sgm@cmu-cs-g.ARPA (Sherri Menees) (04/26/85)
Tekulve was very happy in Pittsburgh, and was one of only three Pirates living in Pittsburgh. The Phillies were less happy with Holland showing up to spring training about 35 pounds overweight. Chuck Tanner, Pittsburgh manager, had also lost some confidence in Teke's ability as a stopper, especially since Don Robinson has become the first right-hander out of the bullpen. Teke is a pitcher who needs to pitch a lot to be effective. Teke also had a long-term, fairly expensive contract. Holland will be a free agent at the end of this year, and it's not likely that the Pirates will sign him. If he has a good year, the Pirates won't be able to afford him, and if he has a bad year, the Pirates won't want him/ It's not entirely clear why the Pirates traded for Holland, a left-hander. Pete Peterson, the GM, said that the Pirates got Holland to allow John Candelaria to return to the starting rotation, but Tanner says he has no plans to put Candy back in the starting rotation. So far, Candy has been fairly effective in the bullpen. So, now the Pirates have three lefties in the bullpen: Candelaria, Holland, and Rod Scurry. MY hope is that Peterson will be able to trade Scurry for something the Pirates need, like a shortstop.
radio@spuxll.UUCP (Rick Farina) (04/26/85)
This trade mystifies me as well. It seems that the Phillies are determined to hasten their decline. Holland sizzled for them a few years ago, but fizzled last year. I believe he checked-in a few lbs overweight this year, and was banished to the doghouse. Meanwhile, the Pirates get to right past wrongs by re-aquiring Holland. With Candalaria in the bullpen, there was no more need for an aging Tekulve. At best, Holland will return to his former ways. At worst, the Pirates merely have a younger, stronger right-handed complement to Candalaria. It seems to me that, in the long run, the Phillies stand the chance of being the big loser in this trade, once again.
stevev@tekchips.UUCP (Steve Vegdahl) (04/30/85)
> Tekulve was very happy in Pittsburgh, and was one of only > three Pirates living in Pittsburgh. This really give a lot of credence to the Pittsburgh's #1 ranking earlier this year as the country's most livable city. :-) Steve Vegdahl Computer Research Lab. Tektronix, Inc. Beaverton, Oregon
david@fisher.UUCP (David Rubin) (05/01/85)
[ahem] Holland is left-handed, not right handed. It seems the Pirates decided that Don Robinson was ready to be the number 1 righty in the bullpen, and that Holland had many more years left than Tekulve. The Phillies' thoughts? Got me. Holland may have needed a change of scenery, but unless the Phillies think that they're just one right-handed reliever from the title THIS season (an opinion most would dispute), they must be counted as having gotten the short end. David Rubin
jcc@siemens.UUCP (05/02/85)
<> Al Holland is a one-pitch pitcher - the fastball. That is OK if you are Dwight Gooden or Nolan Ryan, but the last time Holland pitched for the Phils, his fastest fastball was 85 MPH (that was at Wrigley Field, with the wind blowing in!). Combine that fact with Holland coming to spring 30 pounds heavier, and you can see why he was put in Bill Giles's doghouse. Giles thought that he needed a pitcher who could keep the ball down and let the infielders handle it (an interesting concept considering the Phils are among the tops in errors). One thing I found interesting about the trade is that when rumors started to fly in spring training it was Holland for Tekulve AND a minor league prospect. Now we see why Mr. Giles is a baseball owner and not a Wall Street guru. Joe Camaratta princeton!siemens!jcc