OnlyBucs

ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!

A guy on the Dodgers is not allowed to swing the bat yet, and has managed 4 walks in 8 at bats even with the pitcher knowing he can't swing!

426463767F7364727A110 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!
Living out here i only get to see them if they are playing the Phillies, so I rely on what the rest of you write about. From what I've read, the offense is blah, and for the most part, the pitching is even less impressive.



Hard to tell with ST. As the weather warms, guys start getting loose and they pick up the pace a little, but then they come north, and April can be a cruel, cruel month.



If your optimism is down, mine is going to be even lower!

4D6B6C79707C6B7D751E0 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!
Every year they give us some BS other than player performance in an attempt to promote hope. Last year in ST it was working with someone to instill confidence (while other teams were actually improving their rosters). Apparently, the team became confident they could win 62 games.



We've been fed too much BS year after year while Nutting runs a dollar store type of team. Every pitcher is working on a new pitch. Every prospect is going to be the next big thing. All others are due to turn it around, find another level, turn the corner, bounce back, or otherwise display some level of production that their recent history suggests will not happen. So I just wait and see. I'll believe a better Pirate team when I see a better Pirate team.

604641545D51465058330 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!


It’s hard not to have concerns with a team that will rely on several young, still unproven players, even if they were showing well in Spring Training. When the games become real, that’s when we can begin to see what might transpire.



I’d like to see individual growth and improvement, not just during the season, but also in March. I’m not expecting the team to compete for a playoff spot this year, but the young guys have much to learn and I don’t want any time wasted. Not between this March and next. Every opportunity in every game matters.

2375637778627279746351767C70787D3F72110 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!


It’s hard not to have concerns with a team that will rely on several young, still unproven players, even if they were showing well in Spring Training.  When the games become real, that’s when we can begin to see what might transpire.



I’d like to see individual growth and improvement, not just during the season, but also in March.  I’m not expecting the team to compete for a playoff spot this year, but the young guys have much to learn and I don’t want any time wasted.  Not between this March and next.  Every opportunity in every game matters.


We have been told ST doesn't matter, but that's BS, especially for young teams. And kind of dovetailing on your comments about opportunity and learning, we were told there was going to be competition for spots this spring. I'm not seeing it. I'm getting a feeling going two weeks in now that Shelton and BC have pretty much decided on who will be going north, because that's the way these guys seem to be playing. No sense of urgency, no indication of guys competing for a spot. I expected a lot more focus this spring. It's looked no different than the last two years.

55737461686473656D060 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!


It’s hard not to have concerns with a team that will rely on several young, still unproven players, even if they were showing well in Spring Training.  When the games become real, that’s when we can begin to see what might transpire.



I’d like to see individual growth and improvement, not just during the season, but also in March.  I’m not expecting the team to compete for a playoff spot this year, but the young guys have much to learn and I don’t want any time wasted.  Not between this March and next.  Every opportunity in every game matters.


[highlight]We have been told ST doesn't matter, but that's BS, especially for young teams.[/highlight] And kind of dovetailing on your comments about opportunity and learning, we were told there was going to be competition for spots this spring. I'm not seeing it. I'm getting a feeling going two weeks in now that Shelton and BC have pretty much decided on who will be going north, because that's the way these guys seem to be playing. No sense of urgency, no indication of guys competing for a spot. I expected a lot more focus this spring. It's looked no different than the last two years.


I couldn't agree more with what I highlighted. I can see telling a young player like Cruz that the job is his as a way of giving him confidence, that the management has faith in him. But there are too many other guys who have a lot to prove and there's nothing like competition to sort out who belongs and who doesn't.



Winning baseball games is hard, and gets harder when a playoff spot is on the line, and as the playoffs progress to each level. Being prepared to compete in those circumstances begins with winning a job. I see it as a benefit putting the young players in stressful situations in ST.

Surg,



Only because you've asked. I'm so concerned about the pitching that I feel that it's best that I don't comment about anything. I'll leave it at that, except to give my opinion on ST overall, whether it has to do with the Pirates or any other team.



For those who focus only on scores, standings and nothing else, ST probably doesn't mean much to them.



For people who are interested in overall team or individual player progress, then I would think that ST has a good bit of importance.

I'm now starting my fifth season since I've moved back to Pittsburgh, and so have been blacked out by mlb.tv. When you can't watch the games, interest in the seasons will wane in time.

7A2C3A2E213B2B202D3A082F25292124662B480 wrote: ST in full swing, a number of games televised and pretty much crickets around here. Any concerns? Too soon to say? My biggest concern is the K's, and not one single breakout guy like Castillo last season. Brubaker and Hill looked good. Keller looks like Old Keller.



So I am concerned right now. They keep talking team unity fun and such. I'd like to see a sense of direction, some sort of spark that will make me believe this season won't be a monumental collapse. And I'm the optimistic guy on the board!


It’s hard not to have concerns with a team that will rely on several young, still unproven players, even if they were showing well in Spring Training.  When the games become real, that’s when we can begin to see what might transpire.



I’d like to see individual growth and improvement, not just during the season, but also in March.  I’m not expecting the team to compete for a playoff spot this year, but the young guys have much to learn and I don’t want any time wasted.  Not between this March and next.  Every opportunity in every game matters.


[highlight]We have been told ST doesn't matter, but that's BS, especially for young teams.[/highlight] And kind of dovetailing on your comments about opportunity and learning, we were told there was going to be competition for spots this spring. I'm not seeing it. I'm getting a feeling going two weeks in now that Shelton and BC have pretty much decided on who will be going north, because that's the way these guys seem to be playing. No sense of urgency, no indication of guys competing for a spot. I expected a lot more focus this spring. It's looked no different than the last two years.


I couldn't agree more with what I highlighted.  I can see telling a young player like Cruz that the job is his as a way of giving him confidence, that the management has faith in him.  But there are too many other guys who have a lot to prove and there's nothing like competition to sort out who belongs and who doesn't.



Winning baseball games is hard, and gets harder when a playoff spot is on the line, and as the playoffs progress to each level.  Being prepared to compete in those circumstances begins with winning a job.  I see it as a benefit putting the young players in stressful situations in ST. 


this is an interesting spring training for the Bucs, I haven't watched enough games to comment on particular players. However, it seems like there are several players that have a chance this spring to show if they deserve a spot on the mlb team and if they deserve to be a starter. There are battles going on for playing time at second, catcher, and outfield. The pitching staff is pretty much wide open too. There are pitchers that have inside track for starting rotation and pen but who knows how final roster is going to shake out.



I have my fingers crossed that those who win jobs have taken a big step forward from last year and are decent to good players rather than the best of the worst.