OnlyBucs

363334323A3029343D2E28255C0 wrote: Even if he can maintain the flawless play, I think I'd rather have someone with greater range even if they make a few more errors.  Some of the greatest defensive shortstops in baseball history committed a fair amount of errors because they were getting to a lot more balls than someone with lesser range.


Agree. There are also the plays he did not make that the score keeper decided were not errors. Errors are a weak metric to judge players on.



Newman's OOA were about average this past year, which is a big improvement for him. DRS, Newman was better, but again not good in the past. Keeping an average fielder around that hits so terribly is not a great idea. Banking on one year is foolish, especially when he has no other ways to help the team.

# 1. It clearly appears that the Pirates are going to be a bad team in 2022. I would like to see Tucker get more playing time (2nd or SS) to see if he is part of the future mix or just another #1 pick that the Pirates missed on. Okay with giving Chavis playing time to see if he can add some power. While I like Newman, he did not produce offensively in 2021 or 2020's shortened season. I don't believe it really matters if he stays or goes. Gotta hope that Cruz or Peguro are the real deal as a future SS. It looks like Gonzalez is the real deal, at least offensively, at 2nd.



# 2. With the exception of Reynolds hitting either 2nd or 3rd, most of the rest of the players would likely be hitting in any of the 6 - 8 spots on most teams. In short, Gamel, as shown by your stats, as a platoon lead-off may make as much sense as anyone else on the team. There are no stand-out candidates on the team (except Reynolds) to hit lead-off. Perhaps that changes when Peguro comes up.



#3. The Pirates' starting pitching will be bad. One antidote that could help them win a few games would be to have a good bullpen for the 7th - 9th. I hope that Bucs hold onto both Bednar and Stratton for at least the first half of the season, and bringing Rodriguez back at a reasonable price on a 1 year deal could add to the bullpen depth. From there, I believe the Bucs need a bevy of pitchers who could go 2+ innings on most days to help make up for the shoddy starting pitching.



# 4 and # 5. As noted above, the starting pitching likely will be (really) bad. Keller, Bumgartner, Peters, Crowe, Wilson, et al, should all get chances to succeed or fail, as the odds are Quintana and Thompson also will fail. Bucs likely will be moving the above folks and others back and forth between the starting rotation, the pen and the minors (for those who have options) for most of the season.



Thanks for posting your Argument Starters. Unfortunately, the lack of talent on the team does not cause me to get as excited about the roster as in past seasons. I am expecting a 50 win season, and that could be optimistic.

The Pirates are definitely planning to be bad in 2022.

4F686161687B78684F786E0D0 wrote: The Pirates are definitely planning to be bad in 2022.


I hope they're planning to play the younger players, if not right away then fairly early in the season.  If they end up with a bad record by doing that then I'm okay with it.

The Pirates should do what it takes to have a good record. Period. That's in 2022 and every season. I couldn't care less what the players ages are who achieve it. I don't care what the players earn who do it.

787D7A7C747E677A7360666B120 wrote: The Pirates are definitely planning to be bad in 2022.


I hope they're planning to play the younger players, if not right away then fairly early in the season.  If they end up with a bad record by doing that then I'm okay with it.


That would be nice. Hopefully they do that in the OF and middle infield. I get having a vet pitcher or two, just so you have someone you dont worry about throwing out there every 5 days.

Mainer, just wanted to thank you for your thoughtful response!