It Is Time For The Pirates To Add Some Players

[Leyland1948]

Just added Jake Elmore (again).

[PMike]

3B202D2C252926480 wrote: I wonder why other small market clubs like Milwaukee and Cincinnati are willing and able to sign players, but we are not?    I wish Nutting would fired the big three quicker than he did . It takes time to rework an organization and I think we are feeling the effects of that . Will there will be real change well that answer will come in time .






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As Bobster posted upthread. we have been through a few of these blow it up, start new, and rebuild and they promise to spend the money when the time is right.  However, the time never seems to be right.  Thus, I no longer listen to the spin.  I don't care if they are "blowing it up", "rebuilding from within", or "spending when the time is right".  I will criticize any efforts to dump salary regardless of what they call it.  I will praise each and every move to bring in major league ballplayers regardless of what they call it.  In line with that thinking, I commemd Cherington for bringing in Heredia.






Maybe the time has never been right... Or maybe it was right during that three year window. Payroll was $60-80 million before that. In that window, it jumped up to $100-110 million. Then it has fallen back to the sup $80 million era. If you want a depressing thought, maybe that is "investing in payroll when the time is right."

[fjk090852-7]

It is about three weeks until pitchers and catchers report to Bradenton, and the Pirates have still not added any additional pitching. Neal Huntington used to say a team needed to have a depth of 8 or 9 starting pitchers who could join the rotation because of injury or scheduling of double headers. Currently the Pirates have possibly six pitchers who can start games. Musgrove, Archer, Brault, Williams, Keller and possibly Kuhl. They need to sign at least one more pitcher who can fill in the rotation if needed. The list of free agent pitchers decreases daily, and soon there will not be anyone available who has a history of starting games. Even when you look at the list today the remaining list of starting pitchers are not very exciting.

[Bobster21]

7C70712A232A222F28372D1A0 wrote: It is about three weeks until pitchers and catchers report to Bradenton, and the Pirates have still not added any additional pitching. Neal Huntington used to say a team needed to have a depth of 8 or 9 starting pitchers who could join the rotation because of injury or scheduling of double headers. Currently the Pirates have possibly six pitchers who can start games. Musgrove, Archer, Brault, Williams, Keller and possibly Kuhl. They need to sign at least one more pitcher who can fill in the rotation if needed. The list of free agent pitchers decreases daily, and soon there will not be anyone available who has a history of starting games. Even when you look at the list today the remaining list of starting pitchers are not very exciting.
Clearly, the Pirates are not interested in adding anyone of substance. It looks like a year of Archer, Williams, Musgrove, Keller, Brault and depth of Kuhl, Stratton, Holmes and McRae. I'm sure there will still be some dumpster diving but that won't yield anything better than the group they already have. With all due respect to Maile and Heredia, no attempt has been made to improve the roster from last year's 69 win team. That tells me they have punted on 2020 and are using it to develop and evaluate what they have before making any decisions on what they need.

[SyrBucco]

022F22333425327271400 wrote: It is about three weeks until pitchers and catchers report to Bradenton, and the Pirates have still not added any additional pitching. Neal Huntington used to say a team needed to have a depth of 8 or 9 starting pitchers who could join the rotation because of injury or scheduling of double headers. Currently the Pirates have possibly six pitchers who can start games. Musgrove, Archer, Brault, Williams, Keller and possibly Kuhl. They need to sign at least one more pitcher who can fill in the rotation if needed. The list of free agent pitchers decreases daily, and soon there will not be anyone available who has a history of starting games. Even when you look at the list today the remaining list of starting pitchers are not very exciting.
Clearly, the Pirates are not interested in adding anyone of substance. It looks like a year of Archer, Williams, Musgrove, Keller, Brault and depth of Kuhl, Stratton, Holmes and McRae. I'm sure there will still be some dumpster diving but that won't yield anything better than the group they already have. With all due respect to Maile and Heredia, no attempt has been made to improve the roster from last year's 69 win team. That tells me they have punted on 2020 and are using it to develop and evaluate what they have before making any decisions on what they need.


I agree. Hoping for a pleasant surprise from Brubaker or Holmes. I like our starting rotation - as people. If I were were British, I'd call them good chaps. But without Taillon, they are "ace-less chaps".

[Bobster21]

Here are the non-roster invitees to ST: RHPs Montana DuRapau, Luis Escobar, James Marvel, Tom Koehler and Nick Mears. LHPs Williams Jerez, Nik Turley and Blake Weiman. Catchers Christian Kelley and Jason Delay, outfielder Jared Oliva.



Pretty impressive group. Who says they don't have pitching depth?

[OrlandoMerced]

I think a defense first approach at C is fine, so they they basically have the crop of position players that they want to go into the season with.



If you squint, you can piece together a bullpen with Kela, Crick, RichRod, Santana, Feliz, Koehler (I assume that's why he's still around) and Kuhl/Brault.



So I guess the plan is to let Kuhl and Brault compete between swing man and 5th spot in the rotation? And that's to slot behind Musgrove, Archer, Williams and Keller. Yikes, an abomination that they didn't spend money to bring in someone to start.

[mouse]

I get the sense they are treating this season as an extended spring training where they see what they have and what they most desperately need. If they get a good offer for Marte, they'll take it; if not, they'll try again in July when they have a better sense of who might work for them going forward.

[SCBucco]

52504A4C5A3F0 wrote: I get the sense they are treating this season as an extended spring training where they see what they have and what they most desperately need. If they get a good offer for Marte, they'll take it; if not, they'll try again in July when they have a better sense of who might work for them going forward.




Ben wasn't here last year, but any person who wasn't know exactly what the Pirates need to compete without going through ST. C, SP, RP, CL for starters. Nothing has been added to help this. I forgot, someone to replace Polanco again when he gets hurt.

[Bobster21]

3222231402020E610 wrote: I get the sense they are treating this season as an extended spring training where they see what they have and what they most desperately need. If they get a good offer for Marte, they'll take it; if not, they'll try again in July when they have a better sense of who might work for them going forward.




Ben wasn't here last year, but any person who wasn't know exactly what the Pirates need to compete without going through ST.  C, SP, RP, CL for starters.  Nothing has been added to help this.  I forgot, someone to replace Polanco again when he gets hurt.
Yes, it's clear what they need. But Nutting isn't going to pay for productive FAs to fill those needs. They can trade Marte and Bell to fill a couple of those needs but then they have additional needs of another OFer and a power hitter. The strategy seems to be to take a year to see if some of those needs can be filled internally within a farm system that previously was poor at talent evaluation and development but now has new leadership. I guess a new mgt team operating under an owner who won't spend doesn't really have many options. Nutting hired BC to be a miracle worker. I think we know how that will turn out.