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Jason Mackey's Pirates chat: 09.25.19
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Jason Mackey
11:47
Hi folks and welcome to my Pirates chat. I'll be back at noon to answer your questions. As always, thanks for participating. -- Mackey.
12:01
And away we go ...
burt reynolds
12:01
Why isn't Melky playing more? I know he's not the future of the team, but it seems like it might be better to have him starting in the outfield over having infielders playing out of place out there.
Jason Mackey
12:02
Good question. We asked Clint Hurdle in Milwaukee. Hurdle said Melky was dealing with a minor league. We asked what that injury is. He said he couldn't tell us because it would be a competitive disadvantage and that he was respecting Melky's wishes by not telling us. Bottom line, he's dealing with something. Hopefully we find out more today, when director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk talks.
Alan
12:02
Is it fair to say that the folks that work in the Pirates ticketing office are the most talented members of the organization? How else could you explain the fact that they convinced over 18k people per game on average to part with their hard earned money to watch this team?
Jason Mackey
12:04
Ha. I sense you're trying to be funny, Alan, but I think there's some truth here. The Pirates are actually doing OK attendance-wise when you look year-over-year. (It's up slightly over last season, although I would argue, given the ballpark, they still have the opportunity to draw a ton more than they do ... which they would do if they were better.) Anyway, it's not an easy task. And it's only going to get more difficult this winter.
Tyler
12:04
If Hurdle and Huntington get the boot, who do you think will be possible candidates for GM and Manager?
Jason Mackey
12:06
Lemme attack the manager one first, Tyler. I think the first two options are Tom Prince and Jeff Banister, who are already on staff. However, if they determine they need to go in a completely new direction, then I could see it going a couple ways. One, I don't see how they would bring in a Joe Maddon or Joe Girardi type. Would cost too much. Plus, are those guys really gonna want to work here? Doubt it. Don Kelly is someone who really intrigues me. He's from here, is obviously bright, and he's been the first-base coach for the Astros. ... I.e. He has some intel on how they do things there, plus he's looking for an opportunity to make something his own. ... Oh, the GM. I'll have to be brief, but I would suspect someone you've probably never heard of ... young, cheap, innovative ... has been around teams that draft and develop players well and can (theoretically) win on the cheap by exploiting weaknesses in the market.
Jack
12:06
Do u have any insight why GMNH basically gave away gerrit cole for a struggling AAAA reliever, at best a fourth outfielder, and below avg 3B, and a #5 starter?
Sorry my question sent prematurely but why is that acceptable/ how was that the best offer? He had 2 years of control and that is the best he could come up with? Compare the returns of that deal vs the archer trade
Jason Mackey
12:10
Hi Jack, I can't speak to the returns on the Cole trade. One, because I wasn't on the beat. But two, because you never really have a full picture of return on a trade. I will say this, though, the lack of return isn't because this group set out to say, "We're gonna get the crappiest return possible." If your contention is they should've kept Cole, my rebuttal is this: "Why?" You're not gonna let him go for nothing, right? That's dumb. So you try and trade him before his contract is done. You also need to take the personal side into the equation. Do you think Gerrit Cole, based on what he's been allowed to do in Houston, even wanted to stay? C'mon. And then once you cross the bridge of a trade, the tool they got with Musgrove and Feliz are good. Those two might be decent players, too. Even Moran has shown some signs, although it seems like every single one of his mortal enemies participate in this chat. Crush the Pirates for drafting and development. Even Neal for getting beaten badly on some trades. ...
... but I do believe it was at least somewhat close to the best they could do.
PENS123
12:10
How’s bells outlook for an extension
Jason Mackey
12:12
I don't think very good. I know the Pirates are open to it; however, from my conversation with Scott Boras at the All-Star Game, Bell's camp certainly has its doubts. For now, given there could be more balls in the air after the season (read: changes), it probably does make sense on both sides to kick the can for another year. If Bell stinks, we're not talking about this. If he's great, then I would imagine they try and get something done ... but it probably doesn't happen because Bell can get a massive payday in a couple more years. We'll see.
D9 Dave
12:12
Why do the Pirates seem to lack any prospects in their minor league system that can hit with power and provide some home run potential at the major league level?  Is this not a skill that the Pirates are looking for when they scout and draft players?  This team sorely needs more players than can hit the ball out of the park and drive in runs.  Seems like the Pirates have not had a prospect in their minor league system like this in a long time.
