Where Do Pirates Go After Another San Diego Sweep?

8/15/24 By Drew Cagle – @cagles_bagels on X

Another sweep at the hands of the San Diego Padres, and now a 10 game losing streak, leaves the Pirates at a less-than-ideal 56-64 mark. A pair of pitchers’ duels went San Diego’s way on Monday and Tuesday, then Mitch Keller was touched up for 8 runs on Wednesday afternoon. Instead of breaking down the final series of the Pirates’ west coast road trip, I’ve decided to discuss some bigger-picture questions facing the team with 42 games left to play.

What should be done with Paul Skenes and Jared Jones? Should they be shut down, with the team’s playoff hopes all but over?

I’ve seen this narrative going around, that once the Pirates “meaningful games” are done being played, that Skenes and Jones should be essentially put in bubble wrap, not to pitch again for the year. While I understand the sentiment, I think that it could harm two of your prized young arms.

Skenes is still transitioning from hitting to pitching, you can argue. Jones is coming off of a lat injury that’s sidelined him for over a month. Both of them are going to be asked to be workhorses in 2025, a year that could be a crucial step in the franchise’s quest back for postseason success. Getting them used to pitching deep into an MLB season is something I’d like them both to get used to now, instead of in a postseason push next season.

There’s a lot of “blame pie” to hand out for the situation that the team is in. Who should receive the largest piece of that pie?

For me, it’s Derek Shelton. Now, don’t hear what I’m not saying. I don’t think he’s the only one who hasn’t performed up to par this year. Far from it. But in my opinion, as the manager he has to take the most blame. A ten-game losing streak coming at the worst time shouldn’t be brushed aside. 2025 will be a prove-it year for Shelton and the Pirates, no doubt, with a playoff spot as the firm goal. It’s up to him and the organization to reach that goal.

Should we see young players like Nick Yorke, Billy Cook, Braxton Ashcraft, or Mike Burrows in August and September?

Absolutely. I’d love to see Ashcraft, Burrows, or even Bubba Chandler receive starts in the final weeks of the season. If you’re a proponent of limiting Skenes or Jones’ innings, maybe that’s a strategy that you use to both space out their starts, as well as give the youngsters experience.

Yorke could be used as a trial-run type of outfielder (likely center field), as well as Cook. Now, I’m not asking for players like Bryan Reynolds, Ke’Bryan Hayes, or Isiah Kiner-Falefa be relegated to starting two or three times a week, but I’d like to start Yorke or Cook 1-2 times per week, at minimum. See what they can contribute to the organization at the highest level.

What about Henry Davis and Jack Suwinski? Will they return this season? What’s the big-picture outlook for their Pirates tenures?

I’m not writing off either Davis or Suwinski as productive MLB position players, and you shouldn’t either. The two have proved to be Four-A players so far, but I still want to see them up with the big league club to close out the season. Let’s face it: Pittsburgh’s postseason chances are extremely unlikely. If I’m Ben Cherington, that means I’m in information collection mode.

Can Davis bounce back from a poor start to the season? Is Suwinski capable of playing an average center field in addition to his power? Those are just two questions that I need to gather more information on for the rest of the year.

Is calling up either guy a sexy move to make? Absolutely not.

But the worst-case scenario for the end of this Pirates season is not only falling short of the playoffs, but entering a pivotal 2025 campaign unsure about multiple pieces that you’ve earmarked as cornerstone players. Let’s hope the Pirates don’t let that materialize.

Accountability: Just a Word? Have the Stomach to Actually Take Action?

8-14-24 – By Gary Morgan – @garymo2007 on Twitter

The Pirates have come crashing back to Earth, and they barely just escaped gravity long enough to get a look at what lies beyond before suffering complete engine failure.

Ok, so that’s the Hollywood way of putting it anyway.

The Pirates are clearly not ready to make the playoffs, and they’re quickly putting a winning season out of reach. I’d love to pretend all of this was a week and a half of bad baseball, but in reality its more of a reckoning.

It’s what happens when you play poor defense. It’s what happens when your expected performers don’t perform. It happens when you have mental lapses almost daily and never hold anyone to account. And yes, it happens when you probably didn’t have the talent to be in the conversation you wanted to participate in.

Everyone wants accountability, but most people couldn’t define what that looks like to them beyond grunting some things and mumbling about firing everyone.

Let’s talk about that accountability. It’s never as simple as the word and spoiler alert, it’ll never be truly satisfied. It’s the drinking salt water to quench your thirst equivalent of fandom.

Lets start here, by being fundamentally honest.

Ben Cherington was hired in 2019, late 2019, like almost Winter Meetings late in 2019. Before any decisions were made at least outwardly, Starling Marte requested a trade. He didn’t want to be part of a rebuild and knew he wasn’t going to get a second contract. Largely because it was always going to take this long, and Starling would be, well, what he is now by the time they were in position.

2020, COVID happened. Any and all evaluation the team was going to do in the Minors or the Majors for that matter were essentially ignored.

