The Pirates announced this morning that they’ve placed right-hander Jared Jones on the 15-day IL with a right lat strain. Jones was pulled from his start against the Cardinals last night after just 78 pitches last night after throwing five innings of one-run ball, and manager Derek Shelton told reporters (including Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) that the quick hook was due to the issue.
“He’s got a little right lat strain going on,” Shelton said (as relayed by Hiles). “So we decided to get him out.”
Pittsburgh has long been candid about their plans to carefully manage the workload of their young pitching this season, a group that includes rookie fireballers Jones and Skenes. The young duo have been a revelation at the top of the Pirates rotation as Jones has pitched to an excellent 3.56 ERA with a 26.4% strikeout rate in sixteen starts, while Skenes has struck out 34.1% of opponents with a 2.06 ERA across nine starts. That process of managing workload has already begun for Jones, as the righty’s last appearance prior to last night’s game was all the way back on June 22. Given the fact that the club was already carefully managing Jones’s workload, it’s hardly a surprise that the club would be cautious and sit the righty down rather than have him pitch through a lat problem, even if it proves to be as minor as both Shelton and Jones himself have indicated that it’s expected to be.
A specific timetable for Jones’s return has not yet been discussed publicly, although the Pirates will need to sort out a replacement for the righty in the rotation regardless of his IL stint’s length as the club will need a fifth starter on July 8 against the Mets. The club has called up outfielder Joshua Palacios to lengthen their bench mix for the time being but will need to figure out who will take the ball in Jones’s stead before then. Right-hander Braxton Ashcraft, the club’s #5 prospect per MLB.com, is already on the 40-man roster and has dominated the Double- and Triple-A levels for Pittsburgh this year with a 3.00 ERA and 25.9% strikeout rate in 69 innings but has made just three starts at the Triple-A level to this point.
If the Pirates want to take things slowly with Ashcraft, they could turn to a non-roster arm such as Jake Woodford, who pitched in the majors for the White Sox earlier this year and has looked good with a 2.08 ERA in three starts at Triple-A for the club since he joined the organization last month. Turning to Woodford (as well as other non-roster veterans currently in Triple-A such as Domingo German and Luis Cessa) would require the club to clear space on the 40-man roster, however.
Whoever the Pirates turn to in replacing Jones will be thrust into the club’s most competitive season in years. Pittsburgh has a decent 41-44 record that places them just three games out of the final NL playoff spot, and that respectable performance has led ownership to suggest that he and the front office will be aggressive in improving the club this summer. Much of that success has been thanks to the rotation, where Jones and Skenes have combined with Mitch Keller, Bailey Falter, and Martin Perez to deliver a combined ERA of 3.63 that ranks sixth among starting staffs around the league.
Seems like a precationary and workload thing. Jones said he felt fine after the game and could have went another inning if he needed to. He may only miss one, maybe two starts at the very most because of the All-Star break, so now would be the best time as ever to let him sit back and heal up. Plus with Marco nearing his return, Priester pitching well at Triple-A, Luis Ortiz getting stretched out, and Ashcraft also doing extremely well (and on the 40-man), the Pirates can weather the storm until after the ASB.
Palacios will fit right in with this lineup, an occasional hit and do his share of striking out
He can compete with Joe and Taylor
“Jared, we’re going to put you on the IL to give that lat a rest”
“But my last is fine… wait, OK, put down the bat, my last hurts after all”
“Load management” – the NBA approach.
I would like to know who the genius was who came up with the idea that WAR was worth $8M each,which is what I had heard maybe four years ago.
It was probably worth $3-4 M then and not a lot more now.
To me it seems a decent way to predict the value of a player in relation to the rest of the players,but that is all that it can be used for.
He’s not hurt he is just working with innings limited.
Same w Skeenes
Skenes had his innings limit in the spring. Should be pretty good. Jones might be hurt. It’s minor and they are being really really cautious and if the were holding onto a wildcard spot in late September he might not be going on the IL. It’s mostly just a way to rest him.
Love to see Ashcraft!
Is Ortiz Priester Gonzales Pepsi ok?
This is a .500 team, at the very best. I get that attaining a wild card berth has become a battle of similar teams who ultimately won’t go anywhere but if nothing else, I hope the Pirates front office won’t make any piddly moves between now and the trade deadline that do very little for them in the long run but might mean trading prospects. They should take great pause in trading guys who in the development league
The Jones “tightness” should be a guide. He, Skenes and Keller are the future. Let Ashcraft and Chandler mature a bit. Let’s see where Burrows is.