Jason Mackey
12:14
They've drafted and developed poorly, Dave, in a lot of aspects. Notice they don't have very many impact arms or catching prospects, either. Take guys like Travis Swaggerty or Will Craig. Decent players. They've put up some OK numbers. But they've hardly been elite prospects; they still have flaws. Are the Pirates drafting bad players? Or are they drafting good ones and just developing them incorrectly? The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, but they definitely have some problems to address regarding those two things.
BurghBall
12:14
The way I see it, ownership prioritizes profits. NH has consistently kept the Pirates profitable the last 6 years. I recall reading that here. NH is responsible for drafting talent. We seem to have a dearth of talent in the system. NH not going anywhere. We are in the midst of a long term playoff drought. Prove me wrong.
Jason Mackey
12:16
I can't. However, we don't know that everyone is staying. I'm not going to sit here and try to tell you that a starting nine that makes a little over $5 million combined is OK. It's not. I don't care who says what to me, that team is not competitive. OK, missing Marte, Bell, Taillon, etc. Should those injuries take you to everyone making the league minimum? I don't think so. And also, how do you explain the lack of talent in the farm system? I understand fan frustration right now. The only thing i can say is that there's a chance this could all still happen after the season. If it doesn't then, by all means, be pissed. I would be, if I was a fan, believe me.
Neil
12:16
Do you expect a complete overhaul of the Pirates scouting after this season?
Jason Mackey
12:16
Not just scouting, Neil, but I would expect them to make significant changes to a lot of things relative to scouting. That includes drafting and development and even minor league operations. I think they're really lacking in those areas.
burt reynolds
12:17
Do you give the Pirates any credit for their bargain signings of Melky and Lirano? Or was it just luck that they signed a couple of veterans to bare bones contracts that turned out to exceed expectations?
Jason Mackey
12:18
No, I think they deserve credit for those, sure. And someone like Corey Dickerson, great. I'm all for giving them credit where it's due, the same for getting Bryan Reynolds in the Andrew McCutchen trade, although it's troublesome to me that they didn't plan on starting Reynolds in the majors this season. But Melky and Liriano were decent signings for awhile -- low-risk, and they panned out. But those shouldn't be your biggest nuggets of good news.
GhostOfIvanToncic
12:18
Is there a single starting pitcher now on the the roster that you can point to and say, with some degree of confidence, that he will have a good year next season (provided he stays healthy)? I look at these 7-9 pitchers in the mix, and I see 7-9 question marks. I don't see how a GM could stand pat with that.
Jason Mackey
12:20
My guess would be because the owner has not authorized Neal Huntington to spend more. That's all I can come up with. There's no Earthly reason for the Pirates to not add a legitimate starting pitcher in the offseason, a top-of-the-rotation arm. They're on pace to have the worst ERA in franchise history since the 1800s, yet they're seemingly going to stand pat. Doesn't make sense at all. I think they have some guys who COULD be better, sure, but they're clinging to a lot of hope.
PhillyJake
12:20
Jack asks the wrong question on the Cole trade.  The Cole trade was about quantity and years of control.   Which the team got in spades. From that perspective, the trade was successful.  We all have to remember, Cole's last season in Pittsburgh wasn't dominating and his trade value wasn't as high as we think it is today.  The real issue is why was Cole not reaching his potential as a Pirate?
Jason Mackey
12:23
I don't disagree with you. And I think the issue has been compounded because of how good Houston has been at finding pitchers' strengths and playing to them. ... The issue with the Pirates' pitchers is multi-faceted, and it's not at simple as strikeouts. It's what sort of things they want to emphasize. How they're scouting other teams. What sort of information they're getting and how they're getting it. How and by whom it's being relayed to pitchers. The catchers calling those games, how they block and frame. It's not one thing. It's probably 15 or 20, honestly.
Pirate Parrot Prodigy
12:23
Hello, Jason, while I think Clint Hurdle is a good leader of men and great citizen of Pittsburgh, I cannot overlook multiple late season collapses and the failure to see young players play fundamental baseball (i.e. Will Gregory Polanco ever be able to not overslide the base?).  Do you see the writing on the wall for Clint ... others on the coaching staff?  Neal ... front office?  Minor league development?
Jason Mackey
12:25
Said this on the radio this morning ... around the club, you don't hear much certainty that there's going to be a house-cleaning. That said, if they were going to blow it up, I don't think we would hear that because it's coming from Nutting, and he's not exactly chumming it up with anyone in the local media. There's an expectation that there will be changes. I don't think Nutting likes to be embarrassed in the way this season has done it. But I can't say it's going to cost _____, _____ and _____ their jobs. That said, you're right. Fundamentally, they stink. They've had multiple late-season collapses. I don't think these guys wanna play for Hurdle. It just depends on whether or not Nutting is willing to admit that.
