OnlyBucs

What would be your plan to get the Bucs back into the postseason next year. Here is my plan:

First off you analyze what has to improve. In my opinion the Bucs have some nice starting pitching depth. The offense is horrible and the bullpen needs to be rebuilt. Here are my steps or to do list:



1) I put together a solid financial plan to present to Mr. Nutting that shows the ROI (Return on Investment) if he will increase my ML Payroll to $125M (Which would still be well below the $150M average payroll)



2)I sign Cutch to a 5 year $100M contract extension. I tell the Pirate faithful that the Bucs are in it to win it!



3) I address the offense situation with a blockbuster. No not Stanton. He is too injury prone and his contract is not workable. Instead I have my eyes on another future Hall of Famer. I go get Joey Votto. Yes, he is owed $25M a year for the next 6 years and he is 33. I trade Polanco, Meadows, one of either Tucker/Newman, and one of our Minor League pitchers not named Keller, Glasnow, or Brault.

We get Votto and the Reds pick up one half of Votto's Contract due to the quality of players going to the Reds. We are on the hook for $12.5M per year. I figure Votto has at least 3-4 average years left. By average I mean Votto average. Here is his average year based on his 11 years:



AB-574, R-98, H-180, 2B-39, 3B-2, HR-29, RBI-95, BB-112, SO-124, BA-.313, OBP-.427, SLG-.541, OPS-.968, WAR-5.3



The Reds are rebuilding and this trade is a win win for both clubs.



4) I send Osuna to fall ball and have him work out at 3B. I am assuming that Kang will not be back.



My starting lineup for 2018 would be:

Marte-LF

Harrison-2B

McCutchen-CF

Votto-1B

Bell-RF

Osuna-3B

Diaz-C

Mercer-SS



That lineup is a contender!



5)Bullpen. Obviously Benoit, LeBlanc, and Hudson do not return. I bring up Glasnow, Brault for long relief. Resign Kontos and Nicasio. Round out the pen with Schugel, Neveraskas, and of course Rivero as the closer.

I keep a keen eye on Glasnow. If he continues his dominance at the ML level as he has in AAA; then I would start putting the wheels in motion on a Cole trade; with the idea that Glasnow takes over for Cole, and I restock the farm with a couple of top prospects.



Bench is composed of Frazier, Freese, Serpico, Cervelli + either a FA or a Minor League stand out.

That's sounds like a pretty solid plan and not far off from what I have been toying with. My hopes are Kang returns, Bell goes to the outfield, and Osuna get a shot at 1st. Then we go after someone like a Scherzer, Grienke or an absolutely top line pitcher. I really like your Votto idea though. Either way, we need to add an elite talent with a proven level of performance. Then build a bullpen possible.

Killer lineup, I like it a lot.



While that is a winner on paper, we also know it's not going to happen. There is no way Votto is coming over to the Pirates. Fine, I still like what you're doing. So, who can plug in other than Votto, someone with a high impact? He can be either a corner OF or 1st base, Bell showing he's a darn good athlete and can play either.

I think the Reds wouldn't consider that trade. I think their best plan is to hope everyone has a good year next year, and that the rotation is near the top of its range. If they're out of it next July, start the rebuild.

I always wonder why the Reds didn't move Votto. That deal has to be killing them. I would love to have Votto. I like this idea if it can happen.



I don't think the Pirates want to move Bell. He should have been moved in April or at least May afyer watching others run down balls in the outfield. Is there a Votto like outfielder out there?

I really don't like the idea of Votto, personally. But even if NH might be thinking along these lines, remember that Votto is a 10/5 player so would have the power to veto any potential trade to any team if he wants.

080003342207202F410 wrote: I really don't like the idea of Votto, personally. But even if NH might be thinking along these lines, remember that Votto is a 10/5 player so would have the power to veto any potential trade to any team if he wants.
I realized that Votto could nix the trade. Maybe he wants to be a lifelong Red. However Cincy is not contending any time soon and any ball player worth his salt wants a chance to get to the World Series. I truly believe that lineup; together with the assumption that our starting pitching staff remains solid, gives the Bucs contender status.

74515252476C51595B4C3E0 wrote:

1) I put together a solid financial plan to present to Mr. Nutting that shows the ROI (Return on Investment) if he will increase my ML Payroll to $125M (Which would still be well below the $150M average payroll)


While that makes perfect sense on the surface, I don't think it's likely to happen.  Bob Nutting is not a stupid man.  At least when it comes to money and business it could be argued that he's very intelligent - perhaps more so than any other single person involved with this organization. I don't think he's unaware of the fact that fielding a better team is likely to result in:



Better Attendance ($$$)

A better TV Deal ($$$)

More revenue coming in from other baseball related sources ($$$)

The value of the organization as a whole going up (STL has a metro population almost identical to PIT yet the Cards are valued at 50% more than the Pirates - 1.8 billion to 1.2)



The man is very familiar with the concept of ROI.  He surely knows both how to manage and make large amounts of money.   Given that...what the heck is he doing?  Any investment carries risk of course, and I'm no financial expert, but does it not seem very likely that a [smart] bump in payroll, particularly this season, would pay for itself several times over?



I don't get it.  I'm sure there's a lot more to the financial aspect than I will ever be able to understand, but I'm not sure I can buy the 'Nutting is just a cheapskate' explanation.  You don't get rich by refusing to invest in your business and you don't stay rich and build a solid empire to pass on to your children (as Nutting has stated he intends to do) by refusing to re-invest in your business.  Bob Nutting is well aware of these things, yet still doesn't seem willing to budge.  I think there's something else going on here when it comes to the financial situation - certainty more than just a man being stubborn and cheap.

How much less profit is it worth to be a hero in the city of Pittsburgh and bringing back the World Series?



Poor people think just spend, spend, spend. Rich people want as much as they can get. It should be the opposite in my opinion.

I think McCutchen and Cole have full intention of reaching the open market after 2018 and 2019 respectively. If I'm NH I see two potential options, sell out for 2018, or think long term and move McCutchen and Cole. I think selling out for next year would be to sign Moustakas for 3B and go get another bullpen arm. It sucks that they are in a position where each option is equally viable IMO. It is questionable whether the McCutchen/Marte/Polanco/Bell/Cole/Taillon core is good enough to just add to. I'm more of the opinion that they should at least talk to teams looking at their two stars to see what return team's are offering.



But, I doubt NH does anything drastic, which is just dumb. If they aren't going to sell this offseason, then they need to add FA's to fill holes.