Huntington was hired in September of 2007. Within a couple weeks he canned Jim Tracy and the rest of the coaching staff. This is a bit of a no-brainer move when a new regime takes over.

Granted, he hired Russel, but I'm convinced that was the best we could get. Nobody wanted to get branded by the sheer amount of SUCK that was on the horizon for this rebuilding franchise.

This, I believe, is a list of players who appeared in at least one game for the Pirates in 2007, with a brief Where is he now? addendum:
Tony Armas P Signed with NYM after '07, sucked even worse in '08, out of MLB since
Jose Bautista RF/3B We all know...
Jason Bay LF Valuable addition to BOS in '08/'09, has sucked since
Jonah Bayliss P Hasn't appeared in MLB since '07, and with good reason
Bryan Bullington P Went to CLE/TOR/KCR in successive seasons, out of MLB after '10
Matt Capps P Still a good RP and contributing in MIN
Jose Castillo 2B Went to SFG and HOU, no MLB appearances since '08
Shawn Chacon P Sucked in HOU in '08, no MLB appearances since then
Humberto Cota C No MLB appearances since '07
David Davidson P Pitched 1 inning for FLA in '09, nothing since
Rajai Davis CF Had some success in OAK, basically a 4th OF now
Ryan Doumit C Playing well in MIN, recently given extension
Chris Duffy CF Last played (horribly) for MIL in 19 games in '09
Zach Duke P Up and down '08-'10 in PIT, sucked in AZ in '11, currently sucks in AAA
Brad Eldred RF/1B Bounced around with 5 different teams, currently raking in AAA
Tom Gorzelanny P Found his niche as a RP, currently in WSN
John Grabow P Regressed as a Cub, hasn't pitched since '11
Cesar Izturis SS Has sucked in 3 cities since, currently a bit player in MIN
Matt Kata 2B Played 40 games in HOU in '09, nothing since, sucks in AAA for TEX
Don Kelly 3B/RF In DET where he still sucks, though not as badly as he did in PIT
Danny Kolb P Sucked in AAA for BOS in '08, out of baseball since
Masumi Kuwata P Retired so he could suck at something else
Adam LaRoche 1B On his 4th team (WSN) since '09, finally decided to not suck in first half
Paul Maholm P Good stats this year, now a hated Brave
Carlos Maldonado C Currently sucking for WSN in AAA
Damaso Marte P Sucked for NYY in '08/'09, decent in '10, out of baseball now
Marty McLeary P last pitched in MLB in '07, last pitched in AAA in '10 for MIL
Nate McLouth CF/LF Regressed in ATL and collapsed completely, now in AAA for BAL
Nyjer Morgan CF Became an asshole in WSN, currently an asshole in MIL (and sucks)
Matt Morris P Retired after disastrous 5 games in '08
Xavier Nady 1B On his 4th team since '08, steady regression to suckitude
Franquelis Osoria P Out of baseball after '08
Ronny Paulino C Sucked everywhere he went, currently sucks for BAL
Steve Pearce 1B/3B Continues to suck, unless playing the Pirates
Juan Perez P No MLB action til '11, currently sucks in MIL
Josh Phelps 1B/C Nothing but suck since, currently sucks in an Italian league
Brian Rogers P 3 different minor league teams in '08, nothing since
Freddy Sanchez 2B Can't stay healthy in SF
Romulo Sanchez P Pitched 4 good innings for NYY in '10, otherwise stuck in AAA
Josh Sharpless P Went to AA for SFG in '08, Indie ball in '09, nothing since
Ian Snell P Continued sucking, last sucked for LAD org in AAA in '11
Salomon Torres P Sucked for MIL in '08, out of baseball since
J. VanBenschoten P Epic-level suckitude, whereabouts unknown
John Wasdin P Went to Japan in '09, nothing since
Jack Wilson SS Predictably terrible in SEA and ATL, currently stealing from the Braves
Shane Youman P Indie ball '09-'11, nothing since

So from that group we've got Jose Bautista, Matt Capps, Rajai Davis, Ryan Doumit, Tom Gorzelanny, Adam LaRoche, and Paul Maholm who range from backup/reliever to starter.

Joey Bats obviously sticks out as a guy we wish we had, but nobody could've predicted what he'd become. Capps and Gorzy are just relievers, and I won't lose sleep over them; ditto 4th OFs like Davis. Doumit and Maholm wouldn't have been worth their options had we exercised them, though they have certainly helped their current teams (c'est la vie). And Adam fucking LaRoche who inexplicably didn't suck the entire first half this year for the first time in his life. God, I hate him.

Anyhow, this is just to give everyone an idea of what Neal Huntington had to work with at the ML level when he took the job. Some trades since them have been hits, some have been misses, some decisions were essentially made for him.

For more insight, check out this top 20 prospects list from 2008 from sbnation (only one I could find at the moment):
Andrew McCutchen
Steven Pearce
Neil Walker
Daniel Moskos
Brad Lincoln
Brian Bixler
Shelby Ford
Duke Welker
Brian Friday
Andrew Walker
Jamie Romak
Nyjer Morgan
Brad Corley
Bryan Bullington
Matt Peterson
Romulo Sanchez
Quincy Latimore
Marcus Davis
Tony Watson
Josh Sharpless

Ouch!

The fact that we're already contending in '12, after having made some noise in '11, and still have a strong farm going forward is an indication of a job well done so far. Every time I've found myself worrying about the Buccos falling apart in Aug/Sept, I remind myself to look at things long term, and to remember just how dreadful our situation was not long ago.

Great post ol skool! Really puts things in perspective

That's a nice breakdown, ol skool.

It's clearer now, well, maybe from last year to now and onward, what the work has been. I have been a critic somewhat because you gauge by wins/losses at the major league level and that has been lacking, even last year with the collapse. But he has done a helluva job. He's made mistakes, and probably the worst stain on his resume, other than failing to keep Bautista (which whether we saw 40 HR power or not, he was a better hitter than most of what we had and young to boot), was the parade of butt fucker FA's that came through, taking the money and running. Some of that not his fault, but to some extent it was, buck stops and all that. Until this year, that is. He's doing better there, and some of that is coming with the rising success of the major league ballclub.

Some criticize, rightly or wrongly, by pointing out a more rapid rise in wins in organizations that were also pretty fucked up and also have small market fiscal challenges. The Nut has been generous with the minor league, scouting and drafting. Major league level, we're still kinda waiting there, so part of our approach has to do with that, but I also say that it's possible we're trying something different. Maybe our trajectory isn't as elevated, but perhaps we're looking for, and building for, sustainability. We quietly have a stronger minor league system than many give us credit for.

NH has done a very, very good job, and when all is said and done, he might be one of the best in the biz, and I would never have said that prior to 2011. He is slowly putting in better scouting, and certainly has the right Skipper in place to work with a young and unheralded ball club.

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Playing football was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. If I could go out today and suit up, I would do it.--Jack Butler

ol skool, that's a ton of work. Hats off to you, sir.

Thanks for putting that together. I was a seriously doubting Thomas. NH and FC have had the plan. Glad to be wrong about it.

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Good summary, ol skool ...

Z

Who is your avatar ol skool? Is that John Candeleria?

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Thanks, guys.

Deebo - I went away from the old school Pirates avatar to generate some new juju. It's Desmond Dekker, the King of Ska.