Yes this is a Pittsburgh Pirate column. I would not blame you if you stopped reading but if you stick with it I will make it worth your while.The Pittsburgh Pirates will not break their professional sports record of consecutive losing seasons this year nor will they win the division, challenge for the wildcard, or even win more than 75 games.I hope I am wrong but I think Rebecca Black has a better chance of winning a Grammy than any of those things happening this season.But all is not lost. There is a lot to be hopeful for, at least compared to recent years.Andrew McCutchen, Jose Tabata, Pedro Alvarez, and Neil Walker will provide a solid core to build around but the key is going to be keeping them here when they are due for a pay raise.But these players are not enough. Having four excellent young position players does not help when the other five position players are among the worst in the league at their respective positions.The best way to fix a dearth of talent at the major league level is through the draft – which has been the Pirates main weakness and is the reason for the lack of talent at other positions.The Pirates under former General Manager David Littlefield drafted cheap and terribly.Littlefield and his staff passed over power hitting catcher Matt Wieters to draft a relief pitcher in Daniel Moskos who has seen his stock drop since being drafted and has performed terribly at the minor league level. Another Littlefield gaffe was drafting Bryan Bullington 1st overall in 2002 – a player Littlefield himself said would become a “good #3 pitcher” – instead of players like B.J. Upton, the unanimous top prospect and All-Star caliber players like Prince Fielder, Zack Greinke, and Cole Hamels.As a result, current GM Neil Huntington was left with a talentless farm system and no talent at the major league level to acquire young players with in trades.However not all is bad in regards to the prospects of the Pirates.The Pirates 1st round pick in 2010 was 6’7″ pitcher Jameson Taillon, a pitcher with a potential to become an ace with the Pirates. He is ranked the 18th best prospect in all of baseball according to www.mlb.com.Other players with great potential include catcher Tony Sanchez, outfielder Starling Marte, flamethrowing pitcher Stetson Allie, and starting pitchers Rudy Owens, Bryan Morris, Justin Wilson, and Zach Von Rosenberg. The Pirates also have the 1st overall pick in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft and could be adding a power hitting third baseman in Anthony Rendon or impressive starting pitcher Gerrit Cole. If these players reach their potential, the fortunes of the Pirates could be looking up.But it will be up to Huntington and Co. to keep the current core together and not sell them off when they are due for raises like the previous management team was notorious for doing.