The Pirates announced they’ve selected right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski onto the major league roster. Lefty reliever Rob Zastryzny is headed to the 15-day injured list with forearm inflammation. The Bucs already had two vacancies on the 40-man roster, so no further move was necessary.
Mlodzinski, 24, gets to the big leagues for the first time. A high-profile prospect at the University of South Carolina, he went 31st overall in the 2020 draft. Mlodzinski entered pro ball as a starting pitching prospect and remained in the rotation up through Double-A. He’s moved full-time to relief this season, his first extended run with Triple-A Indianapolis.
The 6’2″ hurler has impressed in his new bullpen role. Over 25 2/3 innings across 19 outings, he has a 3.16 ERA. He’s striking out 27.2% of opponents against a slightly high but tolerable 9.6% walk percentage. Baseball America recently ranked him the #20 talent in a strong Pittsburgh farm system, crediting him with a well-rounded three-pitch arsenal.
Mlodzinski would’ve been eligible for the Rule 5 draft if not added to the 40-man roster next offseason. He broke through a little sooner than roster mechanizations required with his solid few months in Triple-A. He’ll take the bullpen spot vacated by Zastryzny, who has made 18 appearances with a 5.29 ERA on the year.
Could be solid. Pirates have 1 off day till break so relievers will be needed.
And added bonus of Zastryzny being off roster with bad case of ERA inflammation.
I looked it up for everyone… it’s “muh-GIN-skee”. You know, just like you’d expect…
They just shoved an l in there for some reason lol
You know the equipment guy was like: “Thank God, no more Zastryzny jerseys… wait, they recalled WHO???”
Scrabble names. Rob wins!
Carmen Mlodzinski 36pts
Rob Zastryzny 38pts
Pirates bullpen at DEFCON 4 right now.
You don’t know how DEFCON works do you…
First BC draft choice to play in the majors
You would think at least one of those Boston guys would have made it. Can see why they brought in Dave.
Where is the offense help?
Playing in the college world series.
Dream-Your wry sense of humor does not go unappreciated.
It is a pleasant diversion while dealing with this team.
The offense help won’t really take hold until they rid the team of their hitting coach.
Haines came over from Milwaukee and was supposed to be a hitting guru but instead this team has digressed offensively from last year
And I also blame Shelton, despite the people that say your best hitter should bat 2nd and your fastest hitter bats 7th or 8th, this concept isn’t generating enough offense
Cutch whose OBP is 4th in the league should always bat leadoff, and leads the team in walks, instead Marcano who bats 1st against righties has only drawn 7 walks
They’ve also stopped playing small ball, lack of efforts in bunting for hits has been non existent.
Changing the lineup for every game using data might work for teams that can score numerous runs, it doesn’t work on this team
@theman that lineup does bother me when I see it. This data in the game isn’t always successful. People base things off of WAR and other data. It doesn’t necessarily work because of other factors that decide the outcome of the game and team. Moral, chemistry, and player/coaching relationships are key factors in a winning club. It seems the players and coaches are on different levels. I blame data input on this
Well stated. Love of analytics has supplanted the eye test in the modern era of baseball
I’ve been saying this for weeks but again, just what are the options here? You don’t have to be a defender of Shelton to understand that he’s aware of the anemia at the plate and is looking for combinations in the lineup. But really, there are none
While Reynolds was the only hint of consistency along with occasional Cruz contributions last season and a Suwinski homer when he wasn’t striking out the previous 4-5 at bats, you have about the same this year, with Cutch acting as the Cruz option from ‘22
Other than these guys however, just what are the options? You can’t get blood from a stone
The 20-8 start was nice but really, aren’t the Pirates who we thought they were?
No, they aren’t what we expected, Cornwhisperer, but changing the lineup to where its more beneficial to the batter who might see better pitches
When Reynolds was in the # 3 spot he was driving in runs, hitting with power.
