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Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 04.22.20
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Jason Mackey
11:52
Hi folks. Thanks for joining my weekly Pirates chat. Last week we had a lot of people in here but nobody asking questions. Don't be shy. Happy to chat about whatever. Will be back at noon to get going. -- Mackey
12:01
OK. Let's do this ...
Jeff
12:02
You may have already addressed this before, and if you did, I apologize for the duplication of effort.  Do you think there will be a 2020 MLB season?  I believe if there is a season, it will be extremely abbreviated, but I'm bracing for the possibility of no baseball.  I know neither of us are doctors, and our guesses are just that.... guesses.
Jason Mackey
12:04
Hey Jeff, no worries. I do think there will be a season. I think that because I think Major League Baseball really wants to have a season, and there seems to be a pathway to do that in a (relatively) safe way, per what some of the foremost infectious disease experts have said. If there's any way at all, MLB is gonna try and do it. That said, I do think it will be abbreviated. The question I don't think anyone should answer is by how much.
*Anyone can answer. Not should. Typo.
Bucs Fanatic
12:07
Jason, you ever look outside around 7 pm on a beautiful evening and just think “man it would be nice to be down at PNC right now getting ready for first pitch” really missing baseball
Jason Mackey
12:08
Pretty much every day, honestly. There are obviously much greater tragedies, as my dad would tell me, but I miss it every day. I miss keeping a scorebook and writing out the lineup. I miss watching batting practice and infield work. I miss the travel. I miss the style of writing that you do during the season. I miss watching nightly highlights. I miss reading good, in-season baseball writing. I miss listening to games on the radio. I miss being outside. Yeah, I miss it.
Ty
12:08
Can we expect any minor league affiliates of the Pirates getting cut? I’d guess the Black Bears down in WV if anyone
Jason Mackey
12:12
Yeah, from the sound of this, I'm expecting Bristol to be gone. And that's it. If you're curious who would be affected, here's a NYT piece that describes it. Probably not all, but I would expect most. Again, assuming this all happens. There's a conference call today: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/16/sports/baseball/mlb-minor-league-pr...
Retire21
12:12
What Pirates farm clubs are likely to go away with the elimination of 42 by MLB?
Jason Mackey
12:13
Their rookie-ball affiliate in Bristol, Va. is the only one.
Joel
12:13
Jason, realistically this is looking like a lost season. Even if games are played, they may be played in a neutral environment and the season will be shorter. Plus, the minor leagues will be completely disrupted, which really hurts a team like the Pirates that need to rebuild from the ground up. I guess my question is, in terms of their career development who, if anyone, on the Pirates does this situation help? And who is most hurt by this disruption?
Jason Mackey
12:16
Good question, Joel. It benefits players in that they receive service time commensurate to what they received in 2019, so it's not a loss like that. But they don't get paid outside of their portion of the $170 million lump sum if a season is canceled. For the team, it's varying degrees of bad. Young players like Newman and Reynolds gain service time and will theoretically reach free agency faster. These are also minimal earnings years. There's an option with Chris Archer they need to consider -- I believe $11 million or a $250,000 buyout. Would imagine they buy him out, then they've basically handed Glasnow, Meadows and Baz to Tampa, which stinks. Kela will be a free agent. You get nothing for him. They lose a year of Josh Bell. I don't know how to rank it, honestly, but it's hardly insignificant.
Retire21
12:16
How does the 3 batter minimum affect the makeup of a roster?
Jason Mackey
12:21
First off, I agree of your username. Should absolutely be retired. Secondarily, I think it has a couple of effects. First off, there's obviously no spot for LOOGYs; anybody who's on the roster must be more than a lefty specialist. It also might increase the value of guys like Richard Rodriguez, who last year had some interesting reverse splits. This isn't a roster thing, but I'm also curious if an unintentional byproduct will be an uptick in intentional walks. Say the Pirates are facing someone who just kills the pitcher they're using. But the guy after this guy has horrible career numbers against that pitcher. Just put the guy on. Don't take the chance. It should also affect lineup construction, with Derek Shelton likely trying to spread out his lefties some.
Retire21
12:21
It’s the 50th Anniversary of Three Rivers. Have the Pirates planned anything?
Jason Mackey
12:22
Not to my knowledge. And honestly, I didn't even realize it. Thank you for the story idea. I miss Three Rivers so much. As much as it stunk, I can still see, smell and hear the place. It'll always be special.
Michael M
12:22
Do you see any chance that the Pirates would sign an outfield free agent such as Yasiel Puig? Seems like a way to add some power.
Jason Mackey
12:24
I don't. I don't think a move like that fits with what they're trying to do. Plus, if they wanted to do that right now, they've certainly had their chances. But I think they're better off giving Reynolds all the playing time he can handle, then hoping Polanco makes good on his potential. Dyson is fine in center for $2 million on a one-year deal, and they have some guys coming up in Martin and Oliva who might be solid. I get that Puig would help the offense and they need to spend more money on major league players, but I feel like they could make a smarter move than that.
Joel
12:24
The newspaper business is on the verge of collapse and the major league season may not be played. Is there any likelihood that Nutting looks to sell the team this off season?