And give the fans some real reason for optimism and spend on a couple big timers to place around Reynolds and Cruz next year. Guys who can field and hit. Cutch can’t go on forever. It won’t be cheap but Pirates fans are owed that much, instead of the same old propaganda that Nutting and Cherington spew
With the All Star Break coming I would not bring up Ashcraft yet giving him a few more games at AAA. BUT another game between now and then may happen so that might satisfy my conditions enough. If Jared seems like they might want to give him a few more days I’d consider it more strongly.
Skenes Keller Perez Falter. Ortiz has been good. Give Priester another look if need be? I prefer Ortiz. And Gonzales is supposed to come back I dunno it’s not Farve watch. But I am sure they would like to showcase Gonzales for the trade deadline opps my bad apologies I meant get him ready for the playoffs.
IL manipulation, but nobody cares unless it’s the Mets. They’re faking an injury to give him rest without using an option and costing him money.
All teams do this. The Mets (or Eppler) were egregious doing it and had someone blow the whistle on them with supported evidence. Somebody really didn’t like Eppler. I have no issues with phantom IL’ing bc the player isn’t losing service time nor pay.
Yep. You just have to make sure the player is ok with it. Have the friends of the program take care of him. You don’t think Brady was just a super nice guy playing for drastically less than he should do ya? You take care of people and they take care of you. Mets got sloppy.
It will be easier to keep up with the Joneses now.
On a serious note, though, hope the young man is,back chucking them soon. You guys have a good looking starting staff.
And a crappy offense.
understatement of the year, Mendoza !
You guys enjoy the better Cruz. MLB network has been talking him up and said with his personality and rising up under the bright lights he is a future Yankee Met or Dodger. He learned English. This is a man who wants to be a star and get paid. Might have to give him a awful extension but do it or lose him.
Tired-I have a question for you.
This does not regard Cherington.
What manager would bring Santana in in a tie game in extra innings against your most important adversary?
Oscar Marin would have done a better job pitching.
Even if Shelton had the most talented team in the ML’s he would blow it somehow.
I would rather see them go at a .300 win pace the rest of the year if that is what it takes to get rid of this clown.Nobody including Nutting gives a crap about having a winning team.
If you have a ? For tired why not reply to him instead of commenting all the way down here? I kid kid. It’s mlbtr. Happens often.
I know I am muted and it’s directed at tired but I don’t give a it. I got a great sarcastic response and I am going to use it. So here we go. It’s your loss you muted me cause this is great and tired is going to love it.
What manager would bring Santana in in a tie game in extra innings against your most important adversary? A manager who’s gm traded away Contreras Wilson Holmes and Hernandez! Bam. Can I get a rim shot? That A+ material tired?
Uh oh breaking news. Dream was wrong. My mind seen this comment was from theman3. It’s actually from Mendoza who hasn’t muted me…….. Yet
But I’ve lost count of these instances, Dream, as have TheMan and Mendoza. I get your point about the pitching staff but he did these kinds of things even when times were good
As stated above, his substitutions often are gut feelings, if even thst
The continued failure to pressure defenses is odd for a weak hitting team. Bunt guys up Especially in extras. Hit and run. Use opposite fields.
And above all, demand hustle
But Dream, he’s not alone. I’m guessing 80% of managers are like this guy now.
I didn’t watch the game. Haven’t paid attention. Just about every game I have watched I would check in on Twitter or forums and fans would complain about his move. And Shelton usually made rhe right move or ok enough. They wanted a guy in who pitched 2 days in a row or 3 of the 4 last days. Aka they wanted someone who wasn’t available. Or worse they destroyed Shelton when he went Chapman over Bednar and it was later revealed Bednar was hurt. Pregame any reliever might not be feeling. He isn’t available unless in emergency and fans have no way to know this. Or they ignore matchups. Pirates won’t ignore them. So as a fan you need to check pitchers analytics and the batters. And beyond just righty lefty splits. It come down to this batter struggles vs this pitch type with this spin rate. Maybe Shelton messed up. I will watch 10 min condensed game. So let me know what should have been done and I might do a lil research. From history 9 out of 10 times he made the right call.
I watched an entire season one year or close to it and kept track of how many times Shelton made a bad decision. It was around 10 of the top of my mind maybe even closer to 5. Don’t remember but I do remember it only cost the Pirates like 2 or 3 wins. And I was being harsh and didn’t know who was available. I would make a note and by the end of game be like well it didn’t factor in.