A huge change to his hitting has resulted in worse ABs and less power at the # 2 spot in the lineup
We saw this kind of management the past couple of years. Seems like desperation to me. That is, when things are going well, everyone is contributing and the team is either winning or competing, it’s almost like cruise control. Anyone can do it
What I notice about Shelton is panic managing. It’s there in his lineup arrangement, in his in-game decisions and the like. It’s almost as if he’s praying Roy Hobbs will show up and rescue the team from the abyss
I agree with your comments here
You provide a small sample where lineup maneuvering is concerned relative to Reynolds. Agree 100%
But beyond that, I’ve seen enough of the likes of Joe, Mathias, Castro and numerous other scrap players to last a lifetime
I’ll spare you my thoughts on the “blue chippers” who’ve made it to Pittsburgh in the past couple years
Connor Joe only hit 7 homers last year in a park where fly balls rocket over the fence.
He reminds me of Michael Chavis in many ways. Strikeout often, especially with runners in scoring position and has been given ample opportunities for improvement
Castro’s inability to hit righties with any consistency suggests to me, maybe he should just focus on batting right hand. He might become a better hitter.
No sense in being a switch hitter if batting one way doesn’t produce results
Several posters here were excited about the acquisition of Mathias, saying that giving him a chance he’ll hit. Well, he’s been given the chances and I say he can’t hit.
And I’m not a fan of Marcano either, especially when he bats leading
I also agree with Mendoza, Shelton should stop micromanaging and making bad decisions during any game
They need to start playing Palacios against righthanders in right field.He has a sweet swing,and got the proverbial two game treatment that Andujar got this year.Give him a couple of weeks of steady work.
Santana was OK for a while but they should move Joe to first base against lefthanders.If Davis continues to hit in AAA put him at first base against righthanders.
They rely on Santana too much and I said that at the start of the year that he was not worth $8M.He has been a good addition to the team but is an anchor at this point,and not in a good way.
Play Castro at second base against lefthanders and move Bae to centerfield in place of Suwinski.
Play Delay without delay and let Hedges sit on the bench more so that he cannot produce the all time record for catcher’s interference.
Hope Cruz comes back sooner rather than later but teach him how to slide first.
This team is not the 1927 Yankees but if managed properly and with no more injuries and a return of their bullpen and some luck they could win this division with a 500 record.
If they do not get better than a 60 win a year % from here on out then if Shelton is not fired then Cherington should be.
I have no problem with Joe playing 1st against lefties instead of Santana but not in the #3 hole.
On the other hand, Santana is a better fielding 1st baseman and draws more walks than Joe
Joe doesn’t impress me at all, and not counting the spectacular catch he made at the right field corner yesterday, he bungled the ball that allowed 2 runs to score later in the game.
He doesn’t hit with runners in scoring position which makes him liability batting 3rd
I have no problem with Joe not playing at all.
They should be giving young players a chance to play,and they need to see if Palacios can play.
Joe has proven that he is a utility man at best.And that was before he came to the Pirates.
But Santana is not a ML starter anymore.
These two guys were very good the first month but have regressed dramatically back to where I thought they would be based on recent records.
Marcano is young and he neither has impressed me and he plays with some regularity
I doubt they would release Santana but depending upon when Choi returns, I think Joe should be shown the door so younger players can take one of the outfield positions
I do agree about playing Palacios against righties on a regular basis while sitting Suwinski against lefties
He’s one that has digressed this year regarding hitting southpaws. And when Shelton pencils him against lefties then bats him 5th. I question it Shelton even wants to win that game
I know someone has an answer for this but why do the Pirates seem to have this love of turning guys into relievers? I mean, in a farm system has is low of pitching studs who are ready to make it to the bigs—something they’ve apparently known for some time—how does it make sense?
Not that the Pirates should decline any pitcher with the way things have been going recently
They have the same type of love for turning every position player into super utility players.
They don’t. They stick with guys who should be relievers as starters as long as just about anyone. They are so desperate for starting pitching you have to have no chance at being a starter or your fastball really plays up for them to move you. Velasquez Contreras Oviedo Ortiz are in pen for most teams. No other team wanted Bido for either.
We’ve been hearing for years about how deep the farm system was when in reality it’s been just propaganda
This team needs offense, I say promote both Gonzalez and Endy. If they fail at least they’ve been tried. Because the way it is now, the offense is sputtering
Something has to be done about the lack of offensive depth
Again, you point not just teams like TB or Atlanta, but Baltimore and now the Reds to make comparisons about farm systems. Either those clubs exist in some alternate reality or there is something wrong here.
