You are viewing the chat in desktop mode. Click here to switch to mobile view.
X
Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 06.25.21
powered byJotCast
Prev Page View Full Chat
Jason Mackey
12:28
Nope. Would've loved to get it, too. Waited an hour to chat with Goodwin when the White Sox were in town, but he blew right by me and didn't feel like talking.
Guest
12:29
Any news on the Pirates approaching Reynolds for an extension? I am 100% on board with the Pirates plan to right the ship, but I have to admit that trading him would seriously shake my enthusiasm. Let's Go Bucs!!
Jason Mackey
12:29
There's nothing substantive to share at this point. There have been conversations. They didn't really go anywhere. I don't think they've re-engaged after his terrific start to the season.
Money4Nutting
12:29
The term "competitive" is bandied about quite often as a measurement to success regarding R Buccos. This descriptive goal is too general: All teams compete.  The 100+ loss teams compete; they just lose a lot.  So all teams are "competitive" teams.  I would like to see "dominant" or "winning" or "defending WS champion" associated with the Pirates' future, and propose a moratorium on the goal of "competitive" baseball in the 'burgh.   Just sayin'...   :)
Jason Mackey
12:30
I think you're worrying too much about semantics. We're just saying when there's a product on the field that you can get excited about. Keep this sort of copy editing and griping for Twitter.
Mike
12:30
Jason, you mentioned that possible Newman or Gonzalez moving to second, I can see Newman moving over and lets bring back up Tucker for the rest of the season and see if he can produce or fail, that way we know for sure what's next for him.  I'm going to disappointed if they don't draft Rocker or Lieter
Jason Mackey
12:31
I'd be fine with that. I remember the last time Tucker came up, I joked with Mike Persak that I would play him (Tucker, not Mike) for like 30 straight games, just to see what happens. At least you know, right? It may come to that point. Let's hope it doesn't come to the point of Persak playing.
Ben
12:31
Hey Jason. Happy Friday! Do you suspect there will be any players the Pirates trade that there haven’t been any rumors on? Maybe like a Kuhl, Stallings, Crick, Moran, Stratton, Gonzalez?
Jason Mackey
12:33
Yeah, I think you could see an outlier. Of that group, I might put Stratton atop the list. Former starter. Zero maintenance. Has an ERA under 1 the past two months. Durable. Wouldn't cost much. But, yeah, there are always surprises. Second might be Moran, third Kuhl. Hard to see them trading Stallings or being able to trade Gonzalez.
Richard
12:33
Jason, one BOLD trade the pirates will make that no one is considering. And go!
Jason Mackey
12:33
I got nothing, Richard. Do you consider trading Chris Stratton bold? There are only so many bold moves a team like the Pirates can make.
woobie
12:33
Are Frazier, Rodriguez and Anderson still here on Aug. 1? And are any other guys possibilities to be dealt? Crick and Howard could help a contender, you’d think.
Jason Mackey
12:34
No, no and no. Definitely not Anderson. Would be stunned if the other two stayed. ... And sure, it's possible. They know that. I think it depends on health, production between now and then and what the market looks like.
Logan
12:34
Do you have any intel on which notable prospects will be playing for the GCL teams this year?
Jason Mackey
12:34
Have not had much on that, no. Sorry.
Bill
12:35
Jason-- This offseason a lot of our prospects need added to 40 man to be protected from Rule 5. Wouldnt it make sense after ASB and trades to play guys like Oliva, Tucker, Alford, etc. nearly everyday to find out who should remain and who should go off the roster?
Jason Mackey
12:36
I don't think you need to actively or forcefully trade guys just to clear 40-man spots. I think that stuff will take care of itself over the course of a 162-game season. Post-deadline, I can see Polanco being gone. You look for those reps to dole out to Alford or Oliva. If you deal Frazier, shift Newman and play Tucker. There will be opportunities. I don't worry about that.
BobK
12:41
Is Polanco repairable?  If so, doesnt he hold soem trade value?
Jason Mackey
12:42
I think Polanco is what he is at this point, Bob. They're playing him out of the faint hope that someone will give them something for him. Maybe they get something, if they swallow almost the remainder of his contract. But I can't imagine it's much.
Phil
12:42
Has Roaonsy Contreras not warranted a promotion? Same with Escotto in BRD?
Jason Mackey
12:45
They're on the way. Cherington talked about this recently. GMBC wants to get to the All-Star break, then go from there. They could promote both today, and I wouldn't argue. That said, Cherington did very well with how he brought along Boston's prospects, and he knows a heck of a lot more about this stuff than me, you or anyone else on the outside. ... Bottom line, Phil, they're close. Just gotta see more. Escotto was out with an injury, too.
Logan
12:45
Who do you think will be the Pirates’ All-Star(s)?
Jason Mackey
12:45
At this point, I'm going Frazier and Reynolds. Seems crazy, but the numbers those guys have produced, leaving either one home would be a pretty sizable snub.
Bill
12:46
When Howard returns, i'd keep Davis up here and go with 3 LHP. Hartlieb just doesnt have good enough command to trust. Agree?
Jason Mackey
12:47
I don't think you need three lefties in the 'pen, personally. If you think Davis is going to be better than Hartlieb, you keep him. Personally, I'd like to see Hartlieb given a chance to work through some things. I think he has it in there. We saw it in '20. Just needs some regular innings.
BobK
12:47
Will July 1 be the largest attendance game of the season?  $1 hot dogs, craft beer, Big & Rich.
Jason Mackey
12:47
Two out of three ain't bad.
Don
12:48
Good Afternoon Jason and thank you for your time.  I know it’s always mentioned that the Pirates can’t have enough pitching.  It seems though the Pirates haven’t had much success with pitchers selected in the first round, except Cole, but he was traded.  So my question is, do the Pirates have any prospects coming up that are legitimate power hitters?  Someone who could hit 30-40 homers every year?  Sure would be nice to get back to the Bucs Lumber Company.
Jason Mackey
12:50
I don't know if I would project 30-40 homers for anyone, but yeah, they actually do have some decent power in the system. Oneil Cruz, Mason Martin and Rodolfo Castro are three guys with power at Class AA. Aaron Shackelford is tied for the High-A East lead in homers with 13 at Greensboro. Alexander Mojica has a ton of power at Low-A Bradenton. Not enough of power, obviously, but they do have some guys.
woobie
12:50
Was that Ty Ballou “press conference” the other day more of a train wreck than you envisioned going in? It seemed like an interesting story at first but became more absurd as time went on.
Jason Mackey
12:52
Yes, very much so. Shame on me for this. I should have made more phone calls or done something. I knew of Ty Ballou. I knew of his reputation. I didn't expect him to actually buy the Pirates, but I thought -- based on a press release saying he did -- he had actually rallied local business and investors, people with money who would be at this event and talk about what they're doing to try and put together a plan. ... The actual "press conference" was a total joke. Just one guy complaining about the Pirates. I regret ever giving the guy a forum. Lesson learned for me.
12:53
And my story was going to be, "Hey, local businesses are doing this. Here's how, etc." I don't think that's egregious. But that wasn't at all what this was, and I should have done more to suss that out ahead of time.
12:55
OK, folks. Looks like that will do it for this week. Thank you, as always, for participating. Let's do this again next week.
Connecting…