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Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 06.10.22
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Jason Mackey
11:42
Hello, everyone. Thanks for joining my weekly Pirates chat. One note: Friday will be the new day for these. Wednesday caused too many schedule disruptions. Hoping we can be a little more consistent with Friday at noon.
12:01
OK, let's do this ...
Guest
12:01
Jason, appreciated your efforts to keep us abreast of all things Bucs! What do you see happening with Diego Castillo and Yu Chang? Castillo is a good fielder at SS, but he looked way overmatched last night vs Braves. And Chang, well he is not doing much regardless of how versatile he is and the fact he bats RH. Thoughts?
Jason Mackey
12:02
I think Oneil Cruz comes up and plays SS, honestly. And very soon. I don't worry about Castillo defensively, but he doesn't do with the bat what Cruz can. I don't know why Yu Chang is on the team, frankly. And when Yoshi gets back, I do think they will give him a run of playing time at first, which could push Chavis to second.
Guest
12:02
Noticed Toronto BlueJays have a lot of catching. Just called up their phenom- Gab Moreno from Triple AAA...Think we could pry lose a better catcher to replace Michael Perez? Beat'em Bucs in GA
Jason Mackey
12:03
They could easily pry a catcher from a lot of teams. In fact, didn't Heineman come from the Blue Jays? I would probably keep Heineman and try to find an upgrade over Perez. OK with Heineman as the backup.
Retire21
12:03
A semi-rhetorical question. Y. Chang? Y?
Jason Mackey
12:03
I can't give you a reason for it. As I wrote this morning, I don't understand it.
Retire21
12:03
Too early to know if we'll see Cole and/or Tallion when the Yanks come in early July?
Jason Mackey
12:03
Translating that into baseball terms, that's about 62 1/2 years away. So, yes.
Dr Bobby
12:04
Hey Jason, this youth movement seems to bring at least hope for the future, thoughts....
Jason Mackey
12:05
I'm right with you, Dr. Bobby. I think Suwinski is the real deal. I like him a lot. I also like Cal Mitchell and Travis Swaggerty. Want to see what they can do. I think the kids will get more run, and I'm glad they will. Now bring up Cruz, and I want to see Martin get a chance when he snaps out of his current funk. But I've said this all along: This is the direction the Pirates should be going. Fans will get behind young players getting an opportunity, and they have.
tgmartin@logility.com
12:05
Jason, Granted our starting pitching is looking pretty good, but who do you see getting the call next to join the big club in starting role?
Jason Mackey
12:06
Hi Terry. Didn't push over the second version of your first question because I'm pretty sure i addressed all of it. ... I'd like to see Cody Bolton get a chance, honestly. He's pitched well down there. Probably further along than Miguel Yajure, who just came back from injury. Former top-10 guy with some injury issues, but he's throwing well this season.
Jeff T
12:06
Hi Jason…this might sound oddly like a defense of ownership spending, but here goes. With all of the rookies/youngsters in the current lineup, and more on the way, what incentive would free agents even have to come to Pittsburgh? Trust me…I’m happy with the path they’re taking, but for everyone clamoring for them to spend money, would they even be able to?
Jason Mackey
12:07
Their incentive would be playing time. And I think the Pirates have done right by Tyler Anderson and Jose Quintana by allowing them to pitch. Daniel Vogelbach and Ben Gamel, too. Players aren't stupid. They know they have to earn their time. Also, if the Pirates are going with their own guys, they should have less of a need for free agents.
Jeff T
12:07
Going to assume that Cruz comes up for the next homestand. Who goes down? Castillo? Releasing Chang would open a spot in the 40-man, but Cruz is already there.
Jason Mackey
12:08
Either of those moves would be fine. I think Castillo could benefit from some additional time in the minors, offensively anyway. DFA'ing Chang would obviously be easy. Would have no other there.
PrinceBob
12:08
So the move to Fridays was approved? You know, if the Pirates taught Cole Tucker to play first base they'd get more offense from the position than they're doing with Yu Chang. How long is his leash and why don't they just give the job to Chavis full time?
Jason Mackey
12:09
It has been approved, yes. Mark it down, Gunner. And thank you, everyone, for understanding. Been a little tough juggling the schedule and also this mixed with a newsletter and Sunday page. This lets my week flow a little smoother as well. ... They're gonna have to see if Yoshi can hit whenever his back is better, so I'm fine with Chavis as a stopgap. Why they keep playing Chang, yeah, gonna get that a lot, and i don't have a good answer for you. But Chavis is a pretty decent second baseman. The move is probably to keep him there, play Yoshi, then turn it over to Martin if/when he earns the job.
Sunner in Orlando
12:11
Do you agree that Newman Yoshi and Gamel are not part of the Pirates future so do you DFA them or try to trade them or play them? I believe they would be taking valuable ab's from the youngsters who need to develop. What say you?
Jason Mackey
12:13
DFA everyone! That's the answer. I seen we've reached that point of the chat. Anyway ... yes, I agree they aren't part of the future. You also can't lump them together. Gamel, pre-injury, would've been tradable. They also had Newman under contract and would probably like to get something back on him. So, he's gonna play. May be at second, may be at short. Don't know. But I would be surprised if they DFA'd him right away. Yoshi, again, you invested money in him, thinking he would hit for power. He was hurt. I think they're gonna let him get back and healthy and see what he can do. If he doesn't -- probably the same with the other two -- then you cross that bridge.
