In an interview on Sunday, Pirates GM Dave Littlefield said that the team must show dramatic improvement soon for him to consider keeping it intact. If it does not, he is highly likely to pursue deals in advance of MLB's July 31 trading deadline. "We're going to have to make some very serious strides for what I would characterize as doing something, meaning getting into the playoff hunt," he said. "The idea is that we want to get better, and I think we're showing that. We've been competitive all year. Unfortunately, we've lost a lot of one-run games, and the record is not good."