In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.
Back home, if anyone cares
The Pittsburgh Pirates had an off day yesterday leading up to a weekend series vs. the Cincinnati Reds. I am fairly confident you won’t see a sellout in any of the three games this weekend. The Reds are one of the worst teams in the league. While the Pirates have effectively killed any goodwill saved up from 2013-2015.
Sports are a “what have you done for me lately” business and the Pirates have been mediocre at best lately. The Pirates on field product isn’t the only area suffering from fan backlash. There is a ton of anger about the extremely poor Juan Nicasio waiver claim. The statement released by Neal Huntington was massive GM-speak and nothing more. He said something without really saying anything.
Huntington is essentially claiming that receiving no value is better than receiving minimal value. This might be the most absurd thing I’ve ever heard. It’s also important to point out, the Pirates are out of the race. So really no team is really a direct competitor, especially for a pitcher that is a pending free-agent. Even if say, the Brewers, Cubs, or Cardinals claimed Nicasio, it won’t really impact the Pirates long term since he is gone at the end of this season. This whole thing stinks of a management team that simply wanted to save $600,000.
Prospects far as the eye can see
It’s September 1st, which means it’s time for roster expansion. Since the Pirates won’t have Juan Nicasio clogging up innings anymore, (heavy sigh) you should see some young pitchers getting much-needed Big League experience. When your team is firmly out of the race, you use the stretch run to see the future of your ballclub and the Pirates do have a lot of very legit prospects potentially coming up in September. It’s easy to dismiss every aspect of a system when the Big Club is struggling. However, it’s important to have some perspective. Th
It’s easy to dismiss every aspect of a system when the Big Club is struggling. However, it’s important to have some perspective. The Pirates have a lot of solid pieces that could be a big help to the 2018 team and beyond. Ideally, I’d like to see a lot of veteran players getting an early start on their offseason in September and let the youngsters get a bulk of the playing time. That isn’t likely to happen but hopefully, Clint Hurdle balances the veteran playing time with the young prospects. To quote Bad News Bears, “Let ’em play!!!”
The Pirates are heading towards another playoff-free October but they can still use this time well and build towards the future. Not what anyone wanted when the season began in April but that’s the reality of the 2017 Pittsburgh Pirates.
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