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Elizabeth Bloom's Pirates chat: 12.12.17
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Elizabeth Bloom
12:36
Word.
12:37
What other questions do we have today?
Foolback
12:38
Elizabeth, I wish you continued success, and good luck with your first chat!  As of today, what do you see the Pirates rotation looking like?
Elizabeth Bloom
12:39
Thanks, Foolback! Oh boy, so much depends on the Cole situation. For fun, though, let's say it's Cole-Taillon-Nova-Williams-Kuhl. (Sound familiar?)
Greg
12:40
Why don't fans realize Pirates can only spend what they make, and they don't make enough. It's not as if a revenue line on the income statement is "Bob's weekly contribution."
Elizabeth Bloom
12:43
That is true. Their revenue determines their spending. I think there's a bit of a chicken-and-egg problem. To generate more revenue, you need more folks in seats; to get more folks in seats, you need a good team, as Huntington often says. To field a good team? I think that's where the Pirates and fans differ. And of course if fans aren't invested, that will affect TV ratings, and if TV contract is less fruitful, that doesn't exactly short-circuit the chicken-egg cycle.
Kevin
12:43
Liz, it seems to me that the Pirates seem content with mediocre starting pitching. They seem to have a number of 4-5 guys with Cole, really a 3, in their number one spot. Shouldn't they be looking for pitching, and really starting pitching? That's how you win and you don't win it with five guys having ERAs in the mid-4.00s
Elizabeth Bloom
12:47
The rotation did not have a great season last year. Cole put in 200 innings, which was really solid, although his ERA and other stats were inflated by some home run-heavy outings. Nova underperformed. They do feel like the three young guys have a high ceiling, though. So if Nova performs like second-half-of-16 Nova, Cole returns to '15 form and Taillon/Williams/Kuhl make steps up? That could look pretty good, and I think that's what the Pirates are banking on. They also brought in Justin Meccage as assistant pitching coach, and I'm interested to see what he'll do with the staff.
David
12:47
What do you guys see in Williams that makes him better than Kuhl?? Just wondering because his ceiling's not high
Elizabeth Bloom
12:49
Williams or Kuhl could be the No. 4/5 starter. Williams was really consistent and solid in terms of getting outs in the second half of the second. From July on, he had a 3.49 ERA. I think most folks would take that for a back of the rotation guy.
Shannon
12:49
Any word on a reunion with the Pittsburgh Kid?
Elizabeth Bloom
12:50
No. I don't think that's gonna happen.
Brian
12:51
Has there been any consideration given to J-Hay's contribution to team chemistry that goes beyond his numbers? He would be huge loss in that regard.  Also, why doesn't the BMTIB seem to be factoring in the new TV contract into personnel decisions.  If there ever were a time to go "all in" wouldn't this be it???
Elizabeth Bloom
12:53
Sean Rodriguez had some interesting thoughts on that subject over the weekend. He didn't mention Harrison specifically (he was talking about the changes made in the last two seasons and the possibility of losing McCutchen). If there's a way to measure Harrison's impact on team chemistry from a statistical standpoint, I'm sure the Pirates would be doing so. (I'm not saying this facetiously at all by the way...I actually wrote about this in the spring. http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/Pitt/2017/03/06/Sloan-Sports-Analyt...)
Foolback
12:54
One more ? for you today.  I still keep seeing articles regarding starting "potential" of Max Moroff.  More national or blog, than local reporters.   Is this still in the Pirates minds a possibility, or is Max Moroff basically competing for bench depth?
Elizabeth Bloom
12:55
I think they'd need to see more from his bat before making him an everyday starter. He showed flashes of that in the last series of the season, and Hurdle speaks highly of him. Obviously the defensive skills are there too.
PatLivingston
12:55
In terms of mastery of gross motor skills  and hand-eye coordination, is it more difficult to do what Joshua Bell does for a living, or what Josh Bell does for a living?
Elizabeth Bloom
12:56
Pat, another amazing question. For those who don't know, Joshua Bell is one of the most famous violinists in the world. I plead the Fifth. They both have been working on their crafts for many many years (well, unless you count Josh Bell's recent switch to 1B).
Jim
12:57
Projecting out the payroll and assuming Cutch, Harrison and Cole are not traded, how much "new player" money do the Pirates have to work with this offseason? (not including arbitration raises)
Elizabeth Bloom
12:57
Not a ton. Bill wrote about this yesterday actually http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/pirates/2017/12/11/Pirates-payroll-...
Jim
12:58
As far as position players go, third base seems like the best spot for a free agent upgrade. Why are the Pirates content with David Freese as a starter? He feels like a fine player to have on your roster, but just very average. His statistics were pretty similar in 2016 and 2017, so the Pirates basically know what they're getting. Could somebody like Todd Frazier ever be considered?
Elizabeth Bloom
12:59
Freese is solid defensively, but it was in nobody's plans to have him be the starter — and that's not the goal for next season either. I think the Pirates will look at some options on the free-agent and trade market at 3B, but if they don't get something done, Freese will almost certainly start less than last season. They have more options there now than they did last season.
1:00
Thanks for a great chat, everyone! Bill Brink will be on here tomorrow afternoon to answer more questions.
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