I'm not sure why Pirates GM Dave Littlefield feels like he's in any position to rake another team over the coals, but that's apparently what he wants to do if you want to make a deal with him. According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Littlefield has two opportunities to move Jack Wilson this summer but never got a deal together due to incredibly unrealistic demands. First, there were talks with the Blue Jays, who were looking for at least a marginal improvement over Royce Clayton. Unfortunately, Littlefield literally insulted Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi that the Jays dropped the subject completely:
That might explain why Ricciardi, on July 23, took the unusual step of mentioning another team's player publicly when he told the Canadian Press, "We have absolutely no interest in Jack Wilson. None."Then the Tigers were (and still are, apparently) interested in Wilson, including taking on his entire salary ($14 million over the next two years):
The deal on the table at the July 31 non-waiver deadline would have netted the Pirates one of two 21-year-old pitchers, Jair Jurrjens or Dallas Trahern, and another prospect in the Detroit system. Littlefield apparently asked for a major-league player on top of that -- outfielder Craig Monroe was mentioned -- and the Tigers pulled back.I know Littlefield must see something in Wilson that others do not -- he's the one who gave him that insane contract in the first place -- but asking for a top prospect and a legitimate big-league player is more than a bit ridiculous. How does this guy still have a job?
