A quote that's usually attributed to Albert Einstein is "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results."
After their painful playoff loss in 1992, the Pirates let Barry Bonds and Doug Drabek leave as free agents, following Bobby Bonilla and the traded John Smiley from the year before. They announced that prospects Kevin Young, Carlos Garcia and Al Martin would become starters at first base, second base and left field. And they filled out their pitching rotation with youngsters like Steve Cooke and Paul Wagner. They went 75-87.
They kept filling holes with prospects, both their own and those who came over from other teams as the Pirates traded away veterans. Occasionally, they'd take back a less expensive contract when trading away larger ones. (When the Pirates traded Jay Bell and Jeff King to the Royals before 1997, they got back Joe Randa and three guys named Jeff.) When they would sign the occasional veteran free agent, it was someone from the bargain basement.
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