Grilli upset over media misinterpreting comments

BRADENTON, Fla. -- Pirates closer Jason Grilli went on a brief rant Wednesday morning against "all these clueless bloggers," upset at the way new media misinterpreted comments in which he questioned the Pittsburgh front office's efforts at the last non-waiver Trade Deadline.

In a wide-ranging club preview on FOXsports.com, Grilli noted "the economics here" might have contributed to the Bucs having to pass on some of the higher-end names available last July, such as Justin Upton, Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino.

Grilli's complete remarks in the FOXsports.com piece:

"Players know the situation. To get a top-tier bat ... maybe the expectations were a little higher on our end. That's not a knock against who we got. It's just when you're winning, it's like, 'Dude, do you want to go for the gusto here? Do you want to go for the jugular? ... Pull the trigger. Do you want to win? Do you want to change?'

"As a player, it's like, 'Come on. Let's see. Give us the pieces.' … If anybody's going to do it, you'd think a team that hasn't won and is in first place would be the first to do it. Let's not wait."

Grilli's take was immediately taken as a rip-job of club brass by second-hand writers who picked up the story.

"Ridiculous. Why would I want to criticize the team, the place I'm at?" Grilli fumed. "Better yet, if I felt that way, why would I come back here? But you've got guys who have never been in here, they read someone else and they take stuff people say and twist it into whatever they want."

Obviously, the chance to be a first-time closer drew the 36-year-old Grilli, a free agent, back to Pittsburgh. However, he did pick the Bucs' offer of a $6.75 million package over other two-year tenders for slightly more money from both the Cubs and the Blue Jays.