This is evidence that nothing really will change with the Shelton firing. Canario, even though his xWOBA is lower now than a few weeks ago, is still one of the highest on the team. .200 point difference between his xWOBA and actual. And a BABIP in the .190s If I'm the manager, I'm putting this guy in for two weeks straight and actually seeing what we've got. What do we have to lose??
Shelton needed to be fired but so does Cherry. A quarter century of failure. Great position in the draft year after year and mostly failure after failure. Money spent on international free agents and nothing to show for it. How can any owner tolerate this disaster and do little to change it. There is no hope for this franchise. Great young pitching but no hitting promises no improvement. As I said previously, they are in a death spiral.
I fear that you're right about this. I really struggle to envision a scenario where we don't top out as a 80-84 win over the next few years. Even if we get a new regime after this year, what are the chances they'll be able to turn around two or three of our busted prospect hitters? How much money will they have to work with as Skenes and Cruz reach their arb years? Just seems to me like there's too many holes and not enough dollars to fill in the gaps with free agents or enough in the upper minors (and even with what we have, no track record of success or really reason to believe any of it will be impactful).
It was just a blip about a week ago, but Donnie pinch hit Bart for Triolo with 2 outs, nobody on in the 9th and down by 5 runs. Trying not to make a mountain out of a mole hill, but that was dumb to be frank. Give your catcher the day off, it's badly needed. If you get the tying run to the plate then consider Bart.
DK's site is reporting that our game planning and strategy coach, Radley Haddad, has been fired. The speculation is that this was a move to support Kelly. I wonder if other coaches will be let go as well, but then I never understood the need for a game planning and strategy coach when he already had two pitching coaches and two hitting coaches so maybe Haddad will be the only one.
So maybe he was the guy who game planned consistently looking at strike three with RISP. Getting thrown out at 3rd with none out. Using a promising relief pitcher as a starter and taking him out in the 5th inning every game. And the fan favorite of sitting the guy who had the most hits the previous game.
What?! But Haddad was a bullpen catcher. Those guys can do anything. Just ask Cherington, because that is the resume of everyone in the organization who is not from Amherst.
My expectations are very low and I couldn’t care less that he grew up in Mount Lebanon. But he did play for and work for Jim Leyland. Hopefully something rubbed off.
Lol... We had a crime once here. Some guy who had just gotten out of jail came over to his girlfriend's house and shot her and her mother. That was about 6 years ago. Other than that, every once in a while someone steals a motorcycle or bicycle. That's about it.
He’s not the same as Shelton, speaking from personal experience. I still don’t like his chances of turning this around, given the hand he’s been dealt, but I think we’ll see a little different managerial style. It should also help getting Horwitz and Gonzales in the lineup.
Also, I wouldn’t expect to see Pham in the lineup as much.
To me it's hilarious that supposedly he could be picked up as a hitting coach in that few if any players he managed got better at, wait for it, hitting.
I think you might be right about that. Last year Cruz seemed to follow the 'wait for your pitch' approach then chase everything and anything once he's at 2 strikes. This year, he seems to be more aggressive in-zone earlier in counts. Would be interesting to see if the data supports that.
Now he has been caught taking strike three down the middle a few times. They say baseball is a game of adjustments. It probably won't be too long until we see the walk rate drop and the power go back up. After this happens, we will probably see the walk rate go back up. Also, could you imagine if Reynolds hits .380 next month, what that would do for Cruz? He is the one Pirate, I don't want to miss watching his at-bat.
That said, he's not getting anything to hit b/c opponents don't have to pitch to him. I remember a 4 walk game not long ago. Nobody's giving him anything he can damage.
Your post got me wondering about Cruz's splits as it seems that he's done a lot of his damage earlier in games. Sure enough, in innings 1-3 he has a 1.077 OPS, in innings 4-6 a 1.145 OPS, but in innings 7-9 he has a .387 OPS.
I'm sure that's largely a combination of facing lefty relievers (his OPS against lefties this season is only .548) and opponents making sure our best hitter isn't going to be the one to beat them in the few games that are close late. He may also be trying to do too much as he's K'd in 18 of those 47 late-game PAs (38%), though that K rate is very similar to his overall K rate against lefties (16 of 48, or 33%).
So are you saying that almost every hitter to wear a Pirate uniform in the last five years has been bad or that we ruin their careers? :)
Seriously, it is crazy 1) How many players we acquired or brought up (that we had hopes for), have not done well. 2) How few of players that we let go, went somewher else and did well. Almost none.