Dream says that the blue chip pitching studs are in AA or lower and yes, we now hear that guys like Davis and Endy are can’t-miss types when they hit the majors. So as a fan, all you can do is bide time and again, wait for the next wave to get here while being cognizant of incremental improvements
They’re better than 62 wins and possibly will get to the 72-75 threshold many of us predicted. But it doesn’t seem like the cavalry is coming over the hill anytime soon
What would it hurt to promote Gonzalez for a week to see if he can do better than Mathias?
Paul-They do that too much as it is.
Gonzalez is a young player who needs to play and is hitting 250 in AAA.
In my opinion he is one of the players who has been overhyped and either been hurt or not produced.
Mathias is here because he is a utilityman and accepts the job of not playing.
If Gonzalez ever does make it it would be as an everyday player and there are no openings.Young players need to play consistently whereverYou would not see a representative sample in one week,and he is not ready for it anyway..
How does this team expect to win games with Mathias being acceptable for not playing?
He’s taking up a roster spot for essentially no real value to the team
I hate to sound negative,but…..
The Pirates are 14 and 27 since their opening.
This equates to 56 wins during a total season.
The Diamondbacks are having a fine year two years after losing well over 100 games.
Shelton lost any chance at winning the game yesterday when he brought in a relief pitcher pitching his first ML game in a close game fighting for the division lead with their closest adversary.
Two games before that he left a struggling young pitcher in while leading 5-1.He left five straight hitters on base.He had Moreta alive and well sitting in the bullpen,and could have pitched Perdomo to get to Bednar.
Shelton is the biggest problem a winning team team is facing,and it is not their opponents.
I do not understand why so many of these comments from anonymous knucklehead posters on a public site make so much sense but so called professionals running the Pirates do not get it.
After all,this is not nuclear science.
If Connor Joe’s average is.151 with runners in scoring position why bat him 3rd in the lineup when there’s always a chance one of the first two batters will be either on 2nd or 3rd base?
The more games I watch the more I wish Shelton wouldn’t have been given an extension
It would be one thing if the Pirates were just bad, but they are both bad and boring. They don’t have the bats to play power but that seems to be Shelton’s philosophy. They do have the skills to play small ball, but don’t. Oh, well, guess I have more time to enjoy the outdoors instead of watching them.
After today’s game,I am no longer skeptical about your post Skeptical.
You are indeed a wise man.
Paul- The extension should not preclude them from firing him anyway.
They spent 10 times as much on first basemen who produced for one month.
The Phillies turned around their season last year by firing a seasoned manager part way through the season and bringing in one who essentially had no experience managing.
The Pirates can do the same thing.
Or is Cherington afraid to do so thinking that he may be next?
I said it last year.They are showing no signs of improvement as an organization.
Has BC been given an extension? Wasn’t he hired for 3 years at the same time Shelton was inked to his deal?
But I agree, there’s no reason why Shelton can’t be fired, however, and this is only speculation,‘Cherington may have told Nutting that unexpected injuries have hampered their ability to win more games and the manager is doing the best he can under the circumstances
Both Cherington and Shelton are effective BS artists
As Dream has stated here numerous times, the Pirates have something of a 5-year plan where getting back to respectability is concerned. And they’ve deemed Shelton as their shepherd, for better or worse. In my mind, he and Cherington aren’t going anywhere based on that plan
No idea where the front office would calculate them as being within that plan
As baseball guys, I have to believe they know the strengths and areas that need revamped, and have a clear view as to what the capabilities of all the young guys who are here and are in the minors possess
Your last line reflects what is becoming much clearer. While we can have no clue as to what is discussed in their conversations, the idea will be to continually pump out this rosy view of what’s ahead
They’ve run the entire gamut for me this year, from being a refreshing, exciting, battling group to the team that once again is lifeless in all facets
And that’s my biggest concern besides what continues to look like a poor scouting and development program: when your manager and staff can’t get you to go out and play both balls out and with a mixture of intensity and intelligence, you’ve failed
I’ve heard that 5 year plan nonsense before and that’s always extended a year or two before their hitters or pitchers become free agents and leave the team and the plan resets
If they have such a clear view of the needs of the team why can’t those views become reality? I’m not knocking what you’re saying Cornwhisperer, it’s just that the guys they either brought up or traded for in the offseason, have basically stunk.
