OnlyBucs

This is the kind of thing that always bothers me, and I'm just wondering if y'all feel the same way.



The example is Zach Neto, the Angels' rookie SS.



My son works for Campbell University athletics, specifically the baseball program. So I follow Campbell closely. Zach Neto was a superstar in college ... just looked, played, acted like and carried himself like a major leaguer.



Last June (2022), the Angels drafted him 13th overall I believe.



He played two months in their system last summer. He played about 2-3 weeks in the minors this spring, before they called him up and put him in the starting lineup immediately. He has been there ever since. He already looks great and I guarantee you he'll be an all-star within the next 2-3 years.



He had a 174 minor-league at-bats. That's it. The Angels had seen enough.



My point is this, and this has always bothered me about the Pirates ... I guarantee you if the Pirates had drafted Zach Neto last June, he would still be in Greensboro right now, maybe Altoona by the end of the year ... even though he would already be major league ready.



Lots of teams fast-track top-end talent to the majors. They know they're ready. They don't need to see an entire season at each of their minor league affiliates.



The Pirates never do that. Is it because they just can't recognize when a talented player is major-league ready?

That guy’s a player. It’s like he’s 27 years old with five years of experience, and he’s only just started.

Perhaps Dylan Crews could be that type of player for the Pirates. A college hitter who plays a position that shouldn't require a lot of development time in the minors.

A lot of it is trying to maximize control of peak years. Another product of the Pirates penny-pinching ways couples with the economic disparity inherent in MLB.

5B5350677154737C120 wrote: A lot of it is trying to maximize control of peak years. Another product of the Pirates penny-pinching ways couples with the economic disparity inherent in MLB.


I think your thoughts are the actual reason. Until the owners agree to put each franchise in the same position regarding payroll spending, this tactic by the Pirates and other clubs will continue. While the fans are losers in this scenario, it’s the young players who I feel sorry for. Those who become good major leaguers don’t reach free agency until they’re closer to 30, or older, and perhaps miss out on a much bigger payday, or even two opportunities to be a marketable free agent during their late 20s and into their early 30s.

I dnk....i get it.....kind of torn. 



All that's written is true.



It's also true that every Pirates fan on planet earth wanted Pedro Alvarez called up fast. 



Maybe Roansy's time in the minors should've been longer.



If I knew which players had it and when, I'd be Ben.

774255555E6755555E5955300 wrote: I dnk....i get it.....kind of torn. 



All that's written is true.



It's also true that every Pirates fan on planet earth wanted Pedro Alvarez called up fast. 



Maybe Roansy's time in the minors should've been longer.



If I knew which players had it and when, I'd be Ben.


Exactly. you make a great point about Alvarez. EVERYONE wanted him up right away. Turns out he couldn't play defense, couldn't hit lefties, and couldn't hit breaking balls. Not that any of that could have been fixed in the minors. But maybe he wasn't a "special player" like Boras called him. Good dude though. Too bad it never worked out for him.

141C1F283E1B3C335D0 wrote: I dnk....i get it.....kind of torn. 



All that's written is true.



It's also true that every Pirates fan on planet earth wanted Pedro Alvarez called up fast. 



Maybe Roansy's time in the minors should've been longer.



If I knew which players had it and when, I'd be Ben.


Exactly. you make a great point about Alvarez. EVERYONE wanted him up right away. Turns out he couldn't play defense, couldn't hit lefties, and couldn't hit breaking balls. Not that any of that could have been fixed in the minors. But maybe he wasn't a "special player" like Boras called him. Good dude though. Too bad it never worked out for him.




Alvarez was rushed, partly because the team stunk. We were in the 20 consecutive year losing streak, and he helped to end it.



I've wondered whether if he would've played ball in the off-season as the team had suggested, whether it might have helped.



I always give him a pass as we look back. He was part of the team that helped to end our years of disappointment.

6055424249704242494E42270 wrote: I dnk....i get it.....kind of torn. 



All that's written is true.



It's also true that every Pirates fan on planet earth wanted Pedro Alvarez called up fast. 



Maybe Roansy's time in the minors should've been longer.



If I knew which players had it and when, I'd be Ben.


Exactly. you make a great point about Alvarez. EVERYONE wanted him up right away. Turns out he couldn't play defense, couldn't hit lefties, and couldn't hit breaking balls. Not that any of that could have been fixed in the minors. But maybe he wasn't a "special player" like Boras called him. Good dude though. Too bad it never worked out for him.




Alvarez was rushed, partly because the team stunk.  We were in the 20 consecutive year losing streak, and he helped to end it. 



I've wondered whether if he would've played ball in the off-season as the team had suggested, whether it might have helped. 



I always give him a pass as we look back.  He was part of the team that helped to end our years of disappointment.




Oh, no doubt. He won a Silver Slugger, led the league in HRs one year, competed in a home run derby, and was an All-Star. He was honestly even a good defender before he got the yips and couldn't throw.



But as far as first round busts go in Pirates history, he doesn't sniff the top ten. Just always wonder what might have been with him.

He may have been an All Star.  He's never been a GW All Star.  They didn't name any disease after him, but he flashed a pan while he collected his $200 for passing Go.  He made the ASG because someone worthy bowed out.  He was a major leaguer.  I'll hand him that.



I took so much crap from people over him that I don't feel like re-living it.  Then, all of a sudden, when he couldn't play any position, they all forgot how much of a Mt. Rushmore they pre-carved for him the day he was drafted.