Jason Mackey
12:25
The newspaper business is on the verge of collapse? Man, what am I doing here? C'mon, Joel. I know times aren't great -- they weren't before COVID-19, either -- but that's a little strong. Also, see above, I do think MLB will have a season. That said, MLB teams are worth a lot of money these days. It has to be enticing for Nutting, although everything I've heard is that it's something he wants to keep in his family for a long time. Money does talk, however.
Ryan
12:26
When do you expect baseball to open?
Jason Mackey
12:28
My hope is to head to Arizona or Florida at some point in mid-to-late May, possible season starting in June? With the way our country is going right now -- like it or hate it, Trump and others seem to want things to open back up -- and the amount of money there is to be made via professional baseball, I could see a start date at some point in June. Again, I'm basing this on nothing other than seeing businesses open, the KBO, sports in other parts of the world, etc. But I think if there's a desire to do this and a reasonably safe pathway to get it done, it'll happen.
Ryan
12:28
Are the playoffs going to be expanded this year? I remember hearing a rumor on it a while back
Jason Mackey
12:30
I think that's still TBD, to be honest. Would depend on when the season starts, how many games they think they can play, etc. It's definitely on the table, I can tell you that. But nothing has been decided. (My own two cents: There's money in it. With no fans, they need to find different ways to generate revenue. This is one of them. Thus, I would expect it to happen.)
Noah
12:30
Hey Jason! I was wondering if you were hearing anything about who the pirates may be targeting in the draft. Best pick they’ve had for a while. Hopefully GMBC can start his drafts off on a good note.
Jason Mackey
12:37
Hey Noah. It's definitely an interesting time for Cherington and the front office, specifically with the draft. My prediction is for them to target pitching. They're thin there, and you always need it. Two guys I really like are Max Meyer from Minnesota and Reid Detmers from Louisville. Meyer is a righty, Detmers a lefty. Meyer probably has a higher ceiling, but Detmers is more polish. Anyway, there's two. Then you also have Austin Hendrick, the outfielder from West Allegheny who should go around then, too.
GSMP
12:40
Was there anything in the agreement for the 2020 season about changing revenue sharing? I'm curious if some markets like New York would try to renegotiate this year's local TV contract since in theory no one being able to attend the games in person should significantly increase viewership.
Jason Mackey
12:40
I'm not aware of anything in there that changes how they will handle revenue sharing, although I could certainly understand the need or desire for that to change if there's no fans in the stands in 2020.
seferg
12:41
What one position (you can split pitching as starter, reliever, closer) is our weakest and could use an upgrade?
Jason Mackey
12:43
That's an interesting question, seferg. I might go with right field. That's a power-hitting position, and the Pirates haven't gotten a ton of that from there. I think Polanco can, but he hasn't come anywhere close to fulfilling his potential. Bottom line, they need to be getting more hits, home runs and RBIs from that spot. Other might be third base. Moran was OK offensively but dreadful in the field in 2019. Would like to think Hayes can transition offensively. There's no doubt about his glove but no promise about his bat at this level, at least not yet.
seferg
12:44
Ever think of doing a greatest Pirates team ever story?  Who is our best first baseman (Stargell?) build a complete team
Jason Mackey
12:45
I have mixed feelings on the list stories. I don't dislike them, but I tend to enjoy the features more. So, I do those. But I do see what you're saying. I just feel like, "OK, there's your team. Then what? We know all these guys already." That's what goes through my head anyway.
Tim
12:47
I love the analogy I am hearing about the corona situation we are in. "We are not all in the same boat. We are in the same storm, but we are in different boats." Seems to apply well to the Pirates. What is happening in MLB this season disproportionately affects teams like the Pirates. Sets us back several years, not just one.  Any hope you can offer, or does the misery simply add on?
Jason Mackey
12:48
I just think that smaller-market teams like the Pirates have a tiny margin for error at all times -- and it's much larger right now. I think it would be helped if they spent more, but it still wouldn't be perfect. They need to draft and develop better than they have. They need more talent at the lower levels. The hope I would offer you is they did hire a guy (Ben Cherington) who has a pretty damn good track record of being able to do this. I agree the situation isn't great for the Pirates, but I don't think it means they'll automatically stink.
Sean Tischler
12:48
Would you prefer the season gets cancelled so you don't have to cover this awful team or are you the kind of guy who likes to watch a train wreck?
Jason Mackey
12:50
I'm the kind of guy who likes to work hard and do as good of a job as possible with whatever it is that I do. Right now I cover the Pirates. So I'm going to report on/write about them as thoroughly and fairly as possible.
Regarding Sano...
12:50
I know this was touched on at the last minute last week, but I think there's more to the Sano story than "cheap Pirates", as was chronicled in the documentary "Ballplayer: Peltero", for anyone who wants to learn more on the subject.
Jason Mackey
12:51
Thanks for passing that along. I will have to check that out. Being completely honest, I could use a refresher on the whole thing as well.
Guest
12:51
Let's say, MLB decides to play the 2020 season. # of games TBD. Other than not being paid, what sort of punishment would a player receive it he flat out said, I'm not jeopardizing my family and refuses to play? Are we talking breech of contract? How far is MLB willing to go to with this? For me, even when the all clear is given, I'm not going to be eager to return to how things  were prior to Covid-19.
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