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Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 04.01.20
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Jason Mackey
11:46
Hi folks. Welcome to my weekly chat. Thank you, as always, for participating. One note: We're gonna start a little early, as I'm going to listen in on Derek Shelton appearing on 93.7 The Fan at noon; answers to questions will likely be sporadic during that time. Thanks for understanding.
The April Foil
11:49
I was able to listen to the replay of the 1960's World Series between the Pirates and  Yankees.  It was really great to hear Bob Prince and what good baseball broadcasters again.  It's been a while.
Jason Mackey
11:51
I don't know if I would agree with the idea that we don't hear good broadcasters now, first off. I happen to like Greg Brown and Joe Block quite a bit. Definitely different styles, but I enjoy both of them in different ways. I've also listened to a lot of different broadcasts, and you would be hard-pressed to find someone as honest and normal as John Wehner. I really think he does an underrated job. That said, obviously Prince is the best. I've loved listening to him, too. He's a legend and absolutely incredible.
Ty
11:51
Season starts June 15, what’s realistic number of games MLB could get in?
Jason Mackey
11:52
If that's what winds up happening -- I'm beginning to fear it might be later than that, perhaps the All-Star break -- I could see them trying for 120. I have no problem with that. I just wouldn't want them trying for, say, 144, if the season started that late.
Chris
11:52
Hello Jason, The Penguins are able to get back Jake Guentzel as a result of this delay in sports. Are any of the Pirates recovering from long-term injuries (Tommy John) going to come back to the team in a similar manner? I know Jamison Taillon is not, but how about the others?
Jason Mackey
11:53
Good question. It may help the Pirates get back Steven Brault and Clay Holmes, but obviously those guys aren't apt parallels for Jake Guentzel. Jameson Taillon would obviously mean more, but he talked about this Monday: While he could potentially pitch in October, it complicates his 2021 season. Thus, they've already decided that they're not going to give him a shot.
Peter Kadar
12:01
How are other MLB organizations able to be competitive and relevant while the Pirates have had over 24 losing seasons since 1992.
Jason Mackey
12:03
I'm not sure this is a question that can adequately addressed in one chat response, Peter, as I think there have obviously been a number of factors: poor drafting ... poor development ... the lack of spending ... spending on the wrong players ... I don't quite know how to describe 27 seasons in one response, but I certainly get the frustration in your question (and emails). That's a lot of losing. Certainly a fair reason for fans to feel frustrated.
12:25
Alight, folks. Thanks for your patience. Let's get back to this thing.
Guest
12:28
If baseball comes back in July will the fans come back or be cautious and stay away?
Jason Mackey
12:29
If baseball comes back in July and it's the first sport back -- which in that case I think it would be -- I think people would go absolutely bonkers. Even baseball fans in Pittsburgh. I feel like we're all just yearning for something, anything right now.
Chris
12:30
Do you think a shortened season benefits the Pirates as they always seem to be competitive around the all star break then tail off?
Jason Mackey
12:32
I think it could. It is funny how, under the old regime, they always seemed to get off to a pretty decent start, then crater at the end. If that happens again, that could be a good thing for them. I also think it favors them because they're not incredibly deep. Less games theoretically would mean less need for depth -- not as much injury risk.
Ethan
12:32
Any progress from my questions the other night? I appreciate the leg work.
Jason Mackey
12:32
No sir. My apologies, but I have tried.
Ethan
12:42
FYI, for anyone curious...are players who are optioned going to lose an option in the event of no season, and the chance that the team may lose the rights of Maile, Heredia, and Riddle. No worries, hope you hear something.
Jason Mackey
12:42
These are important questions with the new MLB-MLBPA agreement that we're trying to figure out.
Ryan
12:42
What pirate do you see breaking out who we did not expect in the lineup? Polanco?Moran? Or possibly some guy from in the minors like Jason martin
Jason Mackey
12:45
I don't know if I would call it a "break out" per se, but I did like what I saw from Polanco in the spring. It was probably his plate discipline and approach that stood out the most. If he can stay healthy -- always a big if -- I think both of those things give him a really good chance of being successful. ... Moran did have some pretty good pop at times, but that was a lot of batting practice- and individual-based. I'm a little more hesitant in predicting that will transfer over to games. Polanco has (definitely when healthy) done it before.
Drew
12:47
If the entire season is cancelled due to the pandemic, and I admit this is a worst case scenario which hopefully doesn't happen, do you think the GM, the manager, and the coaches have seen enough to evaluate the talent on hand?  Or are we back to where we were last offseason when they wanted to evaluate talent before they made any moves?
Jason Mackey
12:49
That's a good question, Drew. My initial reaction is to say no. I don't know how you truly evaluate without games. But also, what do they need to evaluate here? They're gonna keep Reynolds and Newman in their spots. Dyson goes. Polanco is under contract. You likely lose Heredia. Maybe Martin is your fourth outfielder. ... I'd say you turn it over to Ke'Bryan Hayes at that point. Frazier remains tradable, and you let the market dictate on Bell. ... Kela walks. I'm not sure you pick up Archer's option, and I think they probably believe enough in Williams, Musgrove, Keller and Taillon to form the nucleus of the 2021 rotation, with either Kuhl or Brault as the No. 5. ... So, yeah, it harms some evaluative time, but I don't know if it changes anything in a substantive way.
12:57
OK, folks. Looks like that's it for this week. Thank you for participating. Hopefully we're able to do a little better next Wednesday, although I understand it's probably pretty tough right now.
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