OnlyBucs

I know, I know, Nutting will never sell. He wants to leave the team to his daughters even if they do not know about running an MLB Franchise.
Then there is Cherrington, he needs to change his idea of where and what he gets the team in the way of hitters for now and for the future. The team has a ton of young starting pitchers and a few more in the system.
Cherrington would do well to trade some of the upcoming starters with a young hitter or two or a guy like Bailey Falter for a hitter. The player they get does not need to be a high-priced guy but Nutting should be happy to spend 15 or 18 million on a contract.
The Bucs are never going to be like the Dodgers or Yankees or the Red Sox unless MLB goes along with a salary cap. Dumb ass players and their union can't see that a cap would really level the playing field among teams. Let the team manage the salary cap like the NFL & NHL.

Starkey reads this forum they are talking about Andujar ! Like we do.

Taylor Ward OF for LAA . Thats the type of player the Pirates can afford and use. Do it BC, now ! Cant wait until July thats too late.

I'm guessing this board has older Buc fans. We have hero's to look up to from the 70's teams. What will a young Buc fan reminisce about when he hits Medicare??

Possum wrote: ↑Mon Jun 24, 2024 3:48 pm I know, I know, Nutting will never sell. He wants to leave the team to his daughters even if they do not know about running an MLB Franchise.
Then there is Cherrington, he needs to change his idea of where and what he gets the team in the way of hitters for now and for the future. The team has a ton of young starting pitchers and a few more in the system.
Cherrington would do well to trade some of the upcoming starters with a young hitter or two or a guy like Bailey Falter for a hitter. The player they get does not need to be a high-priced guy but Nutting should be happy to spend 15 or 18 million on a contract.
The Bucs are never going to be like the Dodgers or Yankees or the Red Sox unless MLB goes along with a salary cap. Dumb ass players and their union can't see that a cap would really level the playing field among teams. Let the team manage the salary cap like the NFL & NHL.

Sounds so right but doubt I'll see it in my lifetime.

There’s no way this team can overcome the disadvantages of both its ownership and its management. Nutting will not spend. Period. Their payroll will always be one of the lowest. I believe Cherington got the job by persuading Nutting that he could use analytics and Moneyball and his “superior intellect” to build a winner within Nutting’s financial constraints. That would be the perfect sales pitch to get hired by Nutting.

But Cherington‘s plan is flawed. His minor-league system fails to properly develop prospects. He dumpster dives for relief pitchers who continue to demonstrate why no one else wanted them. He thought his analytics could get more production from Tellez, Taylor, Oliveras and Grandal than anyone had a right to expect when he took them off the free agent scrap heap. And even the best minor-league system cannot produce a standout player at every position at the same time. And Cherington cannot acquire productive players externally because the salaries of such players are prohibitive.

Nutting seems fine with never being a serious contender but had nothing to lose by letting Cherington try. Eventually, he’ll have to fire Cherington to score some PR points with the fan base just as he did with Huntington. And Shelton is nothing more than Cherington’s lackey. But Cherington’s eventual replacement will just be another young executive with big ideas about how to build a winner without spending money. Rinse and repeat.

Hopefully, the next GM's last name won't end in 'ington'. Seems to be a true indicator of failure.

Then again, I hope it doesn't end in 'ing' either!

The Pittsburgh Pirates' hitting woes in 2024 can be traced back to Andy Haines
The Pirates have seen batters improve their game with other hitting coaches, while others are in the midst of career-worst seasons with the stick, and at the center of it all is hitting coach Andy Haines.
By Noah Wright | Jun 30, 2024

Probably, Haines is responsible for the regression of hitters like Cruz, Hayes and Suwinski to a degree, but when you bring in players like Taylor, Tellez, Olivares and Grandal, who never were any great shakes as hitters to begin with, well, it's like putting lipstick on a pig.

The offensive woes of this team also has deep roots within their development system. Davis never really developed as expected, neither did Gonzalez until recently. There HAS to be some organizational philosophy that they are using that just isn't cutting it. The analytics group needs to be s***canned and they need good old fashioned hitting instructors to turn it around.

Javy wrote: ↑Tue Jul 02, 2024 1:42 pm Probably, Haines is responsible for the regression of hitters like Cruz, Hayes and Suwinski to a degree, but when you bring in players like Taylor, Tellez, Olivares and Grandal, who never were any great shakes as hitters to begin with, well, it's like putting lipstick on a pig.

The offensive woes of this team also has deep roots within their development system. Davis never really developed as expected, neither did Gonzalez until recently. There HAS to be some organizational philosophy that they are using that just isn't cutting it. The analytics group needs to be s***canned and they need good old fashioned hitting instructors to turn it around.

Rather than being the lipstick, I would say that adding those guys was like adding more pigs to the sty. It made no sense but was typical for Cherington. The 2023 Pirates were a poor hitting team that needed an offensive upgrade. Tellez hit .219 and .215 the past 2 years. BC likely saw that he hit 35 HRs in 2022, which was his only big HR season, and gambled that he could do it again. But they needed a good hitter, not a gamble on a poor hitter. It's nice that Tellez finally started hitting and is all the way up to .230. But the first 2 months count, and they don't get a do-over for all the games where he was an automatic out.

Taylor hit .220 last year and came with the reputation of a good glove and weak bat. He's a luxury that a good hitting team can afford when they have a strong lineup around him. That's not a luxury a weak hitting team like the Pirates can afford. He's just one more sure out in a lineup with too many sure outs already.

Olivares is a journeyman utility outfielder. He's done nothing to earn a spot as a starting RFer. But there he is.

Grandal was an emergency replacement for Endy. He was available as a FA because he's 35 and doesn't hit or catch particularly well. BC may not have had much choice at the time he was signed but Bart or Delay would seem better options at this point.

Cherington's plan for improving the poor hitting 2023 team was to add more poor hitters and hope for a turnaround. He did not add a single hitter who inspired confidence. This type of malfeasance could get as GM fired. Unless the owner is just fine with it.