Is it, is it good to walk as many as you're striking out? Not sure, what do you think.
Look man I don't want to be the guy shitting all over other's opinions but I get weirdly defensive when people get blamed for stuff they aren't responsible for causing.
Coaching and dev was clearly the failure of the last group *because* we all saw players leave and get better. We weren't just guessing from the armchair, we saw it happen in real life.
This time around it feels like fans are making up these grand conspiracies in search of placing blame where it doesn't belong. Bleak.
Maybe this is a different way to put it, but here’s my thought:
I think there’s enough evidence in the last five plus years to pink slip this management team without having to make up shit they didn’t screw up in the first place.
I'm'a DFA Pham, Canario and Valdez and start looking for heads to chop (shouldn't take too much looking).
With the pitching coming up, I'd trade Keller for a good major league bat.
Then you see who, the rest of this season, wants the jobs. Your Cooks, your Yorks and Your Pegueros.... Cooks and Yorks and Pegueros (Oh MY!)
You see who is gonna dominate their way into the starting rotation and put those who lose out in the pen, where they can keep trying to knock their way back in (Mlodzinski, Oviedo).
Find or Employ a proven hitting program that our players can use to matriculate through the minors.
Interesting. I wouldn't give up on Canario or Valdez just yet. York is still young and hasn't really been beating the door down so I'd continue giving Valdez playing time at least until Nicky G and Horwitz are back. Cook has had a horrendous start to the year so I'd let him continue to work on things down there and bring him up once he's at least holding his own again. Obviously blast Pham and Frazier into the sun. Trade IKF for anything we can get. Peguero is our starter for the rest of the year. I'm also probably exploring moving on from Reynolds if he rebounds either at the trade deadline or in the off season. Dude is already one of the worst defenders in the league, over 30, valuable dollars we'll need for Skenes and Cruz's arb years. Also opens up RF to give Cutch more starts there, which frees up DH for Bart so Henry gets more reps. Endy to AAA as the starter down there. I'm also giving Bart a 1b glove. I know Horwitz hasn't played much but so far he's got huge platoon splits. Bart's 20 wRC+ higher vs lefties so there you go.
On the pitching side - trade Keller and Falter if the price is right, Chandler to the bigs, Burrows to the bigs, Mlod to the pen, Ashcraft to the pen. Trade Bednar, Holderman to AAA until he figures it out.
Feel like the time to do this was when Gonzales and Yorke were hurt. Give him some run and then when they return healthy if it’s not working cut bait.
Hard to make a case for a 30 year old who hasn’t played in the majors for a couple of years to get any run over two former first round picks on a 12-26 team
We all know that this team is better than 12-26 and as long as we can keep BC as just a Draft Day GM, we may be much better off. IMO, he has made some very strong picks in the Draft, but his selection of FA's leaves a lot to be desired. IKF, BDLC, Pham - just those three have cost us $15 mil. Hopefully Horwitz can try to offset that dead money!
Thank you for providing the Forum. And, that includes NOLA, WTM, and many others.
Right on, the only early pick I scratched my head on was Sterling (I liked the pick) because Brecht was there. Brecht seemed like the arms they targeted in '23 with higher upside.
Thanks for creating the space. We’re a small but feisty bunch and while we don’t always agree, collectively we know what we’re talking about. Would love to see the Pirates run by the Bucsondeck collective.
The ole Boxing Day record. I can't believe they won 12 times.
In the mountains of western NC on a herbal apothecary intensive class. Found service to check in. Will stop tonight to see 231 comments on Shelton packing his bags. Dudes probably relieved to be relieved of his front row seat to a shit show all around.
Sting nettle both stings and is amazingly healthy. Enjoy the day.
Learning to heal from the land and not rely totally on others. It's probably century's old way of smoking, eating, and drinking the reefer. Along with others. The Cherokee elders know what the funk is up. Uli can tell you that.
Which place are you doing it? I drive by Daoist Traditions on my way to work when I go in, I suppose that’s acupuncture and other Chinese medicine though…
Tough timing for Kelly to make an immediate impression with the Braves, Mets, and Phillies coming up. But it will interesting to see what changes he makes to lineups, bullpen usage, etc.
