William Contreras underwent concussion testing following the Brewers’ 5-4 win over the Reds today, after the star catcher was involved with a collision with Stuart Fairchild on the game’s final play. Fairchild was thrown out at home plate trying to score from second base on a Santiago Espinal single, and Contreras was down on the ground for a few moments after being clipped by Fairchild’s forearm.
Placement on the concussion-related injured list would keep Contreras out of action for a minimum of seven days, though it isn’t yet clear if an IL stint is under consideration. It probably seems likely that he won’t be in Monday’s lineup for precautionary reasons, and the Brewers can only hope that the star catcher has avoided any kind of head injury. Contreras had two more hits today to raise his season-long slash line to .305/.367/.467 over 316 plate appearances, for an outstanding 137 wRC+ and 2.6 fWAR (17th in all of baseball).
More from around the NL Central…
- From one Contreras brother to another, as Willson Contreras’ speedy recovery from forearm surgery might take another quick step with a minor league rehab assignment. Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat (links to X) and other reporters that Contreras might begin play at one of the team’s affiliates as early as Tuesday, if not necessarily Triple-A Memphis. Contreras hasn’t played since May 7 when his left forearm was fractured by a J.D. Martinez swing, and he has made remarkable progress considering the 10-week timeline initially projected after his surgery. The catcher has already been taking part in baseball activities for over a week.
- In other Cardinals injury news, Tommy Edman seems to be closing in on his first game action of the season, as the utiltyman is moving his rehab work to the team’s Spring Training complex in Jupiter, Florida. Edman had arthroscopic wrist surgery last October, and his recovery has been slowed by continued discomfort in his wrist. Today’s news is a good sign that Edman is finally starting to ramp up, even if a lengthy rehab process will still be needed after missing so much time.
- While the Pirates haven’t gotten much from their relief corps this season, GM Ben Cherington said the team won’t change its lower-cost approach to finding bullpen help. In his weekly radio appearance on 93.7FM (hat tip to Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette), said “we’re going to keep taking shots on less-proven guys who have pitch qualities that we believe can translate to major league success…and over time, we’re gonna hit on enough of those and it’s gonna add up to a good bullpen.” These pitchers could come from both outside the organization and from within Pittsburgh’s own farm system. If Cherington’s tactics seem limited, it should be noted that virtually every team in baseball tries the same methods, given how reliever performance can vary so greatly from season to season and how unheralded pitchers emerge every season to become ace bullpen arms. This past winter actually saw the Bucs deviate from their usual plan by signing Aroldis Chapman to a one-year, $10.5MM deal, though Chapman’s shaky performance has led to a lot of second-guessing on that acquisition.
- Circling back to the Brewers for the final item, manager Pat Murphy told reporters (including Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) that JB Bukauskas will undergo an MRI after suffering a setback. Bukauskas has been out since mid-April due to a lat strain, and pitched in his first rehab outing last Thursday but emerged with continued soreness. Bukauskas has been in the Brewers’ organization since being claimed off the Mariners’ waiver wire in April 2023, though he has battled multiple injuries during his time in Milwaukee.
Cherrington and Shelton need to be dismissed by the end of the year. No matter the outcome of the season. There is no reason why they can’t OR WONT trade for a bat and relief help. Won’t look good yo the fans if they don’t make moves to improve the team
The problem is……
Then they have to hire people that inherit that roster, organization, and have to work with small market limitations.
The wunderkinds out there aren’t going to be racing away from their organizations and beating down the door for the “opportunity”.
That’s a ridiculous take and unless I’m wrong, you’re an Orioles fan. In knowing that alone, you’re contradicting yourself
The Orioles built their team from the ground up. Good scouting. Exceptional player development. Unless I’m wrong, they are in a situation much like the Pirates where market size is concerned
Contrast the Orioles to the Cherington regime. They tried to embrace the same TB Rays blueprint. Re-stocked the minors. Brought guys up
But the fault here is twofold. One, they bring aboard players whose abilities might not translate to future success in MLB. Two, their player development program has been an abysmal failure. They’ve failed to develop even one impact position player
Cherington needs to move on and take his entire staff with him. A complete rebuild likely isn’t in the cards but there is no helping coming from the minors anytime soon where power or general hitting prowess is concerned.
It’s almost comical that there are those that believe a team with the majority of the lineup hitting below .240 or .250 is going to make noise in October
Perfect take. Cheri tried and failed. Case closed
His reliever strategy is how it should be done but he shouldn’t be talking about it. If I was the reporter I would say this is year 5. The pen isn’t good. You had to pay a guy 10m. Clay Holmes would be nice in that pen though. Was giving him away for nothing part of your plan?
tiredolddude;
Hello again.
My 2 favorite teams for the past 2 years have been the O’s and Phillies. Both have people running them – Elias and Dombrowski – that came in and put solid baseball people in place to scout, analyze, coach up, and maintain an organization committed to playing fundamental baseball on the field. Fact is, their styles of play are different as shown this weekend when the 2 teams played one another (exceptional series)…..and that’s fine.
Next up for me are the Brewers. They stand a good chance of being an elite team in 2 years. They look much like the O’s did 2 years ago with their youngsters. Building a team up the middle starting with the Catcher (all superior baseball teams are built from the Catcher out….and it doesn’t matter if he hits).
Cherington has been part of the prisoned Shapiro tree – which is where his manager came from as well. They glad handle one another and stroke players as opposed to enforcing discipline while constantly cutting corners on fundamentals. Every once in a while their teams have a very good year.
I’m sorry, but there aren’t a lot of Mike Elias’ or Dave Dombrowski’s out there – Baseball Ops heads that understand all aspects of the game in and out; have a group of quality people they’ve worked with that they can bring with them; and have the ability to put an ORGANIZATION in place before we even start talking players. In short, they GROW ALL their baseball people.
I understand your frustration. It would be nice to fire Cherington. But my point was – who exactly do they hire, and why would a quality person come into that situation? Running a team like the Pirates is a career killer for a professional baseball person. They have to have the assurance that they’ll be fully in charge, and an idea of a budget they’d have over a 4-6 year period.
You need a new owner.
P.S. The Orioles were hardly built on the “TB Rays blueprint”. Not even close. They were built as Elias did working with Sig Mejdal (now with the O’s) and Jeff Luhnow when they were with the Astros, putting in place the strategies the 3 of them used building a championship team in St. Louis……which others took credit for (and have been falling on their faces since).
You need to watch some Orioles games. They’ll be in the playoffs this year and very probably in the WS.
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You compare what Cherington has done to the O”s?