No clue what might be in the system beyond scouting reports and a few in the Altoona training bubble. Regardless, at this point and by the math that makes this “year 5” after 3 months of offseason and 60 games of sorta MLB baseball he’s supposed to be a full year into his “plan” right?

The Plan probably always was to just about entirely blow up the team, stink, draft high and grow their way into being competitive again.

You can judge each trade individually, but all it ever turns into is a pissing match of some claiming everything was wrong, and others tossing out names of guys they’ve managed to turn out after acquiring them. Many didn’t work, a couple did.

Some will point to the extensions as proof he’s on track, others will claim some of them never should have been signed.

From the time he arrived to now, only a couple players have survived. Bryan Reynolds, Mitch Keller, and Ke’Bryan Hayes. They’ll be here.

When we talk about accountability, it’s incredibly hard when you don’t have a stated goal beyond “get better”. Here’s the thing though, that’s also exactly why you don’t ever get them from team officials.

When they started spouting off about being competitive this year for both the playoffs and the division, fans finally had something to sink their teeth into. A real goal, with a real date and a measurable outcome that would say succeed or fail.

So what does Accountability look like?

I asked, and here are some answers I received.

Having the willingness and professionalism to say, “What we’re doing now isn’t working. It was before. Now it’s not. The board has changed. We need to take a step back and reevaluate our strategy and change its execution. And that starts with me.” – @PGHPirateQueen

So for Queen, there is a spoken path out into accountability. She just wants someone to own it, and I get that. I think he’s said things like this in the past. You know, the whole “starts with me” thing, I know he said that for sure. Thing is, for every one time he does, he says all the other word salad stuff twenty times.

Accountability is stating when the team should compete for a WS, or at the very least when they should compete to make the playoffs. – @bangersnmash_0

Bangers here basically wants them to say a date where they should compete for the playoffs, and they just did that this year. World Series, all I can say is when a team executive tells you they’re going to compete to make the playoffs it also means World Series. To get into the playoffs by definition is to compete for a World Series. And before you correct that mentally, the Dodgers have only won it once with all the teams they’ve put on the field over the past decade.

To me, accountability means doing the things needed to move the team forward. Not just moves for the sake of moves, comprehensive and thought out moves, with a vision of what’s needed to be a contender. – @WaymooMoody

Wayne here isn’t interested in words at all, he wants action and smart action based on his own definition of what “smart” would be. His version of accountability is simply doing what needs done and he probably doesn’t expect to not need to hear any statements.

Take responsibility for your decisions. When one of Shelty’s moves backfires, he always blames the player “we need to make a better pitch there etc” – @Fenton_rich

This one is spot on. He isn’t always wrong when he does it either, in fact, pointing at the players to some in and of itself would be accountability, for the player not the coach, but still. He for sure does this. “We just need to execute there a bit better”, “Luis just wasn’t executing his slider today” isn’t the same as “I should have pulled him in the 5th”.

Good luck…it’s becoming a meaningless buzzword… when people say “accountability” what they are saying is that they want the media to embarrass the front office and aggressively push them on all fronts. Yell at them at press conferences etc… – @crmcnerney

Well, way to cut through the BS Clay. That is truly where most of it comes from, just like the word “unserious” some jackass used so now everyone who thinks they’re edgy spouts it in every tweet. Failing on 4th and 1, not hitting a game tying grand slam, having a pitcher get injured right after signing, all unserious, just like most people who think Twitter is real life. His larger point though, yes, accountability to some starts and ends with Journalists becoming part of the story by “calling them out” instead of reporting the story. Fortunately we now have a culture that has largely strong armed the profession into this being modus operandi.

Shelton needs to man up and say things like, “Yeah, I left Bednar in too long,” or, “Holderman has been great for us, but it’s a long season and he’s got some fatigue. So we’re gonna be more intentional about how we use him.” – Trb024

Trb focuses on words from Shelton, supposedly this would be followed by action. The action is unclear though. More intentional could be taken about 10 different ways, so if anything to me this kinda makes our new friend here qualified to write PR stuff for them.

It’s hard to describe. Because outside lookers, we don’t hear anything not in the public light. But normally, results determine action. We don’t see players getting benched for bad play or pulled. So we don’t see any accountability. We perceive leaders not caring – @NeverDdntHaveIt

Steven here is being really honest. We don’t know what’s happening in the locker room, but we can see if it is happening, it isn’t working. I’m all for benchings, I also wonder how a team claiming to be in a playoff race (travel back in time, 10 days ago they were) probably doesn’t sit Oneil Cruz for 3-4 days. Right? Is the message more important than physically having a guy who can take 3 good swings out of 20 and effect the outcome? I’m asking, not telling.

Accountability starts from the top down. You can hire all the best people around the league, but it’s hard to hit home runs with one arm tied behind your back. That filters down through, clear to the field. – @LOngBeARdsLB

My man…The owner is the only place true accountability can come from. Fans have assumed from the start what their acceptable timeline would be, but they have no idea how long the owner thought it would take. He’s not selling, he’s not going to tell you how long he was sold it would take. In other words, he’s not going to take responsibility for missing something he never planned on and even if he did plan on it, he’d never admit it to you, psst, this is exactly why nobody from the team ever told you how long it would take.