As everyone here knows, I can’t fathom Connor Joe playing on a regular basis, or battling 3-5 in the lineup
And Haines needs to teach these guys how to bunt, and swing at pitches around the plate.
rather than striking out, looking
The pirates have fired managers the same year as they were extended before. I thought, and said so, on here I think, when he was extended that it was like an insurance policy. He’d be too expensive to poach if they continued to over perform, or if they exceed expectations. Also seems like a good idea to give the kids an appearance of stability while they’re getting their feet wet at the highest level.
Your taught to protect the plate when the pitch is close to the strike zone yet these players have a tendency of striking out while looking more than any team in baseball
Shelton waiting for the 9th inning to use Suwinkski against a 100 MPH hurler is again questionable. He should have pinch hit for worthless Connor Joe when there was Cutch on first with one out. Instead Joe hits into a double play
And either these guys have no business being in the majors or they’re one of just a handful of teams in all of baseball that are always in a perpetual hitting slump
Maybe someone can berate us again for only seeing the negative or remind us that hey, they’re only a game and a half back
Maybe someone can tell us how the Pirates should be buyers at the trade deadline because well, they’re still in it
Maybe someone can point to their farm system again as being one of the best
I was wrong
This club is essentially the same team we saw last year. With Cutch
@TheMan3, I was thinking about you today when the Padres executed three straight bunts in beating the Rays 2-0
Small ball with speed. What a concept
I get where other posters rebel at the constant negativity of some posters who just for whatever reason want to complain and use this forum to do so.
I just ignore the negativity as everyone has a different viewpoint.
But some posters cannot differentiate between negativity driven and reality driven.
I for one hope that the Pirates at least win as many games during the rest of the year as they have to this point so I finally win a bet on the records of the Phillies and the Pirates,
Small victories count for Pirate fans.
Bottom line is all of us have suffered for too many years following this team.
I for one am seriously going to cut back on that diversion from life as I have come to the conclusion that it takes too much time and gives me too little happiness.
I’m fine with a 72-75 win team that also has hope on the horizon. I understand that it’s a process, that small increments are more likely than fielding a team that suddenly appears like magic and contends.
I agree with pitching and playing guys that still are cutting their teeth at this level. Oviedo, Ortiz, Palacios, Suwinski
I agree with extending guys like Keller and Bednar
But the biggest problem here is the idea of getting comfortable with losing. As I said on another thread, when Pirates beat reporter Jason Mackey makes note of it in an article in today’s PG, then it’s evident to most fans.
@Skeptical makes note of their “boring” play above. He’s right. Over the past two seasons, we’ve seen a team without passion and fire, a team that looks like it’s going through the motions, which is shameful. One watch of the college World Series and you’re of the belief that these are intangibles in any young player
But not here
And I agree. Time to do more gardening. Or fishing. I’ve wasted too much time with the Pirates
But hey, “they’re only a game and a half back”
Connor Joe’s abysmal performance today is a testament of my belief that he should be released
3ks, twice looking, one with runners in scoring position
If they’re intending to play Davis in right field on a fairly regular basis, they won’t need one of the current outfielders. Palacios has a better upside and Bae can also play outfield
Regardless of how the pitching did today, you’re not going to win many games with only 4 hits.
Send Joe to AAA and release Santana.
Bring up the right handed hitting1b at Indianapolis who has been hitting 400 over the last month and spell him with Davis at 1b.Let him play one month to see if is a ML hitter.Yes,I am talking about Andujar.
Let Palacios play right field against righthanders and Cutch against lefthanders.
Play Davis at first,catcher,rf,and DH.
Get a set lineup instead of making these guys guess every day.
Get a manager who does not plan ahead and lose games and who can handle a relief corps that is no longer anywhere near perfect.