Teams are built from up the middle out, starting with the Catcher and then SS. You need bright, proactive players there with leadership qualities. Cherington drafted a Catcher – that can’t catch – #1 in all for baseball one year, doesn’t have a coaching staff to work with him, and he’s got a so-so DH playing SS that’s more concerned with hobnobbing with opposing players when they reach 2B then being on the side of his fellow defenders and pitcher.
Dream- Are you being disingenuous on Holmes?
You just said to move along from Hernandez after 1/2 year of poor pitching after 1/2 year of fine pitching.
He was hurt in the middle of last year then may have faded because of innings limits.
Holmes had FOUR years of chances to do well here.
He had even more than Glasnow did.
The pen is not good because of the injuries to three of their best last year and the lack of depth in the farm system plus spending all the money on one reliever.
Every Pirate fan knows that this team needs a new owner. But Nutting is turning too much of a profit to ever consider selling the franchise
He along with Kevin McClatchy paid somewhere in the neighborhood of $90 million dollars for the franchise in 1998 and now it’s valued at $ 1.3 billion dollars
The only upside is that his children want no part of baseball or being owners when he passes
So eventually there will be new owner, probably long after most of us older fans are dead
Thanks for the reply and education, Samuel, as usual.
You hit the nail on the head in so many regards here, from hiring solid baseball people, to how to build a team (which is what I always believed, too) to Cherington and his people
It would seem to me that the Rays idea still has roots with the O’s if for no other reason that they drafted extremely well—like your thoughts on bright, proactive players—and have avoided knee-jerk free agent signings
And boy, your descriptions of Davis and Cruz are spot on
That’s my point. If you can’t develop pitching then picking up cast offs as a strategy to build your pen isn’t a strategy.
Holmes had the best stuff in the pen. Worth not giving up on. Hernandez not the case. They couldn’t and never were going to develop either so good riddance to both. Just don’t go around discussing your strategy. Every team does it. You been trying it for 5 years and have failed. Time for this clown to go.
Dream- The biggest problem with the Pirates has been their lack of development of position players,
Cherington has had a very bad year after several years of decent trades and good free agent signings.
He gave away Marte and Bell although neither evidently had great trade value.They were salary dumps.
I have panned him for the very young players that he has received who have not developed.
Doh,
Their pitching coaches have been decent.
I really believe that this team could do better with a new manager and hitting coach,and added fire and passion.
Any players who do not follow get traded.
They need a new development group.The scouts have been OK.
I doubt very much that Cherington is getting that kind of feedback from Nutting or anyone else unless he reads this site on a regular basis.
This really reminds of the last regime who got complacent and worn down by the lack of resources.Other small market teams do better with the same or less.This is a critical year for the entire management team.
Cherington has been fine good or great in every area except development. Huntington had the same problem. Where do you find people who can develop? World class coaches just sitting around unemployed? Nutting going to pay more than other owners tp steal them away from other teams? O’s had some development people in their system. They had some good teams. They took a guy who the pirates thought was so bad they took Taillon over him and turned him into a mvp contender.
Under Dave Littfield, Syd Thrift and Joe L Brown, the Bucs were successful in player development
I’ve been saying this over and over…get rid of Shelton and Haines. Shelton is so detrimental to the maturation of this team. It’s mind boggling that they still pay this moron. Any other team eould have canned him a long time ago. Guess nutty bar Nutting won’t pay a guy to sit on his can.
And cherrington has been good in drafting and developing young starting pitchers. But has failed miserably on everyday players. I give from the trade deadline till the end of the year. If the pirates don’t win 81 or more games, then he can row row rows the boat with Shelton and Haines down the ohio.
Joe l brown, to me was the most underrated general manager. After the 1966 season when the pirates lost out in the last weekend. He traded for maury wills in 1967. Then he traded for Jim bunning in 1968. Both trades were busts, as these 2 former stars were at the end of their careers.
Then came the expansion draft in 1969. He rebuilt the pirates with hebner,Oliver, cash,Robertson. Going with youth and still having the great one and Willie the starge.
Paving the way for the 70s and the LUMBER COMPANY.
Examples of players developed under Brown
Al Oliver
Dock Ellis
Richie Hebnet
Richie Zisk
Bob Moose
Dave Cash
Dave Parker
In my opinion, Oliver belongs in the HOF as does Dave Parker
Joe Brown was a very classy man,and his pushing of Mazeroski in front of the election committee got Maz into the HOF.
If only he had had someone with pull doing the favor for him.
I’ll take Lou Brown.
You didn’t know Joe.
I would take Lou for Shelton.
Year number 4 and this team really isn’t better than last year except for the starting pitching which only Keller can be attributed to pitching development
Their offense is being carried by just a few players, they collectively strike out in double digits almost every game and their bullpen has been shaky at times
Their closer has an era of over 5 and has already blown 3 save opportunities
Their top home run hitter was the league MVP a decade ago and their top run producer doesn’t even have 40 runs batted in
Yes, this no doubt should be a make or break season for top management all the way down to coaching staff
Samuel- Did the wunderkinds race away to Baltimore with all the discord from ownership of that team?
Philly is not a comp in any way because they like the Dodgers and Yankees have bought their teams.
There is no reason that the Pirates cannot hire decent young management level personnel just like most of the other small market teams have done.They just may have to pay them more money than other teams with winning records.
My problem with Cherington is that he cannot adapt.He keeps on trotting out the same methods and employs the same people with the same results which is the definition of stupidity.He will not take bold moves,and thus employs people who have no passion for the game.
He does not understand that he needs to make fundamental changes,but is not capable of doing so.
Nutting will spend decent amounts if he has a winning team.
I doubt that that is possible with this group.
Samuel’s point about no one wanting the Pirates GM job is hopefully an exaggeration and yet, I would hope that when they do move on the new GM is a young, aggressive type with a thorough understanding of how to draft players and more importantly, how to develop them
While he says that the O’s weren’t built in the style of the Rays, I tend to disagree. The blueprint is largely the same, as Dream has documented frequently.
I can accept the idea of a frugal owner where signing free agents is concerned but again, franchises can succeed with avoiding that path, as TB has and as the Orioles and Brewers are currently doing
I do believe that this was the idea when Cherington came on board. But they have one helluva problem now
*The players who are here are average players, at best, and generally below average as hitters
* There is no help coming from the minors save for perhaps McAdoo at AA
So what happens now?
Davis and Johnson show no signs they’ll ever be MLB impact players
So where do they go now?
There’s nowhere to go this year except trading away the one year contract players for scraps and hope at least one becomes a better than mediocre player they have this year
Of all the one year contract players, only Chapman bring back a better than mediocre player they currently have but it’s not a guarantee.