With getting Horwitz, Endy, and NG back from injury, that should be enough to put some spark back into the lineup. Enmanuel Valdez has also proven to be a solid add into the lineup. The Pirates will still have two guys on guaranteed contracts - Pham and Frazier. Pham may come out of his funk, but I'd rather see Valdez in LF. Frazier has been good, but like Pham, he's a blockage to getting AB's to younger players.
Possibly the 5+ worst seasons of Pirate baseball that most of us can remember. Thankfully, the pressure of the fans and media caused Bob Nutting to take charge of the situation. Derek Shelton went out quietly, and now the Pirates have the challenge of proving that they can possibly turn this season around.
Starting Pitching - Very soon the Pirate Rotation will have Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Johan Oviedo, Bubba Chandler, Andrew Heaney, and Bailey Falter. Add about 5 more "possibles" like Jared Jones, Braxton Ashcraft, Thomas Harrington, Hunter Barco, and Mike Burrows. What should the Pirates be looking to do? Mitch Keller will be front and center in July. A steady and reliable #3 who has a contract the Pirates cannot afford if they want to try to find another MOTO hitter at the trade deadline. We cannot trust that Nutting will provide an additional $15 or $16 mil, so it has to come from somewhere.
Relief Pitching - Has leveled off since a terrible start, and the addition of Dauri Moreta (back from TJ), and the move of Mlodzinski from 5th/6th SP back to Middle relief should also help to solidify the Bullpen.
Position Players - In the next 15-20 days we should see Spencer Horwitz at 1B, and in the middle of the order, Endy Rodriguez at backup C/1B, and NG coming back from his ankle injury. That will help the lineup. If we are serious about competing, we need to have Liover Peguero continuing at the MLB level at SS/2B. IKF will leave one way or another at the trade deadline, and there could be others - NG would be my guess. Adam Frazier needs to pull a Hamstring. The Pirates cannot have him getting AB's that could be used by Peguero or other possibles.
This team needs to look like one prepping for 2026 - hopefully winning more in 2025 as they do. Don Kelly is only 45, and I described him yesterday as a dirtbag - that's a player who gets in the dirt and does whatever is necessary to stay with the team - he made a 9 year MLB career out of it, playing just about every position on the field, so I think the overall attitude of this team will change quickly. Not with any hoopla, but in a very professional manner!
Boy, I'm hoping you're right. I don't see us scoring many runs until our starting players return. So I'd say look for an uptick at the end of May and then progress going forward.
Mlod needs to be in the pen, or piggy back him with Falter.
Young guys have to play. You need a Frazier to give a guy a chance to think or recalibrate or what have you.... so that a young guy has a dude who's done it before to help him carry the spot in the lineup. It should not be the other way around.
I think Pham, Canario and Enmanuel Valdez need let go.
For what it's worth I'm super bummer that Nick Yorke is struggling to get his timing back after the shoulder injury or whatever put him out. That's a perfect dude that should be getting looks.
I wish I could bottle up your optimism. Horwitz had one decent season as an old rookie. He's not known for power. Endy, although I like him, so far has not done anything impressive in the majors. NG has had some moments but no consistent success. Peguero has shown no long-term results or short-term results but has actually regressed as a prospect. The starting pitching has been disappointing from the expectations. Maybe better bullpen management and player usage will make a difference in a few games.
The bottom line is that the team has some great pieces but an incompetent puzzle-maker. I could actually be okay with the penny-pincher owner if the GM could actually evaluate talent, spend money efficiently, and put together a decent team. Yes money helps, but incompetence is a death knell. I simply cannot justify a world where Shelton but not Cherington gets fired. (I never understood the Travis Williams hiring. Hopefully he has little to do with anything that has to do with baseball rather than business.)
If a manager was trying to get fired, he would manage like Shelton has this year. If a manager was trying to torpedo his team/boss & fans, same. His severance will be more than many people make in a lifetime so I have no tears today for him, but hopes for his replacement. Next we need changes on the field.
https://x.com/Pirates/status/1920923798796124329
Looks like a Shelton lineup, but earlier. Maybe the lineup does come from the front office?
Apparently Bae is in the building. No explanation yet.
Valdez shoulder injury. Put on 10 day.
Canario gone?
That’d be my guess. Rather end the Phamine.
