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Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 06.30.23
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Joe
1:29
Who all comes off the IL today and who goes down for them?
Jason Mackey
1:29
My bet: Reynolds & Holderman. I'm going Bae and Bolton.
Chris
1:29
Do you see the pirates getting rid of vets at the trade deadline like Santana, Hill and Choi if anyone would take them or do you see them staying pat at only 4.5 games back currently.
Jason Mackey
1:30
Depends on a lot of stuff, Chris. If they're 4 1/2 out and there's a sense of contention, yeah, I could see it. But not Choi. If they can get something for him, bye. Santana and Hill are different. If they're in it, a trade would depend on the level of return.
Ethan
1:30
There's about to be quite the cluster of outfielders on the roster (Reynolds, Suwinski, Davis, Joe, Bae (if he isn't sent down), McCutchen potentially when Choi returns). Can't imagine that leaves any room for Palacios. He's had some moments but he's struggled pretty bad at the plate
Jason Mackey
1:32
Don't know if I would say "struggled pretty bad," but I agree with the sentiment expressed: He's hitting .253 with a .656 OPS. There will be guys coming back. There are other places I would go first, probably Bae, but he could be an optionable option when Hayes & Choi return.
Bill
1:32
Would you consider trading KBH?
Jason Mackey
1:32
Absolutely not.
Jake
1:32
Hey Jason, hope you're having a good Friday. Just wanted to submit a few early questions if that's okay... My first is if you think Ji Man Choi will be activated before gametime tonight? He wasn't in Indy's lineup yesterday, so a lot of people on Twitter were guessing. And my second is if you see Endy being up in the near future? If not, what's holding him back? Thanks, man. Love the chats!
Jason Mackey
1:33
Don't expect Choi this early. Cherington said 5-7 games on rehab. We're before that, if I'm not mistaken. ... I'm thinking Endy after the All-Star break.
DennisSC
1:33
Are you hearing any talk that Hayes back issues are chronic and therefore recurring?
Jason Mackey
1:34
Yes, they're the same ones as last year. But I don't think it's anything "wrong" with his back. It's my sense that this is (1) very minor and (2) more a function of over-work than anything. I don't think he has some sort of serious back issue that will wind up rendering him damaged goods, if that's what you're asking.
Bill
1:35
Jason, A lot has been made about Davis vs Endy at catcher and it does seem that the Pirates prefer Endy's defense at C better. I have a thought that might work out the whole thing. Endy becomes the primary catcher with Davis primary in RF/DH and someone like Abrahan Gutierrez becomes Endy's long term backup C. Hes only 23 but putting solid numbers up at Altoona since his promotion. Thoughts?
Jason Mackey
1:36
I think we're going way the hell down the road with this stuff. Everyone seems to want to have this seven-step plan carved out. I don't know. They don't know. Player performance dictates so much. They brought Henry up because his bat could help. We're seeing that. He's been fine in right field. He needs work catching. He's getting that. None of it needs to predict what happens in 2025.
Kevin
1:36
What do you think the roster moves are going to be within the next few days? Do you think they will send Mlodzinski back down whenever Zastryzny comes back? I think Mlodzinski has done pretty good thus far and would prefer him over Zastryzny if it came down to that.
Jason Mackey
1:38
I think they would keep Carmen over Rob Z at this point as well. Odd as it sounds, Perdomo and Borucki have been halfway decent. Jose Hernandez is also throwing live BPs. I could see Rob Z being sent to Triple-A. (Not sure on his option status; instead of looking it up, I'll just reference my man Ethan Hullihen and wait for him to tell me.)
Paul
1:38
I 'm tipping off my age with this question but why are the Pirates and other major league teams so obsessed with pitch counts? This makes complete games and 20 game winners almost obsolete.
Jason Mackey
1:39
It does, Paul. And it would be a very long answer to your question. But the general idea is to keep arms healthy (hasn't been much of a success) and also avoid pitchers facing hitters a third time through the lineup, when hitters' chances of success go up.
Bill
1:39
With Reynolds, Hayes, and soon Choi coming back, are Bae and Castro, maybe Marcano in danger of being sent down if Triolo and Gonzales continue to do well?
Jason Mackey
1:39
They are. There will be some tough decisions to make. Palacios is in there, too.
Will
1:39
This team has been inconsistent while showing flashes of good and bad. Given the state of the division and stretched pitching depth, is a sell-off likely given the NL Central lead remains within reach?