Joe is eligible for free agency this winter so he’s probably going to be traded
Unless Rowdy becomes Aaron Judge by the deadline he will be given away for scraps and the same goes for Taylor
Joe isn’t near free agency yet. 2028 I believe. Not that they couldn’t afford to sign him if he was. Their free agent splash in 2025 probably won’t be much better the Joe. Joe with better defense.
2027, but you’re right Dream, including the fact that they won’t be able to afford him
He will be 32 next year and has slipped into a deep slump recently which explains why Shelton moved him down in the lineup
He was batting close to .300 a month ago and now he’s hovering around .260
Regardless, he should be shown the door too at the deadline
He can’t seriously be considered part of the future
Mendoza Line 215;
You’re reaching and generalizing. Am disappointed.
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“Samuel- Did the wunderkinds race away to Baltimore with all the discord from ownership of that team?”
No. Elias had assurances about his authority and budgets. The plan was for him and his people to right the franchise so it could be sold. That’s exactly what happened (and there’s a good chance he and his people got a bonus on the sale).
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“Philly is not a comp in any way because they like the Dodgers and Yankees have bought their teams.”
That’s total BS, lazy, and pure demagoguery.
Yes, they signed Turner, Castellanos, and Schwarber. But they let Hoskins, Didi, Segura and others go.
When Dombrowski took over they had the worst D and worst bullpen with most blown saves in MLB. They now have one of the best bullpens in MLB, that they developed through superior coaching.
They’re developed Ranger Suarez from being a situational LH reliever to a leading candidate for NL Cy Young award this year as a stating pitcher. They absolutely stole Edmundo Sosa from the Cardinals and developed him a an all around player (far better than anyone on the Pirates roster). They traded for Brandon Marsh and have made him a better all-around player. Recently Castellanos made an error in RF – his first in over 407 games. An NL record at that position. While he’s no gold glover, they made him into a decent RF (which I never expected). They worked with Alec Bohm and made him an all-star player (cleanup hitter) both offensively and at 3B. Schwarber is a far better hitter than he as when they got him.
There’s more.
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If you think all that happened because the Phillies signed free agents, take a seat in the back of the class facing the wall next to the others that stare a stats and think they understand baseball.
Joe is part of the future. There’s nothing in the minors close. Couple A ball and lower lotto tickets.
Good chance they are buyers at deadline. NL wild card isn’t going anywhere. All these teams are about the same. I have a hard time seeing them not shutting Jones down. But if Perez can blow the rust off he can’t replace Jones but can be good enough. Marco would be huge. Ashcraft can help. See if Burrows can get in there. Gonzales figured things out on his own. Tellez dad and friend helped him. Just need Jack and Henry to find someone who isn’t employee of Pirates to fix them. Either way NL is so weak they can snag a playoff spot as likely as anyone. Be nice to have Jones in playoffs but I think they blown through too many innings.
If Joe is indeed part of the future, we’re in trouble
He struck out on a pitch 3’ off the plate
And Jack just did what he does best
swung and missed on 3 pitches
Slump is over. Extend Haines now before they face Lodolo.
I live near Philadelphia and follow the Phillies closely.
I will take your word on Elias.
Dombrowski in my opinion is a sure HOFer.He has done a fine job correcting the mess of McFail and Klentak.
But if you think that he would have taken the Pirates job for any amount of money you should be the one facing the wall.
Any 10 year old Little Leaguer could have figured out not to sign the players that you mention.
And anybody who knows the business of baseball knows that the Phillies have continually signed some of the most expensive free agents and will continue to do so until they win a WS.
And there is a reason why the 207 hitting Catellanos evidently has a record- he covers about five square feet out there.
I expect more out of you Samuel than a knee jerk reaction.
My sources tell me that Nutting will be looking for a “Dream GM” soon.
which slump is over?
Not Connor Joe. He’s 3 for his last 29 plate appearances including the three times he struck out swinging last night
Not Hayes who is also in a slump
About the only players not in a slump are Cutch, Reynolds and Tellez. Sure Cruz hit a 2 run single last night but he’s still striking out too often
Reynolds has a 16 game hitting streak going
if they are able to sign a younger outfielder with some potential, Joe won’t be returning.
Cherington will be under pressure to make the team more competitive and cutting dead weight will be essential
Making the playoffs is one thing, winning a playoff series is another and with this current lineup, they aren’t likely to go beyond the initial playoff spot
sign a younger outfielder with some potential? Even if such a mythical creature exists (they don’t as most players don’t get to be free agents until 30 and if they have potential that was never unlocked it’s early to mid 30s kinda like Joe!) other teams would see this potential and easily outbid the Pirates.
You are stuck with Joe unless he is awful. You better hope he turns it around because the replacement options won’t be pretty. At best it’s try to find the next Joe. At worst it’s over pay for a washed up 30 something.
TJ is the initials of the Pirates “best” hitting prospect. Don’t feel bad that you don’t know this as he hasn’t done anything since being drafted to deserve being known.
Yinzers are on this site now? Sheesh, I’m a fan, and the last thing i want is for them to acquire a bat and relievers. For what? To push for a 3rd WC spot with the two best players on the team being rookies with innings limits? I don’t want them trading anybody that’s not on an expiring contract.
The yinzers are dahntahn, up on Mount Washington, over in the Strip District, eating at Primante Bros, on the North Side, and even on here.
The moron who doesn’t even know Pittsburgh weighs in with a response at his intelligence level.
Primanti’s isn’t the only restaurant in town and I know of very few people who hang out on Mt Washington
Ever been to Station Square?
Taken the family to Kennywood?
Obviously it’s not the only restaurant. And I have been to station square, just down the Mon Incline from Grandview Ave on Mount Washington. I stayed at the Sheraton Station Square last year.
But I had a close friend who lived in the Mountview, the yellow apartment building at the top of the Mon Incline. I saw many people hanging out on Grandview Ave enjoying the view and in the shops and restaurants on Shiloh Street.
did you happen to see the city upon leaving the Fort Pitt tunnel at night?
On my first visit in 1986. Saw Barry Bonds hit his second career homer that weekend.
@theman kind of funny to say people don’t hangout at mount Washington then offer the sterilized corporate district at the bottom of Mount Washington as the vibe lol.
do you suffer from reading comprehension?
I never said people don’t hangout on Mt Washington
Talk about laughing, I’m laughing at your ignorance of what I said
I said I know of very few people that hangout there
You might want to take a course in reading comprehension
Why do people always leave out keller when it comes to their young core. He’s one of the top pitchers in the league. And you call yourself a fan????