This is evidence that nothing really will change with the Shelton firing. Canario, even though his xWOBA is lower now than a few weeks ago, is still one of the highest on the team. .200 point difference between his xWOBA and actual. And a BABIP in the .190s If I'm the manager, I'm putting this guy in for two weeks straight and actually seeing what we've got. What do we have to lose??
It seems pretty likely that Birdbrain and his laptop droogies decide the lineups.
Dear god.
Shelton needed to be fired but so does Cherry. A quarter century of failure. Great position in the draft year after year and mostly failure after failure. Money spent on international free agents and nothing to show for it. How can any owner tolerate this disaster and do little to change it. There is no hope for this franchise. Great young pitching but no hitting promises no improvement. As I said previously, they are in a death spiral.
I fear that you're right about this. I really struggle to envision a scenario where we don't top out as a 80-84 win over the next few years. Even if we get a new regime after this year, what are the chances they'll be able to turn around two or three of our busted prospect hitters? How much money will they have to work with as Skenes and Cruz reach their arb years? Just seems to me like there's too many holes and not enough dollars to fill in the gaps with free agents or enough in the upper minors (and even with what we have, no track record of success or really reason to believe any of it will be impactful).
It was just a blip about a week ago, but Donnie pinch hit Bart for Triolo with 2 outs, nobody on in the 9th and down by 5 runs. Trying not to make a mountain out of a mole hill, but that was dumb to be frank. Give your catcher the day off, it's badly needed. If you get the tying run to the plate then consider Bart.
DK's site is reporting that our game planning and strategy coach, Radley Haddad, has been fired. The speculation is that this was a move to support Kelly. I wonder if other coaches will be let go as well, but then I never understood the need for a game planning and strategy coach when he already had two pitching coaches and two hitting coaches so maybe Haddad will be the only one.
til the Pirates had a "game planning and strategery" coach.
So maybe he was the guy who game planned consistently looking at strike three with RISP. Getting thrown out at 3rd with none out. Using a promising relief pitcher as a starter and taking him out in the 5th inning every game. And the fan favorite of sitting the guy who had the most hits the previous game.
What?! But Haddad was a bullpen catcher. Those guys can do anything. Just ask Cherington, because that is the resume of everyone in the organization who is not from Amherst.
Good. Brock should be next.
He can take Rabelo with him when he goes.
Easier to figure out who should stay. Here’s my list:
..
Good luck, Donnie. Flip that 12-26 to 26-12 and we might just have something.
He looks even-keel. King Cool.
My expectations are very low and I couldn’t care less that he grew up in Mount Lebanon. But he did play for and work for Jim Leyland. Hopefully something rubbed off.
pffft. he looks like he grew up in lebo. cake eaters.
Next they will be trying to tell us how "hard-nosed" some kid from Upper St. Clair is.
Hey, we had a guy arrested and put away by the FBI 20 years ago for threatening W. How many folks have done that in your neighborhood?
Lol... We had a crime once here. Some guy who had just gotten out of jail came over to his girlfriend's house and shot her and her mother. That was about 6 years ago. Other than that, every once in a while someone steals a motorcycle or bicycle. That's about it.
hey man their daddy's GRINDED on those lawsuits. they earned those lifted pickups.
This is all some good 412 zip code generalization, for sure!
He’s not the same as Shelton, speaking from personal experience. I still don’t like his chances of turning this around, given the hand he’s been dealt, but I think we’ll see a little different managerial style. It should also help getting Horwitz and Gonzales in the lineup.
Also, I wouldn’t expect to see Pham in the lineup as much.
To me it's hilarious that supposedly he could be picked up as a hitting coach in that few if any players he managed got better at, wait for it, hitting.
Literally every hitter he has had has regressed including Reynolds except Cruz… who probably doesn’t pay attention to him
I think you might be right about that. Last year Cruz seemed to follow the 'wait for your pitch' approach then chase everything and anything once he's at 2 strikes. This year, he seems to be more aggressive in-zone earlier in counts. Would be interesting to see if the data supports that.
Oneil Cruz almost doubled his walk rate since last season...went from 8.5% to 16.6%. He is maturing as a hitter.
Now he has been caught taking strike three down the middle a few times. They say baseball is a game of adjustments. It probably won't be too long until we see the walk rate drop and the power go back up. After this happens, we will probably see the walk rate go back up. Also, could you imagine if Reynolds hits .380 next month, what that would do for Cruz? He is the one Pirate, I don't want to miss watching his at-bat.
Catch,
I think O'Cruz is maturing as a hitter.
