have to sit through another dismal baseball season. It’s amazing to me that they built such a beautiful stadium but refuse to spend money on payroll to improve the team on the field. Take the under.

29-year old righty swinging Xavier Nady has never turned into the player that many projected he would be. He played in 125 games for the Pirates and he was 120 for 431 (.278 avg, .806 OPS) with 55 runs scored, 20 homers and 72 RBIs. Nady didn’t make any errors in 94 games in RF but he showed below average range.

27-year old switch hitting Ryan Doumit is the Pirates backup catcher and he also plays RF from time to time. He played in 83 games for the Pirates last season and he was 69 for 252 (.274 avg, .813 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 9 homers and 32 RBIs. He played in 38 games in RF last season and he made 1 error there while showing below average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C-

26-year old lefty swinging Nate McLouth won the CF job in spring training for the Pirates. He played in 137 games for the Pirates last season and he was 85 for 329 (.258 avg, .810 OPS) with 62 runs scored, 13 homers, 38 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. McLouth played in 66 games in CF for the Pirates last season and he made 2 errors while showing below average range.

27-year old lefty swinging Nyjer Morgan will be the backup in CF when the season starts for the Pirates but he could win the starting job eventually. Morgan played in 28 games for the Pirates last season and he was 32 for 107 (.299 avg, .789 OPS) with 15 runs scored, 1 homer, 7 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. He is also a solid defender as he only made 1 error in 28 games in CF while showing outstanding range. Morgan has averaged 38 steals per season in his five year minor league career.

28-year old lefty Chris Duffy is now #3 in line for playing time in CF. He played in 70 games for the Pirates last season and he was 60 for 241 (.249 avg, .670 OPS) with 31 runs scored, 3 homers, 22 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. He played in 68 games for the Pirates in CF and he made 1 error while showing above average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C-

29-year old righty swinging Jason Bay was the focus of trade rumors all winter long but he will be the starting LF for the Pirates again this season. He played in 145 games for the Pirates last season and he was 133 for 538 (.247 avg, .745 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 21 homers and 84 RBIs. He played in 142 games in LF last season for the Pirates and he made 8 errors while showing above average range. He also showed off a very strong throwing arm as he had 13 assists from the outfield last season. Look for Bay to make a big time comeback with his bat this season.

28-year old righty swinging Kevin Thompson is a long shot to make the Pirates. He played in 22 games for the A’s & Yankees last season and he was 5 for 35 (.143 avg, .440 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 3 RBIs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: B

The Pirates need more offensive production from 3B in 2008. 27-year old righty swinging Jose Bautista will be the Pirates starter at 3B in 2008. He played in 142 games for the Pirates last season and he was 135 for 532 (.254 avg, .753 OPS) with 75 runs scored, 15 homers and 63 RBIs. Bautista did make 15 errors in 126 games at 3B last season but he showed off outstanding range. Maybe this will be the season that Bautista lives up to his potential but I wouldn’t count on it.

37-year old righty swinging Chris Gomez could snare some playing time away from Jose Bautista if he isn’t careful. Gomez played in 92 games last season for the Orioles & Indians and he was 66 for 222 (.297 avg, .699 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 1 homer and 21 RBIs. Gomez also is a good defensive 3B as he made 3 errors in 31 games there while showing off impressive range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: D+