I would be fine if they traded Connor Joe, Oliveras and Alika Williams in a package for a power hitting outfielder
Or packaging Shelton, Haines and Cherington for people that know and understand baseball because these three bozos don’t
No one wanted Olivares. Pirates got him for free. He is having a weak season so no reason for them to want him now.
Alika little value as a glove only infielder.
Joe some value but not enough to get anything mlb useful. Certainly not a power hitter. Joe would get you a top 30 prospect. Not one that is even sniffing the top 100. Any team trading for Joe doesn’t have a mlb outfielder to spare.
To get anything of high value the Pirates will have to trade TJ or more likely one of their best half dozen pitching prospects.
the season TJ is having the Bucs might not get much for him
They are resistant to going all in
Really, the decision needs to be made in the off season. “We’re going to go for it. What pieces do we need? Let’s spend the money and bring the upper tier types in”
I doubt that conversation will ever be had
They’re in a real bind. They have huge offensive needs and no way to bring impact players in at deadline time unless they trade bigger prospects
And let’s face it, they’re prospects aren’t all that good either
And beyond that, there is no one on this team who’s suddenly going to become an RBI machine, especially when relatively few guys get on base
Their most dangerous hitter is likely the same guy that was in 2012.
Another team would be relatively insane to send a legitimate stick here unless they just want to dump salary
But we can look forward to the winter, and more “A+ signings”
Teams don’t care about what a player does in the Pirates organization only what they could do in theirs.
Problem is, a great many players within the organization still have to deemed as having value. They still have to be seen as major leaguers someday. I’m betting that most teams don’t have high hopes for all but a handful of Pirates prospects
Pirates can get any player in baseball on the market. They have pitching prospects. Hitting is there problem. They have some buy low guys teams would be interested in but pitching is what they have and other teams will want.
There a report today that the Marlins are going to move Josh Bell and are going to have to eat most of his contract in doing so
I can almost see it…..Oy
Who is TJ???
Samuel is right. A lot of people don’t want to work with small market limitations. You also have to get players that want to go to a small market situation.
On the other hand, a smart GM spend his resources wisely instead of throwing money around without a real plan like some teams. You see it done well in Cleveland, Tampa, KC at times, for example.
Count Cherington out for spending limited money on resources
Have you seen how horrible the $4 million he spent on Michael A Taylor?
The guy is a strikeout machine and more often than not an automatic out
He is being paid for defense he has never hit. They 2 money guys champan will be traded and perez is hurt was also someone that was signed to be traded.
They don’t have many hitters in the minors but are deep at pitching
Weren’t going to get much of anything for Chapman when the teams that may have wanted him would have to pay 2X salary because of the luxury tax and certainly not going to get much for him at a 1.72 WHIP + his other peripherals.
They can pay his salary if it means a better return thats why kc signed him last season. He is still a guy who throws left and hits 100 and has playoff experience that’s what matters.
This team is at the bottom of the league in runs scored. His defense doesn’t matter when they can’t out score their opponents
you realize that Taylor hit 22 homers last year and only has one this year?
He’s the most worthless $4 million dollar free agent Cherington has ever signed
And he combined for 21 the previous 2 seasons it was an outlier
Defense matters more to teams that don’t put up a lot of runs than it does to high scoring teams. True in all sports.
having playoff experience won’t matter if they can’t out score the opposing teams
what part of their lackluster offense don’t you understand?
when your pitching staff gives up more runs than you do, his roaming center field matters none
Saturday they lost 16 to 4
How many runs did Taylor save from his defense?
It’s like talking to a wall
No one thought he was going to hit anywhere near 22 hrs this year or he would have gotten more than 4m.
I’m just questioning why they even signed him Dream
He contributes nothing to this team
4 million is the going rate for his type. They didn’t have a cf. Other all glove no bat guys went for 10m. They took the last available option.
You left out better examples like Baltimore and Milwaukee
I can only wish the Pirates had such leadership
But today’s headline is that Cherington is going to continue with his laughable dumpster dives for middle relievers
It’s worked so well, hasn’t it?
No word about trying to build an offensive attack that will support Skenes, Keller, Jones, Falter. No comments about such a pathetic team in terms of hitting
Maybe if he clicks his heels together 3 times and makes a wish, a couple of the guys will become run producers
If there’s one thing that Cherington has mastered, it’s dumpster diving for worthless and cheap relief pitchers
You could say he’s made it an art
Fire cherington because from what I’ve seen it’s a miracle that Shelton has hovered close to the .500 mark
It’s not always the managers fault for a team being bad
In that division it doesn’t take much to be near .500.
You know, he does some odd things as a game manager but I generally think you’re on target. I don’t believe he has full say in lineup assembly—and if he does, let me say that he bends over backwards to be the good shepherd to this flock of kids—and I think he gets “suggestions” from above
That said, you’re right. You can’t get blood from a stone. He has lackluster hitters, three good starting pitchers and a box of chocolates in Falter, a poor middle innings staff save for Ortiz and some wildly inconsistent closing guys, including, unfortunately, Bednar
When this team is going badly as they often are offensively, I get the feeling he is looking for something—anything—to get a spark. Anyone who’s ever managed a failing team from little league on up knows the feeling
My biggest problem with Shelton is the idea that during his tenure, he’s allowed the young guys to play as if they’re going through the motions and that’s especially true where Cruz and Hayes are concerned. That just sets a bad precedent
You do realize that despite having only one team with a winning record, the NL Central has the best combined record in the NL? One good team and four mediocre teams. Other NL divisions have at least one terrible team. Look at who would get into the playoff tournament for the NL, if it started today. Four decent teams, one 500 team and one below 500 team. Sad state of affairs for MLB.
The AL East is a beast of a division this year.
Yep, you’re right. This is what the front office is hanging its hat on, of course. But it’s a false positive, isn’t it?
The Brewers are far and away the best team in the division. Despite Mookie’s injury, the Dodgers are still a superior team. The Phillies. The Braves are still a good team.
You’re right about the rest of the pack in the division and the NL. And if the goal is just making the playoffs, hey, great. It’s almost like the NHL and even NBA, where even the bottom feeders make the playoffs
The thing is, it wouldn’t take much to make the Pirates into a real contender. Might require taking on more salary. They can afford it. Might involve trading prospects at positions in which they’re deep. Middle infield and pitchers
But we both know they’re going to do very little because the wild card race is a struggle in mediocrity, and one they can possibly “win”
and even if they become a wild card spot, it will matter none after they lose their first game it will be season over
But Cherington will pound his chest for this accomplishment
you can’t win a world series with mediocre hitters and a bench that struggles with putting the ball in play
And I have become tired of people saying that every team in this division is mediocre so we should be able to get a wild card spot
I am sick of mediocrity, we should be better than that
@TheMan3. I hear you on mediocrity, I battle the same thing. Unfortunately the altar worshippers think mediocrity is good while another year of the window on a young team is wasted. That’s life for a small market team in this messed up system.
