It's fun to pick up the sports section every morning and check the major-league box scores and monitor the excellent progress of pitching prospects the Pirates took high in recent drafts.

We're not talking about the 1999 No. 1 choice Bobby Bradley, whose career is teetering on extinction because of control problems at Class AAA Indianapolis.

We're not talking about the 2000 No. 1 choice Sean Burnett, who is out at least until August recovering from major surgery.

We're not talking about the 2001 No. 1 choice John Van Benschoten, who's out until next season recovering from major surgery.

We're not talking about the 2002 No. 1 choice Bryan Bullington, who makes his first start of the season today for Indianapolis after being out with shoulder problems.

We're not talking about the 2003 No. 1 choice Paul Maholm, who is on the disabled list at Class AA Altoona with a groin injury.

None, as can be ascertained from above, has had his name in a major-league box score this season.

We're talking about the No. 3 choice in 2000 and the No. 3 choice in 1995. While we're at it, let's not forget two other obscure pitchers who were amateur free-agent signings of the Pirates.

Unlike, Bradley, Burnett, Van Benschoten, Bullington and Maholm, these four guys are pitching in the major leagues.

	Donna McWilliam, Associated Press Texas Rangers pitcher Chris Young delivers the ball against the Detroit Tigers Monday in Arlington, Texas. Click photo for larger image.

The most notable among this group is Chris Young, a 6-foot-10, 255-pound right-hander who is pitching superbly in the rotation of the Texas Rangers. Young pitched eight shutout innings Monday night but did not get the decision. For the season, he is 3-2 with a 3.23 earned run average.

But that doesn't begin to tell the story of Young's success. In his past four starts, he has pitched 27 1/3 innings and allowed 22 hits and three earned runs. His ERA during that stretch is 0.99.

In Texas, they are tremendously excited about Young, who despite his size relies more on finesse than power and who figures to be a mainstay of their rotation for years to come.

But as anyone who has followed the Pirates closely knows, that's not the real story with Young. The real story is how he came and left the Pirates.

Young pitched and played basketball at Princeton, where he had set a school record for blocked shots and averaged almost 14 points a game. He possibly had a chance at an NBA career. Even if he didn't, the prospect of one gave him leverage in negotiations. He didn't sign until late August and received about $1.5 million, high for a third-round choice.

In two seasons in the low minors he was 16-12 and struck out 208 in 218 innings while walking only 54. He was living up to his promise.

But in December 2002, general manager Dave Littlefield traded Young and another prospect to Montreal for Matt Herges.

Herges never pitched an inning for the Pirates. He was released before the end of spring training.

The Pirates, who had given Young a $1.5 million signing bonus, gave him away for nothing.

When there was talk this offseason that Young might want to take a fling at the NBA, the Rangers thought enough of him to tie him up with a three-year contract, although he was two full seasons removed from being arbitration eligible.

The Pirates No. 3 choice in 1995 was Bronson Arroyo, who was 4-0 going into a start against the Oakland Athletics last night and an integral part of the starting rotation of the world champion Boston Red Sox.

This is not to suggest the Pirates did anything wrong here. They gave Arroyo, who was a highly regarded prospect, ample opportunity and he never took advantage of it. In parts of three seasons with the Pirates, he was 9-14 and gave no hint of what was to come.

Still, it's intriguing to keep up with Arroyo and wonder what might have been, especially since the Pirates got nothing in return for him.

Leo Nunez was a highly regarded pitcher in the Pirates' organization. He was 10-4 with a 3.06 ERA at Hickory last season. With a fastball reported as high as 96 mph, he struck out 140 in 144 innings. He was traded to Kansas City after last season to acquire Benito Santiago.

How appropriate that Nunez would make his major-league debut -- one scoreless inning, no hits, two strikeouts -- Monday, one day after the Pirates released Santiago. Once again, the Pirates gave up a good, young prospect for next to nothing.

Roberto Novoa is pitching, not particularly well, out of the bullpen for the Chicago Cubs. Last year, he pitched for the Detroit Tigers. Novoa was once a Pirate. He was traded to Detroit for Randall Simon in 2002.

Bad trades and ill-advised personnel decisions are part of baseball. They happen to all teams. But a team like the Pirates, with such a narrow margin of error, must be more diligent than others.

Chris Young looks like a nice building block for the Rangers. He easily could have been the same for the Pirates.