OnlyBucs

Doesn't matter...you actually need to have a lead to protect in order to worry about your closer. The Pirates will have precious few of those. I'd say this team was AT BEST going to win 25 games. Now, with Polanco, Maile, and Hayes out...this is a 15-20 win team, tops. In a 162 game season, this team would be a near lock to lose 100+. No Taillon, Archer, or Santana. No Maile. No Polanco or Hayes for the time being. I'm assuming Kela doesn't want to play. MLB backups, at best, at CF and C. Below average everywhere else, save MAYBE 1B or DH (I can't tell you how much I hate typing that for our team...dead serious...that might make me quit being an MLB fan permanently) depending on how well Bell plays. A rotation that would struggle against AAA teams. Musgrove, Williams, Keller are potentially decent 3-5 guys. We've got them 1-3. Brault and Kuhl belong in a bullpen somewhere.



Bottom line, whether Kela is here or not...I don't care. We won't need him to do anything but try to keep a 5-1 game from getting "too far" out of hand.

Maybe you should find a way to communicate with Ben.



You know what we have!

61696A5D4B6E4946280 wrote: Doesn't matter...you actually need to have a lead to protect in order to worry about your closer. The Pirates will have precious few of those. I'd say this team was AT BEST going to win 25 games. Now, with Polanco, Maile, and Hayes out...this is a 15-20 win team, tops. In a 162 game season, this team would be a near lock to lose 100+. No Taillon, Archer, or Santana. No Maile. No Polanco or Hayes for the time being. I'm assuming Kela doesn't want to play. MLB backups, at best, at CF and C. Below average everywhere else, save MAYBE 1B or DH (I can't tell you how much I hate typing that for our team...dead serious...that might make me quit being an MLB fan permanently) depending on how well Bell plays. A rotation that would struggle against AAA teams. Musgrove, Williams, Keller are potentially decent 3-5 guys. We've got them 1-3. Brault and Kuhl belong in a bullpen somewhere.



Bottom line, whether Kela is here or not...I don't care. We won't need him to do anything but try to keep a 5-1 game from getting "too far" out of hand.
I predicted 20 wins all along. I don't think Maile's injury matters. He belongs in AAA anyway. In a normal year Hayes would have opened in AAA. There's never been an indication he's ready for MLB pitching. And I just don't think much of Polanco even when healthy. Poor hitter, poor fielder, poor runner but he'll hit just enough HRs to put him on the fringe of almost being considered a power hitter. I wouldn't be surprised to see a warm body fill in for him and do even better. The team has little pitching and generally poor defense.



This season is a waste anyway. But maybe a couple players will take a step forward and establish themselves.

Anyone know how Burdi pitched in the 9th ? I see he did give up a run .

7B565B4A4D5C4B0B08390 wrote: Doesn't matter...you actually need to have a lead to protect in order to worry about your closer. The Pirates will have precious few of those. I'd say this team was AT BEST going to win 25 games. Now, with Polanco, Maile, and Hayes out...this is a 15-20 win team, tops. In a 162 game season, this team would be a near lock to lose 100+. No Taillon, Archer, or Santana. No Maile. No Polanco or Hayes for the time being. I'm assuming Kela doesn't want to play. MLB backups, at best, at CF and C. Below average everywhere else, save MAYBE 1B or DH (I can't tell you how much I hate typing that for our team...dead serious...that might make me quit being an MLB fan permanently) depending on how well Bell plays. A rotation that would struggle against AAA teams. Musgrove, Williams, Keller are potentially decent 3-5 guys. We've got them 1-3. Brault and Kuhl belong in a bullpen somewhere.



Bottom line, whether Kela is here or not...I don't care. We won't need him to do anything but try to keep a 5-1 game from getting "too far" out of hand.
I predicted 20 wins all along. I don't think Maile's injury matters. He belongs in AAA anyway. In a normal year Hayes would have opened in AAA. There's never been an indication he's ready for MLB pitching. And I just don't think much of Polanco even when healthy. Poor hitter, poor fielder, poor runner but he'll hit just enough HRs to put him on the fringe of almost being considered a power hitter. I wouldn't be surprised to see a warm body fill in for him and do even better. The team has little pitching and generally poor defense.



This season is a waste anyway. But maybe a couple players will take a step forward and establish themselves.   


Trying to figure out who I want at #1 - Kumar Rocker or the Leiter kid. The Vandy starting rotation could have the top two picks of the 2021 draft.

7144535358615353585F53360 wrote: Maybe you should find a way to communicate with Ben.



You know what we have!   


Again, you don't need to have a phD in general managership to know what we have.

4542534053020F360 wrote: Anyone know how Burdi pitched in the 9th ? I see he did give up a run .


He gave up a hard hit double to the leadoff hitter. A passed ball moved him to 3rd and he scored on an infield single.

Burdi struck out 2 and walked none, and looked, from my vantage point, to throw very well.

Given the Crick disaster, Burdi could be a better 9th inning option going forward.

7E6E6F584E4E422D0 wrote: Doesn't matter...you actually need to have a lead to protect in order to worry about your closer. The Pirates will have precious few of those. I'd say this team was AT BEST going to win 25 games. Now, with Polanco, Maile, and Hayes out...this is a 15-20 win team, tops. In a 162 game season, this team would be a near lock to lose 100+. No Taillon, Archer, or Santana. No Maile. No Polanco or Hayes for the time being. I'm assuming Kela doesn't want to play. MLB backups, at best, at CF and C. Below average everywhere else, save MAYBE 1B or DH (I can't tell you how much I hate typing that for our team...dead serious...that might make me quit being an MLB fan permanently) depending on how well Bell plays. A rotation that would struggle against AAA teams. Musgrove, Williams, Keller are potentially decent 3-5 guys. We've got them 1-3. Brault and Kuhl belong in a bullpen somewhere.



Bottom line, whether Kela is here or not...I don't care. We won't need him to do anything but try to keep a 5-1 game from getting "too far" out of hand.
I predicted 20 wins all along. I don't think Maile's injury matters. He belongs in AAA anyway. In a normal year Hayes would have opened in AAA. There's never been an indication he's ready for MLB pitching. And I just don't think much of Polanco even when healthy. Poor hitter, poor fielder, poor runner but he'll hit just enough HRs to put him on the fringe of almost being considered a power hitter. I wouldn't be surprised to see a warm body fill in for him and do even better. The team has little pitching and generally poor defense.



This season is a waste anyway. But maybe a couple players will take a step forward and establish themselves.   


Trying to figure out who I want at #1 - Kumar Rocker or the Leiter kid.  The Vandy starting rotation could have the top two picks of the 2021 draft.


Finishing dead last is almost as big a crap shoot as finishing first.  But the stars may be aligning.   I have seen Rocker.  He would look perfect in black and gold.  I have not seen Leiter, but have heard he is special.   We will probably finish 2020 with the third-worst record.

For a bad team, the fewer games the better. Even bad teams have an occasional good stretch of games. But over the long run the cream rises to the top and the anvil sinks to the bottom. If the Pirates have a good stretch within the small schedule there might not be enough other games to show how bad they truly are.

I don't care if we play two games. We'd find a way to lose all three.



Are we able to draft Mario or Sid again? They have something worth seeing. That's pretty much what we need, until they get dumped, too.