Milwaukee let the best manager according to many the most expensive manager leave. They could have paid him. They aren’t any worse for wear..I would dare say better. Cubs aren’t any better dare I say worse. I played baseball. I think anyone who has doesn’t think much of manager. You can like them. Love them. Think of them as a father figure even. But good or bad they aren’t winning or losing too many games. I would hire Shelton as my manager. Seems like a yes man who will do whatever I say. Players seem to like him and play for him. From what I see I would put most my blame on Cherington. If you want a manager to make some of these guys hustle then don’t hire Shelton. He’s not that guy. Should have never hired him. I believe it’s the clubhouse job. Cherington didn’t bring in the right veterans. Not as effective coming from manager as player. And if the clubhouse is fine with it all the manager does is lose the team and will be fired.
Agree 100% and have said many times here that managing/coaching is overrated at the professional level. At the collegiate level, the best coaches are essentially just the best recruiters. Nothing more. And it doesn’t matter the sport
I take issue most with Shelton’s game management techniques but I’m not an analytic guy, instead someone who looks for percentage-based matchups or basic tenets of putting pressure on opposing defenses. Old school. In this regard, again, Shelton is no different than most managers these days
And yes, Shelton wishes to be a player’s manager. Tanner was like this too, of course, but he had superior talent and enough veterans who ascribed to a higher level of play to police shenanigans. I don’t get that Cutch is in this mold. Reynolds is a quiet guy
So you see cell phones popping out of back pockets on the basepaths. Or a guy with a handful of seeds playing 3rd while a ball is live and in play. Or jogging out ground balls or op flies. Or catchers lobbing the ball back to pitchers with runners on base
discipline is a major problem with this team and Shelton is the reason
All of the examples you listed, Tired, that lack of respect that the players show on the field, whether in defense or offense, these examples are reported on in local media and sports ro, yet they continue
And why?
Derek Shelton
Paul-You and I are thinking alike on this one.
To say that the manager has no affect on the outcome and disciplined play of the team is folly.To say that you acquire players only to act as mini managers is ludicrous.Yes,you need them,but to play the game.Taking care of the clubhouse is a plus,but still the manager basically acting in concert with him.
That is like saying that you don’t need good coaches to develop young players.
I am not so sure though that his way of handling players is not accepted by Cherington and thus is a reason why both need to go,.I do not see either making significant progress from what they are now- mediocre.
Dream-Really,were you saying that Cherington should not have done those trades at the times that they were made,or are you playing Monday morning quarterback?
I wasn’t criticizing his trades. His trades have been good. One of the best traders in baseball. That’s not impressive. All he did was sit back and wait for phone calls and pick whatever prospects that a team offered who threw the hardest or hit the ball the hardest. Obviously there’s much more to it then that. His free agent signings have been top tier in baseball. He signs guys a d at trade deadline teams call him wanting those players. Player development is the problem. Name the trade you think was bad and I will defend it. Not failed pitchers though. My quick tv story again. My tv is broken. I can’t fix it. I put it on curb. 20 25 28 29 other teams can’t fix it either. Maybe 1 or 3 think they can but they can’t be sure so they won’t give me much for it. Bell was a bit light but not much. It was buyers market..he was a dh not a 1b. Lil expensive. Name your trade and can defend it unless I am forgetting something.
I know you hated the Marte trade. Peguero when aquired had all the tools to stick at ss. Great bat speed. Loud contact. If he entered the draft he would have went in 1st round. If the Pirates drafted Malone instead of Priester in round one no one would have blinked. Wouldn’t have been considered a reach. The team that went to world series last year took Malone a dozen or 15 or so picks after Priester. One guy can’t stay healthy. One guy just didn’t pan out or poor development. Don’t write Peguero off just yet but he hasn’t been a huge development success yet.
Peguero is the natural SS here. Cruz would make a fine 1st baseman. Despite his arm, which means nothing if he can’t field the position.
But I get the feeling that the Pirates wouldn’t make such a switch for years so as not to upset Cruz. I mean, that .240 average and 12 or 13 homers behooves them walking on eggshells, right?
don’t forget those errant throws to Tellez, even when there’s no immediate rush to get the ball to first base
Similar to when Chapman is pitching for a 2 run save opportunity, when a ball is hit to Cruz that requires a throw to first base, I fear the outcome
Peguero is a weak ss. Could play there but he has had troubles with his throw accuracy. Can all be fixed just not by the pirates maybe. Cruz is ss because they don’t have anyone better.
Anyone sick of Chapman not covering 1b yet?
Dream-Huntington was one of the best traders in baseball.Few of his trades were failures between about his third year and the Archer trade.
He had a philosophy of trading good players near free agency for near ready or ready ML players,and it worked.