And that’s the true tragedy in all of this. The window closes quickly. The stars need to align to have a juggernaut of a team go to the big show
But some teams do it right
Baltimore. Milwaukee Cleveland
Tampa in the past
I carp about small market like everyone else but really, it can be done. You can build a franchise that continually rejuvenates itself and competes with new talent
But you need the right competent, visionary people in place
They’re not here in Pittsburgh
You never know what the future holds. If you have a chance to make playoffs you go for it. Don’t sell the farm. But give it a go. Even sell some players if the deal is right. I have my doubts about their urgency. Looks like if Jones isn’t going to win ROY that they will shut him down early. If I was thinking playoffs I would have been limiting his innings. A lot of games over 5 innings. Lot of games over 80 pitches. Kinda had to because of the failure of the pen. His master strategy. I can’t see them say screw the innings limits we are going for it. And kicking the can down the road is what fans deserve. They are outraged if Jones get pulled after 5 innings. Complain about Skenes not making opening day roster. Complain about him only going 2 3 innings in minors. Complain about him not being called up already. Forget about making playoffs. They would rather complain about shutting the rookies down then have their team make playoffs. Although they will still complain about them if they make the playoffs. Already happening. So what if they make the playoffs. They are mediocre. Will lose the 1st wild card game and it’s over. Nutting Cherington Shelton is the perfect management for the Pirates. The management Pirates fans deserve.
NL Central has a sub .500 record outside of their division combined. Same last year and the year before. Central is soft. MLB needs two new teams, go back to East/West and rekindle old rivalries.
Dream, to read you so down on Cherington on company is sobering.
Yeah, well, what choice do they have other than to go for a wild card in the NL? It doesn’t look like it’ll take much more than .500 to back into a spot
Agree with you about Skenes and Jones and while unpopular, and whether they’re in the hunt or not, the Pirates will shut them down. Too many reasons to do so and many examples of flame outs
I like to think I know what I am talking about. I am sure many here disagree. I knew they weren’t trying to contend at all in 2020 2021 2022. I knew there development was awful, worst or top 5 worst in baseball. Loved their 2023 free agency. Got what they needed and if healthy they could contend. They weren’t healthy and had that awful long hitting slump. 2024 got off to a good start. Perez Gonzales awesome moves. Olivares for free nice. Hey Tellez as a bounce back sure. Why not Santana too? They brought in Choi AND Santana. Instead we get Jack Lamb and they wouldn’t even call him up. Chapman is a luxury move. 10.5 is a lot for Pirates. There team waa so stacked they had nothing better to do with that $? I am ok with all of that. But it’s year 5 and I see zero improvement in hitting development. That is what gets me down. Another team wide hitting slump with Haines and he is still employed. Even worse the manager is a former hitting coach and loves Haines. Maybe Haines os wonderful ok then fire Cherington. He can’t provide this amazing hitting coach hitters. It’s a coaching problem or a talent problem. I don’t care which one but do something to fix it. How long is Nutting going to just sit back and see what happens? Time is ticking. In 3 to 5 years Bednar Keller Suwinski Cruz Davis Gonzales Endy etc are all gone. Either extend or trade a year or 2 before free agency. Most these guys won’t have much trade value if you can’t improve them. Jones Skenes only have 5 more seasons. Extend or trade and can’t extend everyone. You can’t waste contention years. Just about every hitter or should I say batter because most aren’t hitters are worse. The bright side is some are only slightly worse.
Cherington would be an improvement for at least half the teams. Unfortunately in Pittsburgh he needs to be top 10 even top 5. 13th 15th whatever he is just isn’t good enough with Nutting as your owner. Trading veterans for prospects is the easiest thing you can do. Whatever team give you the guy who throws the hardest or hits ball the hardest you trade with them. Takes little skill to draft TJ Skenes. Idiot fans wanted Crews but no gm was passing on Skenes. Even Gonzales Davis were pretty much have to take players. Find all stars after the 4th round and I will be impressed.
Reds-Some think that just getting into the playoffs gives you a chance.I don’t buy that.
I would be very happy with 86 wins even if the Pirates did not make the playoffs.
And small market teams really do not have the superstars to compete after maybe the wild card round.Maybe they get lucky for another round.
One championship since 1991 is basically statistically irrelevant when you are competing against teams that can and do just throw money around.
If this was the 90’s and pitchers were going deep into games, I’d have to give a staff of Skenes, Jones and Keller more than a fighting chance
But on one hand, they’ll likely shut the two kids down long before the playoffs and on the other, middle relief would be the downfall of this team
I’d still take those three pitchers every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
As far as the bullpen, I am always big on developing a solid one, especially with starters going five innings nowadays. As many have said here, they need to work on that. Hell, we need to work on that too.
If the Pirates could just develop some position players to go with their starting pitchers, they would really have something. Those guys seem to fizzle out for the most part so far.
That’s the great failure of the Cherington regime; player development. That their farm system is so threadbare where potential impact players are concerned is almost amazing.
Look at their lineup here. These are average players, at best
As for Nutting making a change at GM, I just don’t see it. The guy is a businessman who literally doesn’t know or care about a team that’s performing around .500. Financially speaking, that’s fine and it’s his only concern
Being monumentally bad has numerous ripple effects to the bottom line but this? People are coming out to see the young pitchers. Some have bought into the hype surrounding Cruz And it’s a beautiful ballpark. I have to think life is wonderful for Bob Nutting
What bats are you going out to get right now when 25 teams are still in the race?
Bucco-I say fire Shelton and Haines right now.
Promote Don Kelly and Eric Munson.
If Cherington will not do it,either hire a baseball person over him,or find an replacement over the rest of this year.
Obviously in that case Nutting would have to get involved.
Getting Contreras and Edman back would be a nice boost for the Cardinals, especially Contreras. Edman will likely take time to get back to form.
Contreras is probably the better player but getting Edman back will be huge. Siani while a good defensive player can’t hit. Carlson has been awful. Edman is sorely missed but both are really important.
There aren’t that many GM positions in baseball. Many smart, young people would absolutely take the job in Pittsburgh despite market and payroll limitations. These are ambitious people who would see it as a challenge.