So you see what I mean?

I was waiting for someone to say specifically what they meant when they say accountability. Some of you tried real hard.

A few of you would be placated by words, just your version of the “right” words. Some of you want firings and nothing short would or will equate to accountability.

Benching guys who don’t hustle all the time, well, ok, but that isn’t going to look like trying to win when Jared Triolo is starting at short stop for 3 games against the Padres.

Firing the GM very likely means instead of trying to build on and develop what he has here you’re probably going to see a different vision. Could that mean another complete tear down? Maybe.

One thing it won’t mean for sure though, it won’t mean the next guy gets to spend 140 million. Doesn’t mean he’s done everything under his constraints with the precision you’d need to see to be truly in the conversation for a championship by this point. Just means this owner is asking for a very hard job to be done in the hardest way possible.

It’s kinda hard to expect accountability from anyone when everyone and their mother knows where it really needs directed. That direction happens to be the one guy who could dish out some accountability, but see, if he fires people when success would have taken perfection how long would it be before some of those folks held accountable might make sure others hear how difficult he made it?

Probably depends on how likely it is they’re looking for another job. Looking for a job they shut their mouths so their potential new employer knows they can expect the same discretion. Run your mouth and coach Independent ball somewhere in Nebraska.

Accountability is a lot more than a word and honestly I’m not sure we have the stomach for what it actually is or when it could feasibly be applied.

Take Rowdy Tellez. He’s slow as hell and even slower now with his back issue. So his jog to first and scarcely making it to second on what for most would be a triple, that’s not hustle as much as limitation.

Should he sit, after all, he surely isn’t good enough to win a championship with right? I’ve heard that as the criteria for accountability. Recognizing someone isn’t good enough and moving on, being willing to accept they have to eat a bad contract.

All of that is true, it’s also true, they don’t have anyone who can play first base. Should now be the time for accountability? If not, I’m not sure why we say it 10 times a day for 100 days of the season. I mean, you aren’t going to get it, sitting him for Joe or Triolo at this point would be begging for someone else to meet up with accountability for making such a silly decision right?

How about “Why is Bae on this team?!” Accountability!!! Well, he probably wouldn’t be if Josh Palacios or Nick Gonzales were healthy. Bryan De La Cruz? They just acquired him, knowing he strikes out a ton and hits homeruns. He’s done one of them so far, but the reason they wanted to acquire him is because he has 3 years of arbitration. They can sit him now, but it would be for Connor Joe, or Ji Hwan Bae or Michael A. Taylor.

Maybe they should cut all three of them? The only games they won in the past 2 weeks were Michael hitting some homeruns for once. lol I mean, maybe its just better to understand what can and can’t be helped once the season is beyond the deadline.

Look, I want accountability too. I want Derek Shelton to be coaching under a condition this team manages to minimally win more games than they did in 2023. Next year I want them to have him charged with the playoffs or bust.

I want him to own Andy Haines and Oscar Marin. If either of them or both of them return, he doesn’t get to point at them when it doesn’t work. Let’s see where loyalty hits the road. You want Andy Haines still, ok, toss your job in the pile cause that’s what the bet costs.

I want players knowing that dogging it means no playing time, regardless of what you make and for how long the Pirates control you as a player. I also want the team to be more up front about a guy who’s hurting if only so fans can see and respect the fight as opposed to see what looks like not caring and assume the player simply doesn’t care.

I want the owner to simply and clearly put out an expectation that next year is going to be a playoff year or there will be changes.

The problem is, the change I want is him. I’d like him to promise that they either get over the hump in 2025 or he’ll step away as principle.

I also know when I’m asking for more than I’ll ever get.

Really want to know the accountability I want? MLB to admit they’ve created a system where not spending isn’t punished by anything more than having industry insiders make fun of you and fix it.

These players don’t deserve to see the team throw in the towel and send veterans packing for rookies, there are far too many players here doing their all just trying to improve and reach some form of consistency. They probably won’t reach their goals this year, but they sure as hell deserve the shot to finish it and know they as a group didn’t get it done as opposed to feeling like the team took away parts and made them try with zero experience kids.

That’s not accountability, that’s just quitting.

Starter Spotlight: A Piratey Reunion

8-14-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X

In the midst of a historically awful slump, the Pirates will face a familiar foe in opposing starting pitcher, Martín Pérez – who spent the first four months of this season as their teammate before a deadline deal shipped him out to San Diego.

Perez had a solid start to the season with Pittsburgh, posting a 2.86 ERA over his first 6 starts this year before imploding with a 6.89 ERA over his final 10 games with the Pirates prior to being sent to the Padres.

He has performed well in his first two game in brown and yellow, combining 13 innings and a 2.08 ERA with 13 strikeouts to just 2 walks. All three runs allowed came off solo home runs, which have been a recurring issue for Perez.

