It's Friday! It's Friday! Celebrate the good things in life with me! Friday, I tell ya!

I'm filled with zest for life today, mainly because I survived the great Earthshaking of aught eight, but also because the Pirates are coming to town, and I still haven't put away my Nimbus 2000 from our last encounter with Captain Jack Sparrow.

Opponent/Enemy: Pittsburgh's sailing thieves and rum enthusiasts.
Sword fighting with me over the future of Keira Knightly: Matt Bandi of Pittsburgh Lumber Co.
My Witty repartee: Link

Q: The first Cubs/Pirates series went to us. What do you blame the sweep on, and will the Pirates get swept again this series, or will they do the sweeping?

In the first two extra-inning games, the Cubs were able to get deep into our bullpen. That exposed a weakness in our pitching depth, and it cost the Pirates. In the final game of the series, we shot ourselves in the foot with lousy defense. Since then, our bullpen has been mostly dominant, while our defense continues to be terrible. There will be no sweep by either team in this series. I like to stay optimistic, so I predict that the Bucs will take two out of three.

Q: The Pirates always seem to have a lot of left-handed starting pitchers. Is it an organizational philosophy, or has it just kind of happened?

I'm not sure that it is a clear philosophy. Taking a quick look at the amateur draft since 2000, the Pirates have taken three southpaws and three right-handed pitchers in the first round. PNC Park has plenty of room in left field and a fairly short porch in right, so going after lefties would probably make sense. I just think we would be giving Pirate management far too much credit to say that they have followed any real plan anywhere in the organization in the past decade.

Q: After almost one tenth of the season, the Pirates are 7-8 (7 and 5 when not playing the Cubs). Who has surprised with their performance so far, and who has disappointed?

Nate McLouth has been terrific after entering the spring without a sure spot in the lineup. Xavier Nady has also been very good, and Jason Bay is showing small signs of returning to '05-'06 form. Ryan Doumit has been given more playing time behind the plate and has produced solid numbers. Freddy Sanchez has had a disappointing start to the season while battling a shoulder injury. Jose Bautista has struggled both at the plate and in the field, and Adam LaRoche is in his usual April funk. Tom Gorzelanny's struggles have not been very surprising due to his overuse last season. Matt Morris has been useless in the rotation.

Q: The Pirates have a new manager, John Russell. Give us a brief biography on the new skip. What are your initial impressions?

Russell has a 666-667 record over ten seasons as a minor league manager in the Minnesota and Philadelphia organizations. He was the Pirates' third base coach and catching instructor in 2003-2005. He came in with the reputation of being an excellent motivator and teacher of younger players. So far, the players seem committed to the new coaching staff, something that was not apparent with Jim Tracy's group. I like what I have seen to this point, although Russell's obsession with the sacrifice bunt has definitely cost the team a few runs already. In addition, there have been plenty of mental mistakes by the 2008 Pirates. I'm not sure you can blame Russell for that, but many fans are anyway.

Q: What is the one player on the Cubs you covet the most? Proprose a trade.

We will give you Jose Hernandez, Matt Bruback and Bobby Hill for Aramis Ramirez, Kenny Lofton and cash. Deal?

Once again, thanks Matt for helping keep GROTA readers the most informed Cubs fans... and if any of those readers are looking for previous back-channel relations posts, well check out the newly formed: Back-Channel Relations Directory.

Also, Buc's Dugout is running a worst-GM poll and Jim Hendry's facing off against Omar Minaya. Go vote.