Example of how cheap Cherington is
Carlos Santana wanted to return to Pittsburgh last spring and wanted $5 million dollars for a one year contract
Instead, Cherington signed Rowdy Tellez to a one year contract for $3.2 million dollars
As of yesterday, Santana has 11 homers and has driven in 40 runs
Tellez has 2 homers and has driven 17 runs
Santana’s numbers would lead this team in both categories
And they could flip him again…..
they could, you’re right but this owner is reluctant to pay for a player that no longer plays for the team and I am talking about Tellez
He’s having such a bad year trading him is highly unlikely. They would have to release him and Nutting wouldn’t be too thrilled about it
Not flip Tellez, I’m a Brewers fan and I’m well aware of the fact unless we’re talking hot dog eating contest Tellez has no value, I meant they could’ve flipped Santana yet again kinda like they did last year to the Brewers but they went the cheap route with Tellez (not all that much cheaper anyways) and it’s not even close to being worth it
Would PIT be interested in Pham or (Benitendi if some salary paid down)?
I think they could get something decent for Bednar if they develop a younger closer. I realize his ERA is high.
Who in the right mind would want benintendi it would be like wanting to trade for Jose abreu
I have to believe their hope is that Chapman continues to throw in the 99-104 range with a little better control so they can dump him for a hitter of some kind. What a monumental blunder it was to sign that guy
I have to think the value of guys like Bednar and Reynolds sure has come down in the past year or so and in the case of Bednar, he’s a local kid and one of the faces of the franchise even still
Beni stinks. Pham personality probably turns them off. Right now pirates look more like sellers than buyers. I am waiting for them to sell the rentals, shut down Jones and work the PR to get fans excited about 2025. Hope I am wrong, and I am not even making a prediction it’s just how it appears and the Pirates thing to do. Best case they attempt to contend with Perez instead of Jones. If Perez ever comes back. They say Gonzales will pitch again this year. He may but for how long? Burrows maybe? Ashcraft? None of these guys are Jones. Offense is so bad they need Jones. Pen so bad they need Jones. Perez Gonzales hurt they need Jones. Failure to develop Contreras Priester they need Jones. Old Jones’y won’t be finishing the season. Good news though is extra year of control.
“ get the fans excited about 2025”
funny, I distinctly recall that same thing being said about 2024 during the recent offseason
The problem with this is they say the same thing every year and nothing changes
It’s always next year with this organization
I don’t get the Jones of the last few starts and it’s hard to make a judgment via the TV. Is it him or his catcher that has a fascination with repeatedly trying to hit the outside corner. Over and over. And over again
His spin pitches are either out of the zone of are spinning down Main Street
He’s finding out the MLB hitters who don’t have “Pittsburgh” emblazoned across their chests make adjustments. Heat eventually gets hit when it’s all you’re able to throw for strikes and this served on a silver platter
I hope for the best with this kid but the jury is out.
Haven’t seen Ashcroft or Burrows but apparently Bubba is throwing better
I agree with you about all of this. Pierogi races, more fireworks and wait till next year are dead ahead
Dram- They need to be buyers.Too many mediocre teams.
They will not spend big,and they need to keep Perez and Gonzalez to eat innings.Both have done OK this year.
You saw how much money starters were getting last off season.
They need both for when innings limits hit Skenes and Jones this year.
As an aside,Andujar has been hitting well in Oakland after his return from injury.They could have used him in right field.
Your boy Cherington has been having a very bad year.
Andujar has just been lucky so far. Taking good at bats though so maybe he will make some progress.
Cherington isn’t my boy. I would have traded Reynolds and definitely Bednar. Cherington is very mediocre. He is good even great at doing easy things. That’s better than half the gms. But Pittsburgh needs to be top 10 if not top 5. Can’t be bottom 2 in payroll and not be top 5 everywhere else. It’s not easy. Teams keep getting smarter. It’s a tuff ask but it’s what’s needed.
Look where Pirates are at with a dominating Jones until recently. Exchanging that with Perez Gonzales isn’t the same. Certainly not in a playoff series. Take Skenes out and yikes. Need those guys to stay healthy and everyone else. They should give it their all but it’s a hill to climb. Injury happens and they might be calling Rich Hill.
My point with Andujar is that he was clearly going to be better than anybody that the Pirates would be playing in right field.
You would trade all medium young players for prospects and never develop a team for ten years.
The Pirates are never going to get a first rate GM.Their only chance is to get a young person who has the essentials and will grow into the job.
I did not say it would be the same but I doubt that neither Jones nor Skenes will be allowed to pitch more than 150 innings this year if that.They will need both veteran pitchers if nothing more than to eliminate reliever started games.
They couldn’t keep him. Not going to pay him arbitration. Maybe he is stupid and wanted to come back on a minor league deal. If my career was hanging on by a thread I wouldn’t want to go back to Haines and Pirates. Especially when they were so hesitant to call me up. No way would I have signed with them unless there was no other option.
You’re right,but Cherington is not good at thinking outside of the box and taking chances.
I would have taken Joe for sure and even Olivares over Andujar. In a fantasy world Jack hits like he did in 2023 and moves to RF because Taylor or Bae perform. Andujar at over 2 million wasn’t an option. His playing time last year told you what they thought of him. He would have to be stupid to come back. Oakland paid him a bit under 2m but doesn’t mean he would accept that from Pirates or that they would have wanted to pay that. His numbers project to go down significantly so we will see what happens. Taylor Olivares Triolo looked good for awhile.
We’ll see.I think that all he needed was an actual chance with 200 at bats to see what he could do.
You said it- they got Oliveras for nothing.Taylor is a centerfielder.And Joe was playing the best that he ever has until the last few weeks when he dropped quickly.
Yep. I ain’t watching Oakland baseball. My projections say he has over achieved. Projections say he should regress. They can be wrong. I hope he does well and gets paid next year.
Pirates should tear down so they have a chance at competing in the future so they don’t waste and let Paul and Jared walk with 9 digits because they hate the team
Pirates have to remember the kid that turned into a watermelon head…
Agreed. They have to think they have three strong starters with some combo of Ashcroft, Bubba, Solo, Burrows and Oviedo coming up in the next year
Have to surround them with some semblance of an offensive attack
But they have nothing here and nothing coming up through the minors, it appears
With an owner who is reluctant to spend, you get the feeling that competing for wild card berths for a few years is the aim. Sheesh.
if they tear it all down and start over again we Pirate fans will be witnessing yet another rebuild which is common under the current ownership
For those who don’t know about me, I have been a Pirate fan since 1966, watched Willie Stargell hit a homer over the right field roof at Forbes Field, becoming only the second player to do this. The other player was Babe Ruth
I was a season ticket holder for 30 years,attested the All Star game at 3 Rivers in 1994, witnessed the good and the ugly times with this organization and now at my age, hoping to see another championship from this team has become a reality that probably won’t happen
Paul-The eight small market teams have won one WS since 1991.