Cherington has been mediocre.He is better at finding free agents for decent money.He has been a failure at getting decent minor league players who actually have a chance to make it in the ML’s.
And yes,Marte and Bell were just salary dumps pure and simple and he did not get anything really for them.Maybe other GMs knew that and their value was not as high as it could have been later.
If Peguero was really any good he would have shown it by now.He was young at first but that trade was made five years ago,
Dream-Chapman is not the brightest bulb in the pack.He throws so hard that there is a disconnect as to what he should do afterwards.
How about Perez not touching first base and losing the game even as well as he pitched?
Peguero at one point made numerous top 100 list so you are in the minority there. He’s 23 years old so not ready to watch blue bloods with you guys yet. Might be a platoon player. Bench piece but he is still on track to be a mlb player.
Cherington trades almost as good as NH. All he has done is sell mostly. If he ever starts buying we will see. Got Joe and Choi for absolutely nothing. Newman Moreta and Vogey Holderman were smart trades. How many pirates fans thought Contreras was going to be a starter? A lot. Got him for a guy with 2 tjs who didn’t pitch for 2 years. Problem is he didn’t have much to trade. Rodriguez Stallings Frazier ain’t moving the needle. Lucky to scrap together what he did. Musgrove was his best chip. Bednar Endy were alright. Thats a win trade. He won most his trades.
I am fine with Perez. Believe me when I say it’s not easy to sprint toward the bag, catch the ball, and fins the bag. They don’t practice it enough. He made a effort. Most the time he will find the bag.
You nailed it. Dream has lauded Nutting’s business acumen. Ok. I agree. The man wants to make a profit. That’s his only concern. A .500 team means one that is at least competitive.
I get the feeling Nutting doesn’t have a very deep understanding of the sport and I think he only reacts where the bottom line is concerned: expenses and income
For a long time, my thought about Shelton was that on one hand, he can’t get blood from a stone. That is, his guys only have so much ability. On the other, my thoughts have always been that a great deal of his lineups come after input from above
But there is no excuse for in-game substitutions and the constant failure to put pressure on defenses. There’s no excuse for allowing Cruz to jog out ground ball outs or for so many of these guys being ok with losing.
I got beer to drink and fireworks to set off. Hope everyone has a good day. I shall return and hope you all do as well and keep coming back until the next article. We can’t have theman3 talking to himself for 3 days again. I just clicked on it by mistake when trying to see this article. If I known I might have felt bad and gave him thumbs up and replies to try to get him to unmute me. I like to think that but I probably would have just sat back and seen how long he would go. If this article didn’t come out would he have kept going until the all star break? The trade deadline? My analytics say he would have just kept going. Oh man I miss the guy already. And mlb1225. He was like a son to me. Seriously. When I seen his mind working in real time when he realized I was right about the famous Joe Suwinski all star platoon it was like seeing your son take his first steps. I mean it took him long enough. The wheels turned but really really slow. But they did turn. Very baby baby really baby steps but they were steps. Anyways A+ to anyone still reading this. No idea why but I love you. My analytics predicted I could have kept going for 2 more minutes and 27 seconds before you gave up but it’s a holiday so I decided to give you a break. That’s how awesome I am.
except that Joe stinks at the moment and doesn’t deserve a platoon role
He is in a down stretch. The all star was only valid at time of writing last year. I didn’t expect it to continue for eternity. But no reason it couldn’t happen again this year. Not even worried about Joe. He is a proven thing at this point. He will decline with age but he is a professional hitter with multiple seasons under his belt. Suwinski though as Tom Petty would say the future is wide open. Right now I picture Walter Matthau chopping on a towel jamming to some Tom Petty. But yeah no idea what the did to Jack. Seems like they tried to make him a every day player and cut down his strike outs. Personally I was fine with a 30 hr platoon who struck out a ton but got his share of walks.
I always thought you were being sarcastic about the Suwinski-Joe all star comment. That mlb was serious told me all I needed to know. Where’s Jim Bouton to address analytics?
Neither of these guys could have gotten near the game without a ticket, and rightly so.
