Cook on Hope

Yesterday I asked for hope, today it is provided from an unexpected source, Ron Cook. He becomes the second embittered Post Gazette sportswriter to trade e-mails with Mark Cuban (remember, Smizik did it late last summer). Cuban is again rattling cages about purchasing the Pirates. When asked if he'd put up with the losing that the Nuttings and McClatchy seem to be alright with in exchange for returning a $15-20 million profit (which is about what Forbes put us at in their study released around a week ago) he responded:

Not me. Oh, no. I'd have to win. Winning vs. losing money, I'd take winning every time... It's a simple equation. Running a team to break even vs. running it to make $15 million or $20 million means a lot more money for player development and players.

Cuban is a smart guy. He first popped up last summer when the Bucs started to slide and now he's making himself visible again. Above everything, he's a great businessman. Though the current ownership seems intent not on selling, I'd imagine Cuban's got some kind of plan he's putting into motion here. I suppose all we can do is hope that it works.