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Pirates' Nutting Officially Turns Page With Travis Williams Hire

Williams' first order of business is to replace Exec VP & GM Neal Huntington, who was fired yesterdayGETTY IMAGES

Pirates Owner Bob Nutting said that discussions "may commence about how the Pirates spend money" now that the team has new President Travis Williams in place and is searching for a new GM after firing Neal Huntington yesterday, according to a front-page piece by Jason Mackey of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. While Nutting "took issue with the picture most often painted of his team's finances," he did "admit there will be conversations about how and where the Pirates spend money." Nutting also said that the team has "fallen behind when it comes to infusing their Dominican Academy with enough talent," saying that they "need to get better there, too" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 10/29).

FIRST THINGS FIRST: In Pittsburgh, Nubyjas Wilborn notes Williams' "first order of business" is to replace Huntington. The move will "put a pause on the search to replace Clint Hurdle as manager, but Williams has already stated the process." Fans may have asked why Nutting waited to move on from Huntington and former President Frank Coonelly, but Nutting said that the "answer was simple: stability." Williams would not say what the Pirates were looking for in their next GM, but he said that he "wants it to be a smooth process" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 10/29). MLB Network's Peter Gammons said it was "strange timing" to fire Huntington now, after he was "prepared to make a decision" on a new manager. Gammons said of Williams, "The problem is when you bring someone in to be club president and try to build an organization who hasn't been in baseball, hockey is very different. Hockey decisions can be made by one guy. That's not the way it works (in baseball). You have to have a complete organization in the same place" ("MLB Tonight," MLB Network, 10/28).

SAID IT HIMSELF: Nutting said of Coonelly's impact on the team's baseball operations, "Having some separation is important. It's important for the owner. I think it's important for a team president not to be so intently engaged -- feeling like they are knowledgeable about baseball so they can second-guess. I don't need a president to be a second general manager, to be a second set of eyes." Nutting: "We need to refocus on our ballpark, on our fans, on our experience and our connection with those fans. I think we are in need of communicating on all these issues that we are bringing up far more effectively than we have. I want us to be successful and we simply have not done a good job of communicating that." More Nutting: "We have the best ballpark in America, and it's turning 20 years old. We need to make sure that we are keeping the ballpark fresh" (TRIBLIVE.com, 10/29).

MONEY TALKS: In Pittsburgh, Bill Brink notes when it came to talks on spending money, Nutting "invoked the Pirates' plight as a small-market team." Money has "been a third rail with the Pirates for a decade," and the team's record payroll of $99.9M at the end of the '16 season "still ranked in the bottom third in MLB." In '19, the Pirates "gained about 100 fans per game in attendance," and recently "agreed to a new television deal" with AT&T SportsNet. When asked about how those would affect payroll, Nutting said, "Those are all discussions we have to have as we go forward. I don't have an answer right now" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 10/29).

SIGNS OF IMPROVEMENT: In Pittsburgh, Dejan Kovacevic wrote Nutting and Williams' press conference "felt as candid and refreshing as any experience" he has had with "anyone at any level of the Pirates in years." Yesterday was a "great day for baseball in Pittsburgh." Kovacevic: "I was immediately impressed. With both men. With the collective thoughts exchanged" (DKPITTSBURGHSPORTS.com, 10/28). Also in Pittsburgh, Paul Zeise writes he has been "guilty of criticizing Nutting for his lack of willingness to give the Pirates the best chance to compete," but Nutting has "proven in the past month that he does care about winning and losing on some level." He has "proven that he does indeed care about what the fan base thinks and he does want to build a franchise that is a model for small-market teams everywhere." Nutting has done what many fans "never thought he would do ... he cleaned house." In the process, he "ate" about $10M in salaries owed to Coonelly and Huntington, which up until this past month was "not how the Pirates under Nutting have operated." Zeise: "That is exactly why he deserves the chance to get it right" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 10/29).

CREATIVE SOLUTIONS: In Pittsburgh, Kevin Gorman wrote the Pirates are "living on the edge." Hiring Williams was a "creative choice," and their next move "requires them to find a general manager who is dynamic and innovative and a manager who can get energy and enthusiasm out of the players." Perhaps the team's "greatest challenge will be to convince Pirates fans to show faith in the new regime that replaces what Nutting once called the best management team in baseball" (TRIBLIVE.com, 10/28).

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