That said, he's not getting anything to hit b/c opponents don't have to pitch to him. I remember a 4 walk game not long ago. Nobody's giving him anything he can damage.
BB
Your post got me wondering about Cruz's splits as it seems that he's done a lot of his damage earlier in games. Sure enough, in innings 1-3 he has a 1.077 OPS, in innings 4-6 a 1.145 OPS, but in innings 7-9 he has a .387 OPS.
I'm sure that's largely a combination of facing lefty relievers (his OPS against lefties this season is only .548) and opponents making sure our best hitter isn't going to be the one to beat them in the few games that are close late. He may also be trying to do too much as he's K'd in 18 of those 47 late-game PAs (38%), though that K rate is very similar to his overall K rate against lefties (16 of 48, or 33%).
But Oneil in previous years would be frustrated that he is getting anything to hit and chase.
Now he is spitting on those outside the zone making them come into his zone.
Cutch, Bart, Nick Gonzalez.
If you're gonna use words like "literally every" it's probably worth not being stupid about it.
Gonz peaked in his first month and tailed off significantly. Bart is too early to tell and Cutch is a HOFer
good one
There's also a corollary to this logic...
The Pirates have cycled through an unfathomable amount of hitters over the last five years. How many of them have left and gotten better?
So are you saying that almost every hitter to wear a Pirate uniform in the last five years has been bad or that we ruin their careers? :)
Seriously, it is crazy 1) How many players we acquired or brought up (that we had hopes for), have not done well. 2) How few of players that we let go, went somewher else and did well. Almost none.
have you noticed what the guys he traded away last season have been doing?
Charles McAdoo went from a 134 wRC+ to a 63 wRC+ playing at the same level. Also striking out 37% of the time.
Forrester from a 136 to a 99, now striking out 31% in A+ as a 23-year-old
Shim still hasn't thrown an inning for the Marlins affiliates.
Priester scrapped his 4-seamer but still looks like Thomas Harrington.
Is it, is it good to walk as many as you're striking out? Not sure, what do you think.
Look man I don't want to be the guy shitting all over other's opinions but I get weirdly defensive when people get blamed for stuff they aren't responsible for causing.
Coaching and dev was clearly the failure of the last group *because* we all saw players leave and get better. We weren't just guessing from the armchair, we saw it happen in real life.
This time around it feels like fans are making up these grand conspiracies in search of placing blame where it doesn't belong. Bleak.
Maybe this is a different way to put it, but here’s my thought:
I think there’s enough evidence in the last five plus years to pink slip this management team without having to make up shit they didn’t screw up in the first place.
I think it's blurred lines. Since the last regime was bad at dev, they believe this regime is worse and therefor bad at dev as well.
BREAKING PITTSBURGH PIRATES GM BEN CHERINGTON HAS JUST BEEN FIRED, TEAM OWNER BOB NUTTING HAS NAMED *YOU* THE NEXT GM OF THE MALIGNED FRANCHISE
What are you doing the rest of this season and next offseason?
Me?
I'm'a DFA Pham, Canario and Valdez and start looking for heads to chop (shouldn't take too much looking).
With the pitching coming up, I'd trade Keller for a good major league bat.
Then you see who, the rest of this season, wants the jobs. Your Cooks, your Yorks and Your Pegueros.... Cooks and Yorks and Pegueros (Oh MY!)
You see who is gonna dominate their way into the starting rotation and put those who lose out in the pen, where they can keep trying to knock their way back in (Mlodzinski, Oviedo).
Find or Employ a proven hitting program that our players can use to matriculate through the minors.
BB
Interesting. I wouldn't give up on Canario or Valdez just yet. York is still young and hasn't really been beating the door down so I'd continue giving Valdez playing time at least until Nicky G and Horwitz are back. Cook has had a horrendous start to the year so I'd let him continue to work on things down there and bring him up once he's at least holding his own again. Obviously blast Pham and Frazier into the sun. Trade IKF for anything we can get. Peguero is our starter for the rest of the year. I'm also probably exploring moving on from Reynolds if he rebounds either at the trade deadline or in the off season. Dude is already one of the worst defenders in the league, over 30, valuable dollars we'll need for Skenes and Cruz's arb years. Also opens up RF to give Cutch more starts there, which frees up DH for Bart so Henry gets more reps. Endy to AAA as the starter down there. I'm also giving Bart a 1b glove. I know Horwitz hasn't played much but so far he's got huge platoon splits. Bart's 20 wRC+ higher vs lefties so there you go.