Looking at his percentiles, he hasn’t really excelled at anything this season, focusing mostly on a sinker/cutter/changeup approach; however, he mixed things up during his first two starts with the Padres, dropping his sinker usage and utilizing his changeup as his main pitch with the cutter and curve as the other pairings.

In those two games which, disclaimer, came against the Rockies and the Marlins, Perez racked up 15 and 13 whiffs, respectively, and had an average exit velocity against his changeup under 84MPH.

He runs the both the changeup and curve down and in against righties while pushing the cutter out and away. Bear down and protect the lower part of the zone. Watch for wildness and attack hanging pitches.

Let’s Go Bucs!

Starter Spotlight: A Broken Crown

8-13-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X

Hopelessness is setting in for the Pirates. This team is desperately in search of a win as they struggle to find consistency out west. They’ll enter today with a rematch against Michael King, whom they faced at home last week and managed 4 runs (3 earned) off 6 hits, 2 walks and 7 strikeouts through 5 innings.

King has been a workhorse for the Padres, posting the 11th highest fWAR in the National League and the 7th best ERA among qualified NL starting pitchers.

Last time around, King leaned heavily on his sinker and changeup, generating whiffs and weak contact on both offerings. He’ll likely try to replicate that part of the outing while avoiding the resulting damage.

Most of that damage came against the sinker as Ke’Bryan Hayes had an RBI single off the pitch in the 1st inning and Andrew McCutchen’s 4th inning home run also came off the sinker with a 109.8 MPH exit velocity.

This team is better than the results have shown lately but it’s hard to ignore all these losses piling up. Find a way to punch back against King today by targeting that sinker and getting an early lead for Luis Ortiz.

Let’s Go Bucs!

Five Pirates Thoughts at Five – Outside Looking In

8-12-24 – By Gary Morgan – @garymo2007 on X

When the Pirates started falling apart, it all fell apart. It’s not like we thought the team was a hop skip and jump from the World Series, but it’s fair to say we had some reason to expect the team to drag out where this was headed a bit longer.

I thought they’d be in it longer than this to be sure, but this team can’t survive guys they count on to close things out collapsing. They have starting pitching, but when it doesn’t provide to the same level, backed by a bullpen that has more holes than answers.

Lets do this!

1. Fire Fill in the Blank!

Ben Cherington and Derek Shelton aren’t getting fired.

Grab a pillow, yell into it. Get past it or don’t.

I’m not guessing here, and neither are all the journalists who will inevitably (some already have) write about how outraged you should be, or how angry you should be, they all know too. And we fans, we don’t need help being mad, but pretending there’s some chance the coach you so vocally hate and the GM you blame for being slow if nothing else might get fired will if nothing else bring eyeballs.

Now, they’ll write it up with all due righteous indignation. They might even give you some spin that Bob Nutting is dissatisfied. But they all know what this is.

I’m just not going to pretend with you. Again, they aren’t getting fired. If it makes you feel better to spend time saying they should, have at it. I could certainly make a case, the problem is, I can’t dismiss the role Bob Nutting plays in this, nor can I pretend that everyone in team management was blissfully unaware of what the word competitive would mean to fans.

I’ve already seen where they are now compared to 2019 by way of supposing the team might feel compelled to “rebuild” again. LOL

Guys, no.

You don’t have to buy what I’m saying here, but watch the space as we proceed. Take note of all the things I said would be written and ultimately watch both gentlemen return unscathed in 2025. When they do, it won’t be because they pulled some 11th hour sales job on the bumbling owner, it’ll be because it was always going to be.

If you want someone moved on from that actually has a chance, Andy Haines has to be near top of the plausibility list. I’d also like to see them bring in a dedicated fielding coordinator and there’s a real shot that Don Kelly gets a shot at managing somewhere.

It may be inconvenient, but at some point of all the evil Mr. Burnes stuff you think Nutting is doing, maybe it’s time you accept that Bob Nutting knows what he’s asking his baseball ops side to do, and the constraints he hands them too. A used car lot owner who’s selling lemons doesn’t often fire the salesman for struggling to sell them.

You know, unless he actually buys a few good cars and they can’t manage to sell those either.

That scenario isn’t this year. Even if it kinda resembled it for a while.

We want accountability, unfortunately where it should really be applied is on the only person who can dish it out, and yeah, he’s staying too.

2. There’s Only One Way to Know if a Guy Has an MLB Bat

You guessed it, the only way to know is to play in MLB.

I recently put forward the idea that the Pirates should probably consider getting another look at Henry Davis and predictably as ever it was met with a chorus of “he can’t hit in MLB”.

People, that may very well wind up being true, but you don’t make that call this early on a 1:1.

What he’s done at this level isn’t good, there’s no denying that, but this also isn’t Jake Lamb yet. This isn’t a guy who’s had 10 shots after killing it in AAA only to prove time and again he isn’t capable.

He’s now had 207 at bats in AAA this year, he’s hitting .301, with 13 doubles and 12 dingers. he’s still struck out near a 25% clip, but he’s hitting balls all over the field now and taking more walks.

It’s not a tragedy if they ultimately decide he just needs to finish the season out down there, but the point is, you can’t ever know what a guy can do at this level until you’ve seen it.