As I’ve said, I prefer they do nothing from here on out. Go with what you have. Let your young pitchers mature on the farm. Allow Skenes and Jones to continue to cut their teeth this season
In a perfect world, it dawns on them that they have one helluva group of starting pitchers in place and decide to be big spenders this winter. In a world where there was semblance of commitments to winning
I was sarcastic and serious about the all star. It wasn’t that I thought either alone was an all star but if you could be a mad scientist and have Jack vs only rhp and Joe vs only LHP and if you looked at their season stats at the time (it was like 3 months or something into the season) one had a ops of 800 something one had a ops of 900 something. Many all stars will have a ops of 800 something. Altuve aka buzz light year is at 825 or something. Probably more that’s just one I know ofd the top of my head. So for that half season Jack Joe had all star numbers. You can laugh. You can say I crazy. You can say that I am wrong but it wouldn6be true. The numbers prove it. Altuve is a awful example because he is batting over 300 but there have been and will be guys who hit 230 250 struck out a ton but hat the 800 something ops and made all star team. .223 average .869 ops. 2021 all star Joey Gallo stats as a ranger. Traded to Yankees shortly after all star break. Jack alone vs all pitching wasn’t that good. Joe alone vs all pitching isn’t that good. But the best platoon of them combined had better numbers than Joey Gallo. Not cherry picking him. Plenty of guys, love average 800 ops made all star teams. You can say I am wrong but you can’t prove it. Do the research. Send me a thousand bucks I will give you 2 dozen more examples. Gallo just popped in my head is because that’s what I seen as best case scenario for Suwinski. Hrs and strike outs and low average. Mlb got a lil crazy naming hall of famers with those numbers. I was like yes. Thats my boy. I even called him bright eyes! Lol. Maybe thats why he muted me. He shouldn’t have. He had potential but it took him awhile to figure it out. Had to pivot to my 2nd choice tiredold dude and a year later he hasn’t come around to it. This was my best and final shot. If you don’t see that Joe Jack was a all star I am sorry but you can’t be assistant gm. I explained clearly multiple times. It’s a year later. Only took bright eyes one day. At this point you really need to be like Shelton and a yes man. Have I lied or deceived you? Why the lack of trust? Come on now. Bright eyes was a huge loss. Obviously he didn’t amount to much without my mentorship. Someone praised him today and all he did was say the same thing the author said. I got the link saved somewhere where he told me at the beginning of 2022 I was wrong about my projections and he said the pirates were going to make the playoffs as wild card and then win the division in 2023. Just in case my apprentice ever thought they have become the master I need to put them back in place. Anyways you go chew on your towel and watch some planet of the apes. Wait a minute. Light bulb just went on. I can get a monkey and train it to be my assistant gm. If I can genetically enhance it just a lil bit I think it will be better than mlb1225 could have ever been! Nice talking with you but I gotta go buy a
monkey.
Bright eyes wasn’t alone, of course. These are either true believer types or guys who drown themselves in analytics to arrive at erroneous answers
Cue Roy Hobbs talking to Max Mercy. “Did you ever play the game, Max?”
That’s what it comes down to, really and it’s the line of demarcation that guys like TheMan3, Mendoza and I observe. You wish to throw numbers at us at times and tell us that what we see as old time baseball guys isn’t what’s actually happening
In the real world however, it all comes down to the basic understanding of whether guys can be impact types in the biggest situations
Few players here are in that category
Bouton said, “Tell your statistics to shut up” in 1969. I’m sure if he were around today, he’d say a similar thing, and about analytics
First sentence was in incomplete…
“… or fans who really, really, really want the team to win so much so that they’ll blind themselves to the reality of limitations that the team as constructed has”
Analytics are everything. Why wouldn’t you want as much information that you can get? I created my own formulas. Others on here are using obsolete analytics. Teams have their formulas so if you want to be on their level you need to create your own formulas. But basic analytics is light years better than era average rbi etc. Obsolete wanted to dfa Rowdy. I seen a useful player. Obsolete Rockies just gave Joe away. Pirates seen a useful player. Pirates would lose 100s of games every year if not for Analytics. Now with them they can win 78 to 85 lol haha lmao
Dream- Analytics are a very useful tool but are to be used in conjunction with an even more extremely useful tool- the human mind.
Shelton does way too many stupid things to last in a well run organization.
DD with the Phillies mixes the two and does quite well at it.
No matter how good a computer is it needs good data and even then still cannot predict the future.
Those who rely exclusively on formulas are truly living in a Dream world.
Not sure that mlb125 appreciates being referred to as “ Bright Eyes”.
I would wonder what Leyland would say about the role of analytics. Or Sparky. Or Billy. Or Tommy….
You’re missing the point. The info augments what real baseball can see and sense. Drowning yourself in it reveals very little
@Mendoza I think my formulas are awesome. But if you create something you are likely to like it right. I shared my previous formulas and the people who seen them were impressed. I think my latest is superior or I wouldn’t part with the previous one.