Sorry,it isn’t happening.
I just want them to have a team like they did in 2013-2015.
Paul doesn’t want a world series. Claims he does but doesn’t. Not happy with a mediocre team making playoffs. Only way the Pirates can win a world series is for their mediocre team to make the playoffs and get hot at the right time. They can’t spend 300 million. Can’t afford to trade away top prospects. They need luck with health. Make some lower tier rental trades and luck in playoffs. It’s possible. Not probable. Mediocre is all they can hope for. They didn’t do well enough with their drafts and trades. Part failure to develop part bad luck. There was no Adley. Only a Henry. O’s took Holiday had to settle for TJ. Rebuild is over. It was just mediocre. Hope Skenes Jones Keller are healthy and take your chances with your mediocre lineup.
Cleveland Tampa built world series capable teams, just didn’t work out. If they played the series again or a 9 game series they might have won. So if a small market team has a top 5 gm with top 5 scouting and top 5 development they can win a world series. That isn’t Pittsburgh right now and doesn’t look like they are on a fast track to being this.
I haven’t heard anything about Paul not caring about the WS, he literally carried LSU to the championship by taxing his arm at such a young age
I hear it every day.
Well put Dream.
The lower tier rentals are a non starter here when you have a team that can’t hit or score runs, and nothing coming through the minors
No low tier player like a Tellez or Santana is going to suddenly make this team a threat It’s just not possible
Most of the guys here are below .250
There is no home run threat
There are no real rbi guys
Reynolds is the only real hitter here
Hayes looks lost. Cruz looks lackadaisical but hey, exit velocity! And Gonzales batting 4th is nice but really, not the prototype
They need a couple wall bangers —an outfielder and/or 1st baseman would be nice. But this franchise won’t spend for it
It’s almost like Nutting opened his wallet during the Cutch hey-day and brought some big timers in but feels he got nothing in return
Skenes reminds me a great deal of Cole, too. Unfortunately, I don’t think this team will ever touch those Pirates teams in any way, shape or form
Can’t touch those teams. Teams are too smart to let a Liriano go under the rader. Most humans aren’t AJ and will opt out of more $ to play his final year somewhere he was happier. Russel Martin won’t go under the radar now. Pirates where really active in international market when some teams didn’t participate. Pirates spent a ton of $ in draft when teams were allowed to spend as much as they wanted. Teams are no longer ran as poorly. There are fewer stupid teams every year. Huntington seen out the last of the golden age. Him and Cherington are equals. Just the other teams are much smarter now. Use yourself as an example. You probably learned more about baseball in the last 10 years than you did in all time before that. From 1900 to 2000 not much changed. I don’t buy baseball cards but I bet the back of them right now has more information than last century. 20 years ago only a few teams valued obp. 10 years ago only a few valued framing. Now everyone knows about it and teams value it. You Paul etc don’t care about. Still use avg rbi wins era but you know there is am entire world beyond that. Pirates pitched low in the zone and shifted when most other teams did not. Then everyone does it so advantage gone. Every year there are fewer and fewer advantages a team can have. There is still one advantage though….. Payroll. And unfortunately the Pirates can’t take advantage of that.
What a article. I been on fire of late. I should be charging a premium membership myself.
You are on a roll Dream.
Put your name into Nutting.
He’s on a roll but the analytics he talks about are merely extensions of the basic stats from yesteryear. I doubt I’d learn anything new about Tony Gwynn if he was playing today. Or Bonds, who to me is the greatest Pirate ever
Point is, I get the need for myriad numbers in assessing a prospects abilities. But where guys at this level are concerned, it’s almost like a constant battle to tell me that what I see isn’t real. The diatribe about Suwinski being all-star caliber last year is a case in point. It was almost hilarious
Jim Bouton was right in saying, “Tell your statistics to shut up” with Ball Four in ‘69. In the end, you can either play at this level or you can’t. The proof is in the game to game accomplishments. No amount of data coming from some computer geek is going to show me much but hey, do ramble on about how things have changed
I’ll grant you this, and it’s true about every sport. The athletes are better. More well trained. Jump higher. Run faster. Excel in tougher competition. No matter the sport, I’m betting a great majority of the players 50, 60 or more years ago could compete today
Again, I don’t need data to prove it
Now if you’ll excuse me. I’m in hour 21 of a power outage and am going over to bounce my head off the wall a few times
Pardon me. Excessive heat
“…I’m betting a majority of players….*couldn’t* compete today….”
Get in your car or online and treat yourself to a generator. Should be less than a grand. Depends if you want to run your entire house or just a window ac fridge and tv. I should get one myself. Haven’t because they have always got my power back quickly enough. I have power on my boat if need be. Have multiple solar power banks to charge little things like phone. Have butane propane to cook with or even heat. It would be work to just recharge solar generator or run gas one as maintenance as they would rarely be used. Probably worth it though for that 1 time you might need it. If I lived in rural area though I would absolutely have one.
The old timers would have access to the same training and many would be able to compete. As is though many couldn’t. Baseball ones would do better than nba nfl who would just be way to slow and undersized. I think baseball hitters would adjust to the velocity and spin. Pitchers though would be in trouble. A few would do well. Others would go from hall of famers to #4 starters. Be nice to see complete games again though.
I’ve thought about a generator many times but like you, usually have the power back reasonably quickly
I’m now in my 25 th hour and the power company has no answers. You’d think someone made a bombing run nearby
Yeah, some old timers would excel in any given sport especially if current training methods were applied. But that’s the big difference I’ve seen. Kids now practice and play year round and have access to many good coaches
In itself, coaching and clinics have become a cottage industry. I ran my share but never charged a dime. Talk about being a dinosaur. Since training and travel ball in every sport have drifted away from being the love of the game and competition to trying to get college scholarships and perhaps playing professionally—and that’s sad—maybe you’re right
But it’s a cesspool now between profiteers and parents. No thanks
It’s hard to figure out. Guys like Sandy Feller Johnson should do just fine. But the vast majority of guys would be in trouble. They weren’t throwing 100 98 or even 95. And now you are going to put them on a flatter mound? They used to use 1 ball the entire game. Their era is going to the moon with hitters getting a shiny new ball every pitch. I think Honus and Cobb would do just fine. Pitchers though I think would be in trouble. Better get em into the lab. All the passed balls as well with them trying to figure out the pitch com.