Jason Mackey
1:40
I think we need to wait and see. Nobody needs to have a definitive stance on June 30. If I had to predict, I'd say they wind up doing a mix of both.
wvpirate
1:40
Soon the Pirates will have a glut of middle infielders.  Do you think the Pirates will deal someone like Castro to get some pitching?
Jason Mackey
1:41
That would surprise me. I like Castro. They like Castro. There's a solid bat in there, and I think he could be a really good player. Wouldn't endorse punting yet.
Will
1:42
Cutch was only player to wear mask (briefly) on poor air quality day. Despite legitimate grumbling, it looked like most players, coaches, PNC staff, and fans were sans masks. Is it just post COVID fatigue? If there was real safety concern about exposure that wearing masks (especially in dugout and stands) would be a sensible move. Players are so performance and health driven I was surprised more weren't concerned about impact of breathing heavy particulates.  Of course it's ultimately their lungs and impact, but I would have bailed on attending as a fan in those conditions.
Jason Mackey
1:42
Nobody needs to hear from me on air-quality issues. I'm not an expert. I cover baseball. People should handle this the way they feel works for them, and we should talk about baseball in this setting.
Don tiger Hoak
1:43
Hayes being traded for a top AAA left hander since Triolo matches up defensively, but with better bat for average and possible power. Nunez should be future first baseman because of real power potential.
Jason Mackey
1:43
Those are certainly some takes ...
barristerjim
1:43
Hi Jason,  Why are about all the Saturday games in the afternoon anymore?  I miss the Saturday night games!
Jason Mackey
1:43
I do, too. I hate 4 o'clock starts. Either early or late, IMO. Don't catch which. But the middle ground screws up your entire day.
Guest
1:43
Hasn’t Endy’s overall body of minor league work been substantially better than both Davis and Gonzalez (justifying a call up)?  Appreciate that he got off to a slow start at Indy this year, but his overall body of work is strong.
Jason Mackey
1:44
Maybe. But you're not going to promote a guy based on what he did in 2021. You're going to promote him -- especially with the big leagues -- based on if he's going to help you win right now. Endy hasn't been great. I have no issue with him being in Triple-A right now.
BuccoNation
1:44
Jason, I know we have a long way to go, but where do you believe the Pirates need to be at to be buyers at the deadline? I would say if we are around 2.5GB at the all star break would be a good start and if we can be around 2-3GB at the deadline, I don't see how we sell. Thought?
Jason Mackey
1:45
I don't think they will be buyers. I just think they're too future-focused to start selling of prospects. But if they're within 2.5 games, I could see them taking a more conservative approach at the deadline, sure.
AriGold15
1:45
Hey Jason, any chance Peguero  gets called up soon?  I think he deserves and would excel if he was given a shot.
Jason Mackey
1:47
I like Peggy a lot. He's played well. But here's my issue there: Where you gonna play him? They just called up Gonzales. I'd like to give him some run.Castro can help them, especially against lefties. Marcano hasn't been terrible. You could send Bae out for Reynolds tonight.

Just an observation: We have half this chat asking why don't they bring _____ up. And the other half asking about an impending roster crunch.
Austin
1:47
Good afternoon, Jason. What’s up with Liover Peguero? The dude is scorching hot in AA and has been good much of the year. After the promotions of Cheng and Nicky G I thought he’d be promoted to AAA but he’s still in Altoona. Any idea of the thought process there?
Jason Mackey
1:48
I would like to see him in Triple-A. They were giving Alika Williams a chance. He's been OK. But I agree that it looks like Peguero probably needs more of a challenge right now.
Johnny M
1:48
Good afternoon Jason. The Pirates have a great thing going with call-ups but what to do with everybody? You'll have Cruz coming back (hopefully soon) & they should keep Triolo up here. I think Triolo will hit better than Hayes. But where do they play him when Hayes gets back? He's just a 3B. Gonzales can play SS or 2B (bye Castro) Do you think Hayes would accept a move to SS? I'm thinking of the good field-no hit SSs I grew up with in the old days
Jason Mackey
1:49
Holy Lord. Cruz won't be back until the third week of August. WE HAVE TIME. Triolo has played two games. He's not unseating Hayes. WE HAVE TIME. I think we need to tap the brakes here, folks.
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