On the pitching side - trade Keller and Falter if the price is right, Chandler to the bigs, Burrows to the bigs, Mlod to the pen, Ashcraft to the pen. Trade Bednar, Holderman to AAA until he figures it out.
They need doge.
Dfage
Bring up Solak. See if he can figure out MLB pitching as he has AAA. Nothing to lose by trying.
Feel like the time to do this was when Gonzales and Yorke were hurt. Give him some run and then when they return healthy if it’s not working cut bait.
Hard to make a case for a 30 year old who hasn’t played in the majors for a couple of years to get any run over two former first round picks on a 12-26 team
Yea, I wish they'd have done this a few weeks ago. Would be hard for him to find playing time once Horowitz and Nicky G are back.
Shoulder injuries for pitchers are not good. I guess we can kiss Solometo goodbye.
At age 22? And as a LHP with a funky delivery, a shoulder injury just may be a positive!
Just want to take a second to thank everyone.
You all have been fantastic.
Day in and day out you guys show up to talk about a 12-26 team and it means the world to me that you do it here.
Anthony, you thanking us would be equivalent to........ a guy that buys us free beer for life, thanking us for taking it.
You are the one that allows us to still enjoy Pirate baseball, but also allows us to keep our sanity. So, thank you.
We all know that this team is better than 12-26 and as long as we can keep BC as just a Draft Day GM, we may be much better off. IMO, he has made some very strong picks in the Draft, but his selection of FA's leaves a lot to be desired. IKF, BDLC, Pham - just those three have cost us $15 mil. Hopefully Horwitz can try to offset that dead money!
Thank you for providing the Forum. And, that includes NOLA, WTM, and many others.
It’s funny, feel like 2024 could be his best draft and it’s the one that he obviously took a backseat for.
That draft had Justin Horowitz written all over it (director of amateur scouting)
Sleeper draft for sure.
Right on, the only early pick I scratched my head on was Sterling (I liked the pick) because Brecht was there. Brecht seemed like the arms they targeted in '23 with higher upside.
I thought at the time this is probably Horowitz.
Thanks for creating the space. We’re a small but feisty bunch and while we don’t always agree, collectively we know what we’re talking about. Would love to see the Pirates run by the Bucsondeck collective.
The ole Boxing Day record. I can't believe they won 12 times.
In the mountains of western NC on a herbal apothecary intensive class. Found service to check in. Will stop tonight to see 231 comments on Shelton packing his bags. Dudes probably relieved to be relieved of his front row seat to a shit show all around.
Sting nettle both stings and is amazingly healthy. Enjoy the day.
Is that some new age speak for smokin the reefer?
Learning to heal from the land and not rely totally on others. It's probably century's old way of smoking, eating, and drinking the reefer. Along with others. The Cherokee elders know what the funk is up. Uli can tell you that.
Lol, you're my kinda guy Bianco
It does seem like a loquacious way to put it.
Which place are you doing it? I drive by Daoist Traditions on my way to work when I go in, I suppose that’s acupuncture and other Chinese medicine though…
Wild Abundance north of Asheville
The Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao.
...just sayin'...
Tough timing for Kelly to make an immediate impression with the Braves, Mets, and Phillies coming up. But it will interesting to see what changes he makes to lineups, bullpen usage, etc.
All he has to do is show that they have a pulse.
With getting Horwitz, Endy, and NG back from injury, that should be enough to put some spark back into the lineup. Enmanuel Valdez has also proven to be a solid add into the lineup. The Pirates will still have two guys on guaranteed contracts - Pham and Frazier. Pham may come out of his funk, but I'd rather see Valdez in LF. Frazier has been good, but like Pham, he's a blockage to getting AB's to younger players.
Mel, I've gotta disagree.
Seeing Valdez come up in the 4 or 5 hole just sinks my heart.
Valdez is batting .209 with a .294 OBP, .657 OPS and an OPS+ of 83.
Sadly, that counts as a solid addition to this putrid line up.
His savant page still has a lotta red, I think there’s better things ahead for him
Lol .1 WAR Valdez a 'solid add' and 0 WAR Frazier 'has been good' my goodness are the standards low with this joke of a team.
They weren't meant to be everyday starters. They're replacement depth guys, doing exactly what replacement depth guys do.
