Pittsburgh Pirates GM Huntington On Marte, Meadows And More

Pittsburgh Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington talked Starling Marte‘s suspension, and more during his weekly radio show heard on 93.7 The Fan.

Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Neal Huntington makes a weekly radio hit on the team’s flagship radio station 93.7 The Fan. Each Sunday, Pirates Breakdown will bring you a recapping of Huntingtin’s show, picking out the best tidbits from the show, hosted by Greg Brown. Let’s get started.

All quotes are direct from Neal Huntington as told to Greg Brown.

On Starling Marte‘s Suspension

Greg Brown started the show asking Huntington if he had been as surprised as fans and other observers were when the news of Marte’s suspension broke. Huntington had this to say:

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The process caught us completely blindsided. We found out Monday night, and that wa the first indication that we had at all. We found out that all appeal processes had been exhausted and he would be suspended 80 games.[/perfectpullquote]

Huntington also had this to say on how the team will back-fill:

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]He’s made a significant mistake and will pay a significant price for that. We have a group that’s fired up to get out there to do that; to battle and to scratch; to continue to play winning baseball.  We’ll do what we can to keep Starling on track until July 19th. This is not a one-player situation where one player will stand in the outfield and replace Starling Marte. As long as we have enough players doing their job and doing what they’re capable of, we’ll get through this.[/perfectpullquote]

Brown followed up, and asked Huntington what Pittsburgh Pirates fans have been asking themselves since the suspension was announced. How exactly did Marte go about playing under the dark cloud that hung over him since failing a test in Spring Training?

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]As you look back on it now, there wasn’t’ the same smile as there was; you could see that something was wearing on him. I wish we’d known; I wish we’d been able to help him through the process, but I get that the union is so protective.[/perfectpullquote]

On Outfield Realignment Upon Marte’s Eventual Return

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Where we go on July 19th..there’s a long time between now and then. Gregory Polanco is our next best outfielder, and because he is, the needs to be in left field in our ballpark for the 81 home games. As we look to align this outfield to maximize our home field and be competent on the road, McCutchen in center and Polanco in left is our dynamic.[/perfectpullquote]

On Top Position Prospect Austin Meadows Playing Multiple OF Positions at Triple-A

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The thought is to get him exposure to all three; he still plays a good centerfield; we want to keep him sharp there, but we needed him to prepare to fill in anywhere if needed for the second half of this year, or in the future based on need. We wanted to make sure we didn’t have to juggle things with an MLB player to bring him in[/perfectpullquote]

On Giving Any Though to Promoting Austin Meadows to Replace Marte

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]No [there was no thought to promoting Meadows]. With less than 200 plate appearances in Triple-A, dominating in Double-A, but scuffling in Triple-A…..I’m really encouraged…but no, really wasn’t a discussion at this point in time. A player comes to the big league when he’s ready *AND* when there’s an opportunity. [/perfectpullquote]

On New Pittsburgh Pirates Relief Arm Johnny Barbato

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]We like Johnny because of the quality of arm and quality of pitch arsenal; low 90s with movement, good breaking ball. Challenged a bit with strikes, but can get strikeouts and soft contact. He’s a nice arm for us to have available if and when we want to get Trevor Williams stretched out again, or have another arm at the major league level. Optionable this year and next, but we believe there is upside to him as a major league reliever.[/perfectpullquote]

On How The Shaky Pittsburgh Pirates Defense Can Improve

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]That’s a great question, and i wish the simple answer was that we weren’t doing enough work but we are. This Spring Training was fantastic in that we put in so much work on defense. We don’t have a good reason for it, but we are going to continue to focus on it, review, and understand why we’ve had some of the mistakes we have had. [/perfectpullquote]

On David Freese‘s Hot Start to the 2017 Season

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The energy, the enthusiasm, the passion that he’s brought to this game and this team…through all he’s gone through…what a leader he’s been in our clubhouse.[/perfectpullquote]