They’re nowhere near a decision that renders Henry an afterthought. A team that thinks they need his bat to get where they want to go probably won’t miss the opportunity to see what he can do to end this season.

3. With No Additions… an Sneak Peek at 2025

If the Pirates don’t add anything, and they will, I always like to look at what I believe the 26-man roster might look like coming out of Spring.

I might not pick all the players you think have a shot, but I bet this’ll be a bit closer than you believe.

Rotation:
Paul Skenes
Mitch Keller
Jared Jones
Bailey Falter
Braxton Ashcraft

Bullpen:
Carmen Mlodzinski
Kyle Nicolas
David Bednar
Colin Holderman
Luis Ortiz
Mike Burrows
Domingo German
Hunter Stratton

Position Players:
Bryan Reynolds
Bryan De La Cruz
Ke’Bryan Hayes
Connor Joe
Nick Gonzales
Joey Bart
Endy Rodriguez
Henry Davis
Billy Cook
Isiah Kiner-Falefa
Oneil Cruz
Jack Suwinski
Nick Yorke

I make no claim this is everything they’ll do, this is just the mix of players we’ll be asking them to bolt onto. As the offseason approaches and proceeds, this is the baseline I’ll work with to talk about needs, and options.

It always starts somewhere, and heading into next year, this is where it starts.

4. A Still Achievable Goal

This team has hit unpaved road right when the race was supposed to really get going. I won’t go so far as to say they should stop trying to reach the playoffs, and yes, that includes their GM continuing to say that’s the aim, but functionally, there’s a lot to climb over at this point, and I’m not sure they have a big enough ladder.

What they can do though, is surpass the .500 mark for the first time since 2018. A necessary milestone and one I truly believe is still within reach.

The schedule is going to loosen up after this Padres series. There is no such thing as an easy series, but they’ll have a chance to play teams a lot closer to their makeup than the Dodgers, Diamondbacks or Padres have shown themselves to be.

56-61, they’re under water, but they have a shot, just like they did before the All Star Break.

It isn’t what fans wanted. It’s not what the players wanted. But it is an important step that every young team has to try to eclipse on their way to getting into the dance.

Make every series a “playoff series” and ultimately accomplish this goal while learning how to win.

5. Hard Decisions

The Pirates have a lot to consider this offseason. Harken back to number 3 in today’s piece and I think it’s pretty clear that’s not a roster you head into a season with expecting a playoff run from largely the same players failing now.

Sure, some of them will improve over the offseason, but the Bucs have to decide some things and I’m going to list a few that I can’t stop thinking about.

Andrew McCutchen – I don’t know if he’ll retire or return in 2025. I do know if he wants to play, Bob Nutting will not only authorize giving him another 5 million, he’ll demand it. I also don’t think Andrew can be expected to even DH for 120 games. This is a potentially poor situation for everyone, but you could do worse than having a guy like Andrew on your bench for pinch hitting and spot starts at DH, in fact, they’re doing worse than that right now.

First Base – I know Endy Rodriguez has played there, and I’m sure he’s expected to again, but that’s a lot of trust to place on a guy returning from missing an entire season due to injury who didn’t exactly light AAA or MLB on fire to begin with. Connor Joe has also proven he’s easily overexposed, so chances are this isn’t enough to enter a season with. I’m not sure how they’ll strike this balance. The First Base Free agent market isn’t spectacular again and even if he’d want to return I’m not sure Rowdy Tellez did enough of what you’d want him to do.

A Veteran Starter – I could see this both ways. Part of me thinks they have enough and Mitch Keller can be the veteran, but a bigger part of me thinks they might need one. I also have concerns about Bailey Falter, he’s very razor’s edge, just one small crack in what he does and provided this team has too much faith in him they could find themselves forced into trusting a rookie as opposed to wanting to trust one.

David Bednar – The Pirates brought in a contingency plan in the form of Aroldis Chapman and it still didn’t insulate him enough. I’ve been told, and since seen it reported by Dejan Kovacevic that had David not been injured this Spring he’d have likely been extended. If so, and I believe it to be, this team may have just dodged a bullet and they’d be wise to not head right back into that same direction given what they’ve just watched. Do they ride his arbitration, deal him or stick with their original plan? I’m not sure how you head into a season pretending he’s just the same old David though.

There are plenty more, but why use all my offseason material here, after all, we still have a decent amount of baseball.


We Don’t Love L.A.: Pirates/Dodgers Takeaways

8/12/24 By Drew Cagle – @cagles_bagels on X

Another series for the Buccos, another string of games that has you scratching your head. How has this season gone wrong? Is there still time to course-correct for a wild card? How does this team snap out of this rough patch? Those are just some pertinent questions after a sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend.

Bullpen bounces back, but continues to struggle to close

Unfortunately for the Pirates, when the bullpen began to improve, the starting pitching slumped. On Friday, Domingo German allowed a two-run homer to Kike Hernandez, then twirled three scoreless innings in his Pirates debut. Ben Heller added two scoreless on Saturday, and five different relievers did not allow a run on Sunday, covering four more innings.