I don’t think this is some secret as I would guess some teams are trying this or even using it now and of it is I don’t think teams are looking at mlbtr comment sections and definitely not old nothing articles. I been working for a decade on a system that combines both. The weak point is the scouting. Numbers don’t lie but scouting is subjective. Geys weaker because I don’t have a mlb scouting department. I am in some scouting groups. Few friends who I think are good scouts. But majority of it is me. How good am I? No one likes to pat people on the back so I have no idea. But it outperforms my data only system so I think it’s the future.
Doesn’t matter what he appreciates. He has me muted so he can’t see what I type. And he rushes in and gives his captain obvious comment, might answer a few early replies a few hours after and he gone back to his mlb scouting job. He’s gone. He ain’t coming back to this article. It’s just 3 men and a baby now. 3 old men and a younger man. Tired already claimed Selleck. Do you want Danson or Guttenberg? If I was you I would take Danson and stick Paul with Guttenberg.
They would be in the mlb network studio with the rest of the dinosaurs.
Not good he was dominating this year sad too see I hope he has a good return
Sounds like it’s nothing other than being safe and limiting his innings with a lil all star break. Maybe couple rehab starts at lower innings and really take a chunk out of his innings.
Dream-This site is putting this response at the end but it is in reply to your response I believe to me about my post on Gonzalez.
I just said that he was acquired cheaply because he has been hurt so much recently,not because he is not a good pitcher.
You read into my short post incorrectly.
My apologies. I am extremely popular with many comments to address!!!!!
The 2.65 era or whatever was a reply to Tired.
The one that started with Atlanta was for you. In my head I thought I was just answering why Atlanta didn’t want him. No intent to address your opinion on him. But if I did my bad. If you read the reply to Tired then and thought it was for you. Sometimes I do @so so and so but usually leave it for everyone to try to figure it out.
But yeah 29 teams failed. Good job pirates. Especially their medical staff. Many thought he would never pitch in mlb again. His shoulder turned out to be fine.
I’m just hoping the arguments here are over. As you said, Mendoza, the trolls all matriculate to the Yankees and Dodgers threads. Here, you have fans of all stripes. Some see better days coming soon. Others, like me, see this era as TheMan3 has said…perpetual rebuild. They have the pieces but refuse to spend on a couple of players that would allow it all to flourish
The arguments are a waste of time and bandwidth
There was no arguments. Just a intense discussion between 2 friends. I think it strengthen our friendship. I gave Paul a drunken celebrity roast. I mean come on. Anyone ever have such a good friend that they gave them a roast? I haven’t. We just took a lil break for a dew days and relived our child hood, name calling and all. Can’t promise it won’t happen again but I think we are good until the all star break at least.
I think they are a playoff team and can compete in playoffs. I would do the CF trade. Keep Bubba but anything else goes. People like to say 1b is a black hole but Santana Rowdy/Joe just get another cheap veteran next year. Or bring back Santana Rowdy but hopefully there is a better option available. Bell was ok enough at 1b. But CF you go back to Marte who was much better in LF. Nothing coming from the farm. Never much in free agency. If they get a all star level CF. That’s a big move.
Try for the all star break. Pauls already getting a bit snarky with It’s called changing your mind! Ever hear of paragraphs!
If he gets on me about how I need to get a reverse mortgage I’m gonna lose it.
@Dream “Again with the lies! You can’t stop!! I never told you about all the amazing benefits a reverse mortgage can provide! You think I am trying to steal your home? Shows what you know… Not much.”
Tired- Amen brother on the arguements.
I knew that you were not just another pretty face even if you do look like Tom Selleck!
Arguably one team’s best pitcher is on the mound in tonight’s game, unfortunately for him, unless he throws a one hit shutout, the lineup that Ben developed won’t score him enough runs for a win
Taylor should only be a late game replacement and Dream’s favorite player, Grandal should have been dfa already
I get that he will call a good game behind the plate, this team needs to find ways to score more runs than the opposition and I have doubts this lineup will do just that
Again with the lies. You just can’t help yourself. Jack is my favorite player.
Another thing you are wrong on its not Grandal it’s Grandpal.
I have a feeling in my bones Grandpal is going to have a good night. Not you Paul, I’m talking about the Pirates catcher.
I’m aware of my age and despite the adage of being in the Golden Years, there’s nothing golden about it
Who was it that was defending the promotion of Palacios
Thus far he’s not very impressive
Statistically speaking I would not put money on it unless you mean that Grandal actually gets one hit.
it’s only a lie if the person saying it actually believes it and I don’t
Experience has taught me well, Dream
On the lighter side. I tried watching the EURO 2024 soccer on tv. After 5 minutes I turned it off. The sport is picking up in the USA, and it’s good for the kids, but not for me.