Neil
12:25
Given what appears to be the utter and complete failure by the organization at developing any MLB ready pitchers this year, do you expect sweeping changes to the "pitch to contact" philosophy they've used?  When the ball is flying like it is this year, that seems like a recipe for failure.
Jason Mackey
12:27
Neil, as I typed earlier, it's not as simple as a pitch-to-contact philosophy. That's also just a BS term that gets thrown out there. The Pirates are averaging the most strikeouts per nine innings of the Clint Hurdle Era ... yet they just stink. Unless you mean pitching to contact as in they throw it, and it gets whacked. The Pirates pitching philosophy -- this won't be good news -- is way more flawed than changing one or two things. Much of where the Pirates lack when compared to other teams is actually in preparation, I had a former Pirates pitcher tell me a couple months ago. That includes scouting reports, what they're looking at data-wise, how they've accentuating certain pitches or what they want guys to throw. Anyway, I think they're gonna overhaul it, yeah. They need to.
PhillyJake
12:28
That NH is drafting for profit is a staggeringly naive statement.  Look at how much they spend on the draft.  In most years, it's right up to the threshold of paying penalties.  It's not money.  It's competence.  Or lack thereof.
Jason Mackey
12:29
I didn't take it that way. Maybe that was on me. I took that statement was the team they were putting on the field was put out there to save some bucks or try to do things effectively on the cheap. I think that can be done -- the Rays do it better than anyone -- but the Pirates are falling well short of that stuff. Apologies if I mis-interpreted what you ask, but I don't think Neal drafts guys with finances in mind, I really don't. They might draft the wrong guys more often than not, but it's not for monetary reasons.
Pirate Parrot Prodigy
12:29
If Clint Hurdle is removed from his duties.  Who would you think would be a good successor?  I like Buck Showalter to completely overhaul the process - did so with the Yankees, Diamondbacks, and Orioles with success or led to success; however, his age is a question and compensation.  Would the Pirates simply go to Tom Prince or Jeff Banister?  Would Jay Bell be a candidate?  Would it be possible for Nutting to stretch for a Joe Girardi?
Jason Mackey
12:34
No way on Showalter. And it would be a stretch to say they're gonna get Girardi. Why would he wanna work here, when he could likely write his ticket elsewhere? I think Prince and Banister would be serious possibilities, yes. But I think the best thing the Pirates could do -- for the ballclub and to give the fan base reason to care -- is to go young. Say something to the effect of, "We're gonna go in a completely different direction here. Obviously what we were doing isn't good enough. We're sorry. We're gonna get it right. [Insert name here] has been a part of this with [insert winning club's name here] and has been looking for a chance to run his/her own team. We think [young, smart person's name] is the next man/woman to lead the Pirates back to the postseason, but it could take a couple years for us to replenish our farm system and get the right people in place." ... Be honest. Show a good-faith effort. Get someone young and hungry. I think people can respect that.
Mark
12:34
Do you think that there is any chance at all that Nutting will open his wallet and get the Pirates s good starting pitcher?
Jason Mackey
12:35
I mean, he's going to open his wallet and pay someone to pitch, even if it's a JA Happ type. From everything I've heard do I think it's going to be the smart move or one of any financial consequence whatsoever? Heck no.
Kevin K
12:35
What are your personal predictions for  Josh Bell in 2020?
Jason Mackey
12:36
I see Bell having another very good season. I think 40 homers might be a bit high, but still possible. I see him at about .280 with 30-some homers and 100-plus RBIs. I would like to see some improved defense at first base, too.
PhillyJake
12:36
Not to defend Neal, but it begs the question:  Who can win with only a $70m budget?  Followup question:  After years of budgets around $100m, give or take a few million, why was the budget so low this year?
Jason Mackey
12:38
It's possible, but obviously there's a think margin for error. Injuries and a lack of depth in the system have conspired against Neal. Hey, I'll be the first one to say I think Neal is in a real tough spot. Ownership should be allowing him to do more things, and I think we need to be easier on Neal sometimes whenever things don't work out. We need to remember that it's not like he's authorized to do his job the same as some of his contemporaries, and that's not fair. That said, teams do win on small budgets. ... Hurdle here, too. Remember the next time we complain about why did he go with Yacksel Rios or Williams Jerez in a certain spot. Well, because those are the pitchers they're giving him with which to work. I really don't think Clint would pick this roster composition if you gave him a choice.
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