The rough part? The Pirates were trailing in all three games at the time that their starting pitcher left the game. On Sunday, things looked to be different after taking an extra-inning lead, but David Bednar’s second loss in four days came after allowing a pair of runs in his second inning of work.

Overall, the series was an improvement from the bullpen against a pennant contender like Los Angeles. But when paired with struggles from the rotation and Bednar, it proved to be a moot point.

Paul Skenes is beginning to look human

Teoscar Hernandez spoiled Skenes’ homecoming to his home state on Saturday night, going 3-for-3 with a double, single, and home run. Add in 3 RBIs by Gavin Lux, and the Dodgers handed the rookie his second loss as a major leaguer.

Is this outing a cause for concern? To me, no. The flaming hot start from Skenes to start his career was bound to end one way or another. For his worst start of the season thus far to come against a lineup headlined by Shohei Ohtani, Hernandez, and Freddie Freeman is understandable. As for his matchups with Ohtani and Freeman, he retired them all six times he faced them, including two strikeouts in the hyped-up matchup against Ohtani.

For the first time in over a month, Skenes’ ERA now sits over 2.00, at a still-elite 2.25 mark.

The home run ball can be an equalizer

Of the 11 runs the Pirates scored in the series, 9 of them came via the home run. Joey Bart had a three-run blast and continued to show why he’s a valuable bat in this lineup, while Oneil Cruz, Ke’Bryan Hayes, and Andrew McCutchen (twice) all went deep. Cutch’s 15th and 16th homers of the season are a sign that although he’ll never be at his 2013-era peak as a hitter again, he’s still capable of hitting for power.

The Pirates’ offensive struggles have been well documented over the course of the season. They’re currently 25th in MLB in home runs hit as a team, even after the five-homer weekend. If they’re able to continue to hit the long ball, they won’t have to rely nearly as much on stringing together hit after hit to score runs.

The team needs more out of Bryan De La Cruz

Simply put, De La Cruz has not lived up to his billing thus far in a Pirates uniform. He’s just 4-for-34 (.118) in 8 games since arriving in Pittsburgh. While I’m not counting him out of being part of the answer to this offense, this cold spell has been ill-timed. After going 0-for-7 with a walk on Friday and Saturday, the outfielder got a day off on Sunday. Let’s hope that it unlocks something more as the Pirates head to Petco Park.

Series Preview: Pirates (56-61) at Padres (66-53)

8-12-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X

While the Pirates pathetic playoff potential has plummeted, the Padres push past pitching pitfalls to plunder…victories. You get where we’re going with this.

The Pirates have lost 9 of their last 10, including being swept by these same Padres at home last week while San Diego has surged to a tie for the top wild card spot after they saw their 7-game win streak come to an end with a loss in Sunday’s game.

8/12
Pirates – Jake Woodford (R) – 0-3, 17 IP, 7.41 ERA, 12 Ks/5 walks, 1.53 WHIP
Padres – Joe Musgrove (R) – 3-4, 49.1 IP, 5.66 ERA, 44 Ks/15 walks, 1.48 WHIP

8/13
Pirates – Luis Ortiz (R) –5-2, 90 IP, 3.40 ERA, 68 Ks/28 walks, 1.16 WHIP
Padres – Michael King (R) – 9-6, 129.1 IP, 3.34 ERA, 151 Ks/47 walks, 1.18 WHIP

8/14
Pirates – Mitch Keller (R) –10-6, 136.1 IP, 3.56 ERA, 123 Ks/38 walks, 1.22 WHIP
Padres – Martín Pérez (L) – 2-5, 96 IP, 4.78 ERA, 76 Ks/34 walks, 1.51 WHIP

Pirates:
Oneil Cruz – Cruz has been on a TEAR! In August, he has a .387/.457/.548 slash line with 2 stolen bases while getting lambasted by the media for poor defense or “dogging it to first” at times. Granted, he has had some recent defensive issues, especially in that Astros series, and can look like his head isn’t in it but you can’t ignore what the bat has been doing for this team. He’s finally cementing himself as a middle-of-the-order power hitter who can drive the ball hard and often.

Padres:
Jackson Merrill – One of the top contenders for Rookie of the Year, Merrill has been among the best hitters in all of baseball this season but has turned it up to 11 lately, hitting .344 in August with 4 home runs in just 32 at-bats this month while playing plus defense at a premium position in center field.

Pirates:
Bryan de la Cruz – One of the BIG acquisitions at the trade deadline, it was well known what de la Cruz was capable of – a bat with significant swing-and-miss but the ability to pop off with some home runs and a CANNON in the outfield. Unfortunately, the cannon hasn’t been as useful given his other defensive shortcomings and his offense has been almost non-existent outside of his first game with the team. Over his last 30 at-bats, BDLC has managed just 2 hits (both singles) while mustering just 1 walk to 12 strikeouts in that stretch.

