Trade Fallout: Pirates get a haul for Musgrove?
Several years away from being at least competitive and fielding a respectable team, the Pirates are in a complete tear down of the roster and any veteran with a pulse on that roster and a rising salary is going to get shipped out of town. The trade of Joe Musgrove Monday night was some luck coming on the Pirates side in that they were able to take advantage of Musgrove’s trade value being much higher than it really should have been. The local media will greatly overrate the Pirates return. Call it a haul or whatever, the Pirates, though, at least got a promising return for a low level No. 3 caliber pitcher if you buy into his 2020 campaign
With no hope of contending for several years, Pirates deal Bell to WAS
No Hope, Full-Blown Rebuild in the Works With a full blown rebuild in the works and several years away of having any hopes of competing again, the Pirates’ way of economics always had Josh Bell heading out the door sooner than later, and on Christmas Eve, the Pittsburgh Pirates traded Bell to the Washington Nationals. In the deal, the Pirates received pitchers Wil Crowe and Eddy Yean. Crowe, 26, made his MLB debut in 2020, posting a 11.88 ERA in three appearances. Yean, 19, posted a 3.50 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 10 starts at rookie ball in 2019. As with any pitcher as young as Yean, it will be a while before the Pirates know what they have if
Whispers on GM Search and why it’s been a surprisingly coveted job
Latest Pirates Buzz The Pittsburgh Pirates search for a new General Manager is starting to reach the final stages and movement has the Pirates expecting to introduce a new General Manager before the end of next week. The Three finalists: Former Boston Red Sox GM Ben Cherington Milwaukee Brewers Assistant GM Matt Arnold Pirates Interim GM Kevan Graves Cherington has been a favorite among the search firm hired by the Pirates as Cherington has close ties to the firm which has raised some eyebrows. Cherington who will have another interview with the club on Thursday, has great interest in the job because of an understanding throughout the process that the incoming General Manager will have full say and power on
3-for-3: Pirates officially clean house in firing Neal Huntington
After Pirates owner Bob Nutting made it clear in a statement during the firing of manager Clint Hurdle that General Manager Neal Huntington was safe for next season and in the weeks after it appeared quite clear Huntington was safe in the obvious that he as the front-man in leading the manager search, which included a second round of interviews last week. Yet, Bob Nutting on the eve of hiring Travis Williams as the new Team President has shocked the industry in informing Huntington during a meeting on Sunday afternoon that Huntington was being let-go as General Manager with two years left on his contract. Nutting has shocked the baseball world and Pirates fan base in the fact he will
Pirates fire Clint Hurdle
The Pittsburgh Pirates have fired manager Clint Hurdle. Hurdle trying to run a power play earlier this week in saying he received assurances he would be back in 2020, now see’s him getting a pink slip and Neal Huntington keeping his job. “This has been a challenging season on many levels,” Huntington said in a statement of firing Hurdle. “We are committed to assessing and improving upon our operations at all levels in order to return postseason baseball to Pittsburgh.” The 62 year old Hurdle had run his course as manager after four straight seasons of missing the playoffs. Hired in November 2010, Hurdle and his staff posted a 735-720-1 record in nine seasons with the Pirates. Pittsburgh has made
TIOPS Pirates 5: On Josh Bell’s Greatness, Bryan Reynolds/Kevin Newman, Austin Meadows All-Star level Emergence is Devastating Long-term & More Buzz
TIOPS PIRATES 5 1. Josh Bell (.348-18HR-52RBI) on Friday night had two more hits to cap off an history May with 94 total bases, the most by any player in May since Willie Mays back in 1958. Bell in May slashed .390/.442/.797 with 12 home runs and 31 RBIs. Bell at age 26 has entered superstar status and his ability to smash the ball makes him must-watch TV every night. Yet, Bell’s prominence is having little effect in getting butts to the ballpark or bringing excitement to the fan base beyond the hardcore fans. For every great story like Bell, Bryan Reynolds right now, two players the fan base should be very excited about moving forward, there’s 4-5 doom and
Regression of star players under Clint Hurdle a Major Concern that was Overlooked by Pirates Brass
Did the Pirates jump the gun in extending Clint Hurdle this month? As the Pirates organization has tried to sugar coat this season that the record you see isn’t an accurate picture of what this team really is, the Pirates are what their record says it is. A 68-84 ball club that is climbing closer to the cellar of the NL Central with a seventh straight loss Tuesday night to the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers who no one saw coming as a legitimate playoff contender in 2017, have moved 1.5 games back of the Colorado Rockies for the second wildcard. Bob Nutting awarding four year extensions to Clint Hurdle and Neal Huntington this month can be looked at on one
Rumors: Pressure mounting from those in Bob Nutting’s inner circle for club to make a major change
Latest Pirates Buzz The Pirates 6-5 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers Monday night in extra innings was a perfect summary of their season. Pittsburgh has a 3-0 lead entering the seventh inning, yet, they had been playing with fire all night and everything came crashing down in the seventh. [hide] [/hide] Gerrit Cole had six shutout innings going thanks to getting out of two bases loaded jams prior to the seventh. Then Clint Hurdle left his pitcher out to dry. As Cole’s pitch count was over 100, he began to start losing some zip and control on his pitches. Cole had run out of gas and it was clear to anybody that it was time to go to the
Latest Pirates Buzz: Value of the Sean Rodriguez acquisition
Latest Pirates Buzz The mediocre NL Central is keeping things interesting and despite being a game under .500, the Pirates could be playing meaningful baseball for the next five to six weeks. After losing eight of 10, the Pirates have countered that by winning five of six and currently on a three game winning as the four game interleague series with the Tigers shifts to Detroit for two games. The Cubs just a week ago looking like they were primed to begin their ascend of start running away from the division, have hit a road block and lost five of seven. The Cardinals meanwhile have won four straight and now trail the division by just 2.5 games. NL CENTRAL STANDINGS
Latest Pirates Buzz: Organization at a cross-roads that lacks Direction and a Plan
Pirates off-season priority should be a Retool/Rebuild When evaluating the Pirates, you have to look into lens of how the organization is ran. Pirates GM Neal Huntington did not fail his ball club Monday by pretty much standing pat at the trade deadline in trading Tony Watson who has been all but gone for months as a pending free agent (Scott Boras client) and then adding 40 year old Joaquin Benoit to replace Watson as the setup man. Benoit had his welcome to the Pirates moment Wednesday night. Anybody can see this team had no chance of being a serious threat in the NL against the likes of the Dodgers, Nationals and the defending champion Cubs who are starting to find