DC
... good point...
I could go for a good pint awaiting today's game...
And gotta say it... love the handle.
I’m buying the Valdez is unlucky bit. .233 BABIP and a .340 xwOBA suggests better days ahead.
Well, he does only have a 15.7% k rate as well.
It's not total consciousness on his death bed, but at least he's got that going for him...
And the heavy stuff is behind us, your holiness!
And has been batting cleanup! Maybe Kelly will at least move him out of that spot, although the alternatives aren't much better.
Possibly the 5+ worst seasons of Pirate baseball that most of us can remember. Thankfully, the pressure of the fans and media caused Bob Nutting to take charge of the situation. Derek Shelton went out quietly, and now the Pirates have the challenge of proving that they can possibly turn this season around.
Starting Pitching - Very soon the Pirate Rotation will have Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Johan Oviedo, Bubba Chandler, Andrew Heaney, and Bailey Falter. Add about 5 more "possibles" like Jared Jones, Braxton Ashcraft, Thomas Harrington, Hunter Barco, and Mike Burrows. What should the Pirates be looking to do? Mitch Keller will be front and center in July. A steady and reliable #3 who has a contract the Pirates cannot afford if they want to try to find another MOTO hitter at the trade deadline. We cannot trust that Nutting will provide an additional $15 or $16 mil, so it has to come from somewhere.
Relief Pitching - Has leveled off since a terrible start, and the addition of Dauri Moreta (back from TJ), and the move of Mlodzinski from 5th/6th SP back to Middle relief should also help to solidify the Bullpen.
Position Players - In the next 15-20 days we should see Spencer Horwitz at 1B, and in the middle of the order, Endy Rodriguez at backup C/1B, and NG coming back from his ankle injury. That will help the lineup. If we are serious about competing, we need to have Liover Peguero continuing at the MLB level at SS/2B. IKF will leave one way or another at the trade deadline, and there could be others - NG would be my guess. Adam Frazier needs to pull a Hamstring. The Pirates cannot have him getting AB's that could be used by Peguero or other possibles.
This team needs to look like one prepping for 2026 - hopefully winning more in 2025 as they do. Don Kelly is only 45, and I described him yesterday as a dirtbag - that's a player who gets in the dirt and does whatever is necessary to stay with the team - he made a 9 year MLB career out of it, playing just about every position on the field, so I think the overall attitude of this team will change quickly. Not with any hoopla, but in a very professional manner!
Boy, I'm hoping you're right. I don't see us scoring many runs until our starting players return. So I'd say look for an uptick at the end of May and then progress going forward.
Mlod needs to be in the pen, or piggy back him with Falter.
Young guys have to play. You need a Frazier to give a guy a chance to think or recalibrate or what have you.... so that a young guy has a dude who's done it before to help him carry the spot in the lineup. It should not be the other way around.
I think Pham, Canario and Enmanuel Valdez need let go.
Let someone play who has a future.
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Canario turned 25 two days ago. Valdez is 26.
Both are younger *and* better prospects than Matt JoseOsuna Gorski.
Nicky G broke his leg.
It might feel like there must be somebody getting the shaft but they sure ain't on this club.
For what it's worth I'm super bummer that Nick Yorke is struggling to get his timing back after the shoulder injury or whatever put him out. That's a perfect dude that should be getting looks.
I wish I could bottle up your optimism. Horwitz had one decent season as an old rookie. He's not known for power. Endy, although I like him, so far has not done anything impressive in the majors. NG has had some moments but no consistent success. Peguero has shown no long-term results or short-term results but has actually regressed as a prospect. The starting pitching has been disappointing from the expectations. Maybe better bullpen management and player usage will make a difference in a few games.
The bottom line is that the team has some great pieces but an incompetent puzzle-maker. I could actually be okay with the penny-pincher owner if the GM could actually evaluate talent, spend money efficiently, and put together a decent team. Yes money helps, but incompetence is a death knell. I simply cannot justify a world where Shelton but not Cherington gets fired. (I never understood the Travis Williams hiring. Hopefully he has little to do with anything that has to do with baseball rather than business.)
If a manager was trying to get fired, he would manage like Shelton has this year. If a manager was trying to torpedo his team/boss & fans, same. His severance will be more than many people make in a lifetime so I have no tears today for him, but hopes for his replacement. Next we need changes on the field.