Padres:
Ha-Seong Kim – It’s been a serious fall from grace for Kim, who had a career-year in 2023 which resulted in getting some MVP votes, but has a below-average OPS on the season at .685 and has been scuffling even more of late. In the last 15 games, Kim has batted .206 with a .590 OPS as he has seen his playing team decrease as his production has done the same.

Key Injuries

Pirates:
No two players are more missed by this team than Jared Jones (right lat strain) and Carmen Mlodzinski (right shoulder strain). Jones threw his first rehab game last week and likely goes again on Wednesday before a potential return to the Pirates rotation while Mlodzinski is slated for a bullpen this week while the staff assesses the next steps.

Padres:
Fernando Tatis Jr. (right femoral stress reaction) reportedly won’t return to the team until September at the earliest. He provides a BIG power/speed threat for this team if and when he rejoins the Padres.

Team Notes

While the Pirates have gotten the bats heating up, scoring 5 or more runs in 4 of the past 5 games, the pitching has taken a nose-dive, posting a 6.35 ERA this month with numerous blown saves over this recent slump.

The Pirates avoid some BIG arms this week as both Dylan Cease and Matt Waldron both pitched this past weekend but they need to get their own pitching on track if they are going to find success.

Starter Spotlight: Yo Ho, Java Joe

8-12-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X

Last time Java Joe Musgrove took the mound for the Padres on May 26, the team was 26-26 and just treading water as they tried to contend in the ever-improving NL West division. Today, San Diego tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the top wild card spot and poised to return to October baseball.

The Pirates will try to recover from an extremely rough stretch to face off against the former Pirates pitcher in tonight’s matchup as Musgrove returns from his prolonged IL stint due to triceps and elbow discomfort.

Prior to his injuries, Musgrove was not having the best start to his year as he posted a 5.66 ERA and 1.48 WHIP through his first 49.1 innings pitched. Over his first three seasons with San Diego from 2021-23, Musgrove put up a 3.05 ERA in 78 starts.

Though he likely won’t be positioned for a long outing today following his lone rehab start last week where he went just 3.1 innings, the 6’5 Padres pitcher certainly has some weapons to watch out for.

For starters, he has a litany of different pitches he can offer with changing speed, spin and location to keep hitters off-balance.

Just looking at his arsenal from 2023, he has the low-80s curve, low-90s 4-seam, low-90s cutter, low-80 slider/sweeper and high-80s changeup with an occasional sinker tossed in there.

While it didn’t show up as much prior to his May injury, Musgrove has posted some ELITE chase rates in recent years – with much of that coming against his BIG 12-6 curve.

He will most likely be looking to establish the fastball early as he tries to return to form so hitters should look high heat and lay off the low breaking junk.

It’s another day, another series, another chance to break back into the win column.

Let’s Go Bucs!

Starter Spotlight: Glas-Now We’ve Done It

8-11-24 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X

Pirates have now dropped 3 consecutive series, losing 8 of their last 9 games, including six straight, as they have tumbled down the standings in their worst stretch of the season. They will look to avoid back-to -back sweeps this week in the final game of the Dodgers series going up against Tyler Glasnow.

Glasnow last faced the Pirates in Pittsburgh on June 4th and posted a dominant outing with 6 innings of 1-run, 3-hit ball but was outfield by Pirates starter, Jared Jones. While Jones won’t be available for the rematch today, there’s still reason to believe this team *might* be able to break through against the Oppenheimer doppelgänger.

For starters, since that last appearance in Pittsburgh, Glasnow has made 8 starts and completed 47 innings allowing 24 earned runs to postseason a 4.60 ERA over that stretch.

Unfortunately, he’s had some bad luck that is unlikely to persist as his FIP (2.98) and xFIP (2.61) indicate that he almost assuredly will have no problems moving forward but, hopefully, we get one more day of trouble because this Pirates team DESPERATELY needs it.

Glasnow typically uses his high-90s 4-seam fastball, low-90s slider and low-80s curve as he changes speed and location to punch out over a third of opposing batters – the best rate among qualified starters in the Senior Circuit.

His fastball has been among the best in baseball but has technically been his most hittable pitch, with opponents crushing it at a whopping .215 clip, though they are slugging .410 with 9 of his 14 home runs surrendered coming against the heater.

Facing Glasnow, the team will need to bear down to work counts and avoid letting him coast through the game. Lay off the secondary stuff as his whiff rates against the slider (40.8%) and curve (47.4%) are pretty rough.

Gotta try to get a win today because you can’t win em all, but you can’t lose them all either…right?

Let’s Go Bucs!

Is Joey Bart for Real? If So, What Does it Mean for the Pirates

8-11-24 – By Gary Morgan – @garymo2007 on Twitter

It’s easy for a fan base to accept that someone is an answer when they’ve scarcely seen them do anything but look great.

Joey Bart is doing things he’s never done at this level, and he’s doing it at the age of 27.

His age doesn’t make it fake. His past failings don’t make it fake.

That said, a sample size of 170 at bats is hardly hard set cement either. That of course isn’t stopping fans from declaring he’s the “catcher of the future”, or it’s time to trade Henry Davis who in 102 plate appearances during 2024, an even smaller sample size, because he’s completely washed out.