Dave
12:13
Do you see a Cutch like prospect in this bunch. I’ve seen like five or six of these rebuilds and IMO they only worked with Bonds & Cutch. The Kendall & Giles years had good players but no Cutch. I fear all of this rebuild will be Bay & Wilson 2.0, good players on a team that just doesn’t win & the cycle will repeat.
Jason Mackey
12:15
I think that's a pretty big label to throw on a player, Dave. I also don't think you have to have a Cutch- or Bonds-type player. Also helps to have a bunch of good players. Those guys -- meaning Cutch and Bonds -- are obviously generational talents. Not every team that wins has won, and that's OK. Pirates have a good young core of Peguero, Davis, Priester, Gonzales, Burrows, Cruz, Roansy, etc. Enough that they can't all suck.
tgmartin@logility.com
12:15
Living in greater Atlanta, GA it is tough to see Bucs come to town. In the past few years, it has usually been a blow out of sorts or a comedy of errors. But granted the young Bucs did not win last night, stranded runners in first few innings and lost 3-1. But Brubaker pitched well, Hayes, Reynolds, Suwinski and Castillo made some nice plays in the field. Swwaggerty got his first big league hit!  Chavis looked decent at 1st...We are improving. Not there yet by any stretch of the imagination. But it is moving the needle a bit! Just an observation...Beat'em Bucs as we play Game #2 tonight and Roansy toes the pitching rubber...,
Jason Mackey
12:15
Thanks, Terry. How many pots of coffee have you had this morning?
PrinceBob
12:15
I'm with you that it's stupid to trade Bednar. But if they're serious about being competitive next season I think they should try to extend Quintana and Stratton. (That's not saying I think they will.) You can never have too much pitching and the Pirate history of developing pitchers is not good. The new regime may be doing it better but I think the jury is still out on that. Having those guys around next year would make me more optimistic about 2023 and if the season is a flop you can trade either or both.
Jason Mackey
12:17
I hear what you're saying; however, remember to think about this from the player's perspective. Why would Quintana -- pitching the best he ever has and on the back-nine of his career -- want to re-sign here? If you were him, wouldn't you open yourself up to the highest bidder and try to pitch for a contender? Also, with Stratton, he's Arb3 this year. I'm not sure it would be in his best interest to sign anything. Their best play, honestly, would be to hope he gets results and trade him.
PrinceBob
12:17
Are you still holding out hope that Bob Nutting will talk to the media this season?
Jason Mackey
12:18
Yes, I am. Travis Williams, too. I can't say I'm optimistic, but I think customers/fans deserve to hear from one or both of those guys.
CoalportKid
12:19
Why can't Diego Castillo hit anymore? Have opposing pitchers done something differently?
Jason Mackey
12:20
It hasn't been good, I know that. Hitting just .183 since May, with strikeouts more than a quarter of the time. I think it's pitchers adjusting to his weakness, which is offspeed/breaking stuff. Seems to do fine with fastballs, but he hasn't fared particularly well with junk.
Doug Frobel Fan Club
12:20
What happens to the OF when Gamel comes back? I appreciate what Gamel has done in his time here but really want to see Suwinski, Mitchell and other young players keep getting playing time.
Jason Mackey
12:21
Yeah, it's a fair question Doug. Also not one I can give you a great answer for because there's so much time between now and then. Might just be the case that they rotate more. They're gonna play Reynolds. Beyond that, maybe you see Gamel and Cal shared the fourth spot, or a threeway rotation for two spots. Depends on who's hitting. Also, Gamel could be a month away. If Suwinski goes in the tank, the answer to this question changes.
Joel
12:21
Hi, Jason. How do you see the season evolving in terms of further call-ups from the minors? When will we see Oneil Cruz now that his hitting is getting back to normal and Kevin Newman is still out? Any chance of Michael Burrows making the leap from AA? He has been outstanding. Others?
Jason Mackey
12:23
I don't think you'll see Burrows. Too much too soon. But he should be in Class AAA. I think you'll see Cruz soon. Probably by the next homestand. Others ... Mason Martin at some point, Ji-Hwan Bae, probably Cody Bolton, maybe Alldred again ... they could give Peguero a late-season reward because he's been good. Probably Canaan Smith-Njigba, too.
GG
12:24
Do the Pirates have to take a player off IL in order to DFA him? If so, is that perhaps why they haven't called up Ji-Hwan Bae as he needs to be added to 40-man and will replace Van Meter or Marisnick?
Jason Mackey
12:26
Good question, GG. I don't think so, but I'm not entirely sure. I just sent a message seeking more info and will pass along when I get it. I feel like there would be some sort of MLBPA issue with that. That said, they could create a spot for Bae if they wanted to. I think the view him, like others, as not quite ready. I do believe you will see him soon, however.
Joel
12:26
Jason, I basically agree with you on Bednar. But let me play devil’s advocate for a second. With the exception of Mariano Rivera and a few other icons, reliever performance is highly variable from season to season. If the Pirates can get a future all-star position player or starting pitching for Bednar, don’t they have to seriously consider that option? The point is: if you trade Bednar, go for one quality prospect or young MLB player rather than a volume package.
Jason Mackey
12:27
If you can guarantee me you're going to get a future All-Star, I would consider it. But you can't guarantee that. And I think the risk outweighs the reward. As good as Bednar has been, he's still bringing back a lottery ticket. The gamble isn't worth it when you look at all the other context.
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