And another lighter side moment. How can they call nascar a sport. Guys riding around in circles. People sitting in the seats in the heat watching it. People watching on the tube.
For me…I’d rather grab a lawn chair, a cooler of brew and sit on one of the many overpasses on the turnpike and watch the nuts driving. Ok have a great weekend everyone
People view hunting as a sport which makes no sense
Doing something that would cause the death of an unsuspecting and defenseless animal is not a sport
Bucco- I would honestly rather get a wisdom tooth pulled than to watch soccer.
I like the Premiere League—England’s league. Very entertaining
I watch the Euros and World Cup and it’s not the same, at least to me. A lot of diving and acting, a lot of false patriotism from the multi millionaires on each team, and FOX provides the worst studio analysts there are
They say FIFA, the governing body of the sport, is the most corrupt in the world. More so than the IOC and NCAA? That’s saying something
But I agree, Bucco. This has been an incredible waste of time for me. But I’ve watched this long. It’s either this or watching the paint dry
Santana was ok last night. Not really his fault. He didn’t out the Manfred runner on 2b. Groundball stike out weak as blop hit. He gave up a hard drive to CF. Not want pitchers want. Not a easy catch by no means but why is Taylor here if not to catch that ball? Taylor 2 years ago maybe even last year catches that. Guy is toast.
That guy who is toast is in tonight’s game and I continue to question the reason for that
For a team that has playoff aspirations, they certainly don’t choose their lineups wisely
Only one run scored over the last 13 innings, no matter how good Skenes pitches tonight, they will still probably lose
What would have been so wrong in bunting Taylor over to second instead of allowing Palacios to swing away?
This is yet another example of the lack of fundamentals this team refuses to use.
And this is a result of Shelton’s poor managerial style
Dream- Shops were closed on July 4th..Did you get your simian assistant today?
Hopefully,Tired is not hurt that you unassistanted him.
It’s ok, Mendoza. I’m looking to sell reverse mortgages in small towns and to come out of retirement to get into a player development role soon
Dream can’t afford me anymore
It’s like Tellez, Taylor, Grandpal and Jack have all been reading the comments here and dedicated tonight to TheMan3
(Just a little humor, my friend)
Since June 26 Taylor has a .625 batting average. My analytics say that if he sustains that average the Pirates will not only make the playoffs but win the division.
Joe looks like his old all star self.
I already told you Grandpal is ready to take off.
My boy Rowdy is still smoking hot.
Jack has been below average for about a month now which is much better than awful.
#SlumpOver
#Get your season tickets now so you will have guaranteed playoff tickets.
100 to win 27 grand. Not as good as the 50 grand I got earlier in year but still a plus bet.
Cue Jim Bouton, Dream
So here’s a question. How does Skenes not make the all star team? Not that I want him to. But how?
Because Manfred is a idiot. Only reason he wouldn’t make it.
Jesse Winker should be the Pirates number one RF target. Not the best player available but I was doing a work up on him and he just screams Pirates. Left bat pnc nuff said. Not a good or fast outfielder, pnc park nuff said. Looks to walk so he is their type. Crushes RHP. Holds his own vs LHP but if you use Joe you have a all star! His numbers could drop a bit which will scare some teams off. 2 month rental. Cheap to aquire and perfect for pnc.
Winker is a Pirates killer so they know him well. But he’s not the guy who’s going to push them forward. You’re right—he’s the type they’ll go after
The Pirates scored 14 last night. Wonderful
Let’s see them carry the hitting for a few series before we say TheMan3 is wrong
And I didn’t “claim” Selleck. I’m not as old as him nor do I use as much Just For Men. But it’s a nice alternative to being one of the Grumpy Old Men. Mustache. Somewhat brown hair. I even hit left handed like he did in that classic, Mr Baseball
Domo origato, my friend
F that mr baseball movie hitting. Go watch the real deal vs a mlb pitcher
google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j…
I prefer The Natural, although it strays greatly from Malamud’s book
Or Field of Dreams
Or even Pride of the Yankees
Get outside and get some fresh air today, Dream. Put the video games down. Quit lighting sparklers—the kids are no longer impressed. Have a Corona and a nice, cheap cigar
I actually remembered that clip, Dream. Selleck was a star athlete at Michigan State. A lot like me, who was a star athlete in my mind
or “ for the love of the game “
another baseball movie starring Kevin Costner
The movie “ 42” about Jackie Robinson is also a good movie
in my drinking days, it was a quart of Jack Daniels and perhaps a joint if my drug test wasn’t approaching
But I quit drinking any form of alcohol in 1992 and haven’t touched it since
Weed on the other hand, occasionally but not as often as I have in the past
I have a state medical marijuana card but what is available isn’t worth taking.
