Pirates start over, fire Jim Tracy as manager

New Bucs G.M. did a real house-cleaning, sending three executives packing.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — When the Pittsburgh Pirates last fired a manager this quickly, he couldn’t get his team into the World Series. Jim Tracy was let go because he didn’t produce anything resembling a winning season.

Tracy was ousted Friday after two years filled with long losing streaks and little discernible progress by a team that has had 15 consecutive losing seasons, one short of the major league record.

The Pirates also fired three other baseball operations executives during an ongoing shakeup that began last month with general manager Dave Littlefield’s firing.

“Jim and I worked very hard over the last week to try and see if we could make it work and to try to see how we could work going forward,” said new general manager Neal Huntington, who took over with only six days left in the season. “But at the end of the day, it was decided it was probably better to part ways.”

Also fired were senior director of player development Brian Graham, who once worked with Huntington in Cleveland; scouting director Ed Creech and director of baseball operations Jon Mercurio. Huntington hinted the Pirates’ inability to draft and develop prospects, and evaluate players at all levels, created the shakeup.

“It became very clear to me we needed some change,” Huntington said. “We needed to change our leadership.”

Tracy’s patience and back-patting weren’t enough to turn around the Pirates, who haven’t had a winning season since 1992. Tracy’s teams were 67-95 in 2006 and 68-94 this season during the shortest run of any non-interim Pirates manager since Bill Virdon was ousted late into his second season in 1973.

Virdon was let go because he couldn’t get Roberto Clemente’s last and perhaps best team into the World Series — the Pirates blew a 2-1 series lead in the 1972 NLCS to Cincinnati, then played only .500 ball in 1973. Such a record today likely would have gotten Tracy an extension.

Coaches Jim Lett, Jim Colborn, Jeff Manto, Jeff Cox, John Shelby and Bobby Cuellar, all under contract until the end of this month, were encouraged to seek other jobs. The new manager will be allowed to choose his coaches.

The only surprise firing was that of Graham, who served as interim general manager after Littlefield was fired last month. Former assistant GM Doug Strange was retained in the lesser role of assistant to the GM.

Huntington has an “internal list” of potential managerial candidates.

“We’re not married to a date,” he said. “We need to do our homework, and when the right candidate presents himself, we will know.”

Asked what kind of manager he wants, Huntington said, “A manager with energy, with passion, ... who is a tireless instructor, who will instill some discipline, is an exhaustive communicator and wants to return the pride to the Pittsburgh Pirates.”

Tracy has managed since 2001, going 427-383 with one division title in five seasons with the Dodgers and 135-189 with Pittsburgh. His 280 losses over the last three seasons were the most in the majors. He is due $1 million for next season, as was Littlefield.