What I’m saying here is, this is exciting, but let’s keep some perspective too. Joey Bart has a lot more bad on his resume than good. In fact, he’s never really done what he’s doing this season in the minors, let alone the Big Stage. He hasn’t had an OPS like this since Rookie Ball in the Giants organization.

Again, a guy figuring it out later in their career or after a change of scenery, that stuff happens. That certainly could be the case here with Joey, it’s not like he doesn’t have the pedigree.

So lets suppose he finishes 2024 strong, what does that look like? I mean, we already established Henry is a bust right? LOL. Seriously though, Henry is still floating around, Endy will be back too, and fans really want to know where this is headed.

Sorry to disappoint but nobody knows. Not Joey, not Henry, nope, Endy is in the dark too.

The Pirates have options here and that’s great. It’s a big reason they were so successful in the Starting Pitching department this year. Redundancies built in give you a chance to take a risk on a guy like Bailey Falter, even while you think guys like Paul Skenes and Jared Jones might be a more likely winning bet.

Henry Davis was a 1:1 selection, Endy Rodriguez was a highly coveted International Free agent in 2018 and Ben Cherington targeted him by way of wrapping the Mets in on a 3 team pact and part of the Joe Musgrove deal.

The Pirates have invested in their catching program, and the one they’ve gotten the most out of including everyone Cherington inherited, traded for or signed via Free Agency is Joey Bart, a guy who was waived by the Giants a mere 5 years after selecting him second overall.

Point being, when you struggle to fill a role, you tend to not be picky about how it winds up filled.

The bats will play. If all three of them hit, they’ll either find a place for all three to hit, or they’ll move someone who fits their needs better.

I wouldn’t be making any of those decisions quite yet. Suffice to say, they have time to let this play out and so long as they get defensive and offensive production they need, it’ll work itself out.

From the moment Endy was acquired, he was the Pirates “Catcher of the Future”, and then they went ahead and drafted a catcher First overall in the draft. Some of those who went all in on Endy as the future took Henry’s pre-draft scouting reports and decided right then and there he wasn’t going to make it as a catcher.

The Pirates did damn near everything they could to make sure that supposition stuck too. They took his injuries early on and his bat pulling him through the system a hell of a lot faster than his glove as a reason to keep him from catching in games. Their vagueness about why Henry couldn’t catch in games might as well have been a Billboard near the Clemente Bridge for some that they drafted a catcher who couldn’t catch.

Now, I know that not to be the case, but they did such a terrible job of explaining the situation, they painted this kid with an air of failure before he had a chance to do it himself. Then he shows up to camp in 2024 expected to share duties with Endy and fresh off working all Winter to make sure the next time he got an opportunity, the Pirates and anyone else for that matter wouldn’t be able to say he wasn’t ready or capable of catching.

Thing is, he did, even as he was forced into a hell of a lot more than part time duty. We all know Endy was injured and the Pirates brought in veteran Yasmani Grandal, a guy who hasn’t had a healthy season since Obama was in office and didn’t start the season that way either.

Davis wasn’t great behind the plate, but he was playable. For a rookie, that’s not the end of the world back there, for a team chalk full of young pitchers who need veteran guidance back there, it would have been better if he was better, obviously.

Still, he did the job. If his bat could have said the same, meaning hit enough to stick the team probably never acquires Joey Bart.

And here we are.

As to what Bart is doing, when it comes to catchers carrying a volume of duty for their team, only William Contreras and his .869 OPS can best Bart’s .854. 10 homeruns in 150 plate appearances is a crazy homerun every 6.66 chances.

Is it sustainable? Who knows. But any team who wouldn’t want to see more is probably crazy.

This position is a mystery, and it’ll be surrounded by intrigue all off season, hell, probably all next season for that matter.

It’s also not a mystery we need to solve right now.

You don’t need to convince yourself any of the 3 will fail or succeed. You just need to know not one of these players has done enough to tell you who they are, not truly. All three could be on this team in 2025, and all three could contribute. We could see Bart behind the dish, Henry DH and Endy at First Base.

Or we could see Henry make the most of Endy having to take his time working back in and Bart backsliding a bit to really grab it for himself. Heck we could still be kind of wondering where all these guys fit going into 2026, even if they all wield bats we want to see.

I for one am grateful they probably have enough to not bring in another decrepit veteran. If they just want a defensive specialist type, they still have Jason Delay hanging around, even if it is eminently likely they’ll DFA him this Winter.

If it makes you feel good to call the race for Pirates starting catcher of the future right now, ok, just know, it’s been 3 different guys in the past 3 seasons.

Baseball is an incredibly difficult sport to predict. That’s a big part of the fun.

One thing is for sure, thank God when Joey Bart became available this year the Pirates “dumpster dove” as so many of you love to quip, or their playoff dreams would have ended long before this stretch of losses.

And they might have just found someone very important to the overall effort well beyond this season too.

Fluke or not, everyone involved has seen enough at this point to go into next year hoping it might be there again.

Good luck to all involved.