I used to make brownies so there wasn’t a need to smoke it
Major league might be my fav. Good movie. Funny. Quotes. And they don’t make good comedies nowadays. I sound like I am ready to join the space cowboys. That movie was awful. But I prefer older movies vs anything made today. 80s 90s 2000s. The later you get into the 2010s the worse it gets. This decade is garbage. Don’t think I been to a movie theater this decade.
Money ball 2nd fav. Field of dreams 3rd. Love of game and 42 good movies. Just not as rewatch able as the top 3. But I recommend watching them as they are good.
Documentaries fastball and knuckleball are excellent. Kens burns baseball.
All I can think of. I am not a sandlot fan. That’s number 1 or top 3 for lots I think its overrated. Bull Durham is alright but overrated. Mr baseball is pretty meh. The babe is pretty bad. Major league 2 is ok and even pretty good but huge drop from 1st one. Never watched the others.
You guys probably have a soft spot for Pride of the Yankees as it was the first baseball movie you saw in theaters.
I got a bit today. I work 24 7 though. Not that I don’t have fun or sleep. Just if something gets in my head to do I do no matter what time. I don’t lay in bed for hours trying to sleep. When I am close to passing out I sleep. If I wake up I get up. If I feel like a nap I nap. Takes me 20 30 minutes to go to sleep when I nap vs 5 10 minutes when I sleep. I had a gf who no matter what time of day, whether tired or not could nap and be out in like 3 minutes. I was so jealous.
My grandsons loved Sandlot.
You’re right about modern movies and it’s because the creativity is gone. It’s all superheroes and Marvel comics and cgi coming out the ears. But every generation is different. I look at the younger generation as the hope of the country, truly, as they care and see things as they are. But not where music and entertainment are concerned
As Bruce Willis said in Glitter Man, and tough guy told him he wanted to hear him scream, “Play some rap music”
Your work ethic resembled mine from the time I was 16. I sweated blood in any endeavor. And it’s why I say to you that retirement isn’t all it’s cracked up to be
Only so many projects I can undertake around the house. Only so much landscaping can do
But time waits for no one. Live long and prosper, my friend
One game doesn’t make a slump over but what an impressive performance by this team
I have to admit that I was wrong about Palacios, Taylor and Grandal
Reynolds, Tellez and Skenes stole the spotlight but every player contributed
But how do you figure Joe is back to his all star self, he didn’t play last night
Did you take notice that I said I was wrong, Dream?
Impressive. Standing ovation.
Joe is batting .316 last 2 weeks. Said it again so Tom and Ted could see. He is back! I don’t worry about slumps until after 2 months. I did a research report one time and it is so common for players to have slumps. MVPs and Hall of Famers aren’t even immune. Can be over 2 months. Even entire season. But 1 or 2 months is so common. Wasn’t worried about Joe at all. Worried about Hayes back though. Sounding like a career long problem.
Connor Joe is hardly an MVP candidate nor does he have a chance of being inducted into the Hall of Fame, but I get your point and that includes your opinion of Hayes
I watched him swing the bat this year and watched videos of his swing last year and it’s not nearly the same. Last season he lifted his left foot well off his ground at the same time he swung the bat
He’s barely lifting it this year
He’s a bench player, nothing more, and on a good team he’s likely invaluable. He’s not designed to play 80-90% of games but he plays for the Pirates. Enough said
He’s no all-star, even if you pair him with different players. Jeez.
Definitely all star with other player. 800 ops is all star.
Just looked up his 2024 stats .287 average .365 on base .479 slugging .843 ops. Yep definitely all star worthy numbers.
Cue Jim Bouton here, Dream. Maybe bright eyes would agree but sheesh
It’s a sad pathetic state of your organization when a aging actor training for a movie has a better approach, makes better decisions and has better strike zone knowledge than half the players on your roster and 90 percent of your prospects.
Selleck > Haines
Unfortunately he probably makes 50x more stealing seniors homes than Nutting would pay.
Yeah, those ads are kind of over the top. And predatory. “This isn’t my first rodeo”. Yeah. Ok
Approach? You’ve seen Mr Baseball
Suwinski should watch, and have a notepad handy for both batting tips and a little Japanese. Could all come in handy