Sad and tormented…Great name for the poster of stupidity
Twins need a lefty to replace the struggling Theilbar. How about a one for one swap, maybe a sweetener thrown in.
So. You’ll take Perez? Fleming?
Who is you are looking to trade?
And hey, add Kiriloff to the deal. Local kid comes home
The Contreras concussion protocol reminds me of an old Dizzy Dean related newspaper headline: “X-rays of Dean’s head reveals nothing.”
Suffice it to say I hope all is OK. Been in enough collisions as a former catcher I felt for the guy.
The Brewers are going for the record for most pitcher injuries in a season…
Pirates fans, I was really impressed with Skenes. That was the first time I saw him pitch. I have never seen someone throwing 100 with such control. Not to mention his array of other pitches. Enjoy him while you can before free agency.
As a former catcher, would have loved to catch this guy.
What amazes me is that he only pitched for LSU his last year.He was a catcher before that.
He pitched for Air Force. Was their Ohtani. So good he transferred to get even better and improve draft stock. Would have been drafted as a hitter, not 1st round, not catcher, probably 3rd round 1b. Could have been drafted as a pitcher as well and late 1st or 2nd round. By going to elite program and only focusing on pitching he skyrocketed to what he is.
Skenes has said that he wants to make the Air Force a career which essentially he will at best only pitch for 10 years
The military won’t accept enlistments beyond 32 years of age
Regarding this game against the Reds, my prediction of a double digit strike out performance of the Pirates’ hitters will probably come to fruition.
Connor Joe and Olivares each have never seen a pitch that they couldn’t swing at
After a single by Cutch and a double by Reynolds with runners at 2nd and third, Joe swung at 3 pitches nowhere close to the plate
He’s now in a 3 for 31 slump and has struck out 4 of his last five plate appearances
Mlbtr comment section is like the pirates hitters. I hit reply yet it goes clear to the bottom as a new comment.
Don’t think they will make an exception for him? You couldn’t buy that kind of marketing so if anyone with a iq of Forest Gump or higher has power they will make it happen no matter his age. Probably something somewhere since he was a cadet already he can do it or just make something up. Marines need young and dumb for cannon fodder but air force has a lot of high tech skill jobs, I think they take people up to 40 something. 10 years from now they might be so desperate they will take anyone they can get. I would bet he has a change of heart by then. Probably will be 300 400 500 million reasons he will keep playing baseball.
No one is supposed to hit Lodolo. They are supposed to strike out. When I checked at 7 innings he had 8 ks. Wouldn’t have been surprised to see 10 or 11 so they did well. Maybe Green can get to double digits tomorrow.
Will post again. Boost their average comments per article. I am a company man. Pirates do pretty well as articles so boost up these numbers to keep em coming.
How bout pirates pitching. Pretty freaking awesome. Not good enough though. They all need to be as good as Skenes if they want to win.
Tireds boy Santana did well.
I’m entering my 31st hour of no power with a power company that replies to queries that it may take until Sunday. 3/4 of my town and oddly, 90% of my neighborhood is back online. Must be nice to treat the public in such a “If you don’t like it, too bad” way
Didn’t see the game but figured they’d struggle. They seem to waste Falter a great deal
Hopefully you have a basement so you can be less hot. Today is great since phones have internet YouTube games etc. All you need for entertainment. Prior to the 80s it would be harder. 80s had handheld gaming, walkmans, portable tvs at least. Prior to Tesla yikes. I can’t do candles so lights out at 5 pm in winter. Maybe beeswax wouldn’t bother me though. If I bought a generator the power would come back 45 minutes later. If I didn’t buy one the power would definitely be out until Sunday, probably even after that. That’s my luck. It’s good to have though. Although mad max the only gas you will have is what you have stored. Pro tip buy one that runs on propane as well. Propane last decades gas maybe a year or two if you store it great or treat it. Soon as you start it up neighbors you never talk to will be your best friend. In mad max they will kill you for it. Solar I would wait for price to come down. It keeps dropping each year. It doesn’t make noise though. Good week to walk malls and walmarts and eat out a lot. Although is it just me or stores not as cold as they were? Been that way for me for the last 10 years though. I run hot though. Good luck though. Hope you make it. Prepare for the next one. I know so many people who aren’t ready for blackouts. I can still do more but I will survive and in some comfort.
Thanks, my friend. We’ll make it. No biggje in that regard. I mean, I come from the era of no a/c in homes and black and white TV. It’s just the older I get, the more agitated I become with companies and representatives who treat you like cattle. In fact, most companies don’t even want to talk to you anymore, putting you through a gauntlet of automated, placating voices. But the consumer has himself to blame in allowing such treatment
My grandsons play video games. They’re just little kids, mind you—I’m not that’s old—but it’s amazing how lifelike the graphics are, and how well the kids play. I don’t think I’d know where to start
Customer service is usually awful everywhere. Will never get any apple product every again. Nightmare. WalMart won’t change bills according to a video I seen but didn’t watch but I had a delivery that was hour or 2 late and they just gave me $5 off without even asking. Automatic system but I was impressed.
Speaking of Walmart + I believe I seen they are giving away 3 months free. If you don’t have it I highly recommend it. Unless you like going to the store to buy everything. They give you Paramount+ with it. Youtube + for 2 or 3 months. It’s A +++++++ lol. Also gives you 3 months of xbox game pass. It’s like Netflix for games. I been taking a hour or two most nights just seeing what’s on there and trying a few things. There’s a game for everyone. Whatever interest you may have. Some games the reviewers call walking simulators just give you a scenic world and you walk around doing task and just enjoy the story. No skill is needed so don’t need lighting reflexes. 60 70 80 year old can do it. One I seen you are a wildfire tower watcher. Might try it. Then they have simulators. Drive a tractor or tractor trailer. See lawn mowing simulator. 178 real world mowers lol or something like that. Guess you manage your virtual business and grow it so it’s more than just cutting scenic lawns, you can run a business and clients etc. Seen a review from a guy who has a lawn business and after work him and his co worker play this to relax. Seen power washing simulator same thing, you just clean shhhh it. All the reviews talk about how relaxing and fun it is. I dunno about these work simulators but they are popular. There’s a game called goat simulator actually there are at least 3 of them. You play as a goat and you just terrorize people. Eat their cloths, jump on their car. I used to play sports games. Besides playing the game my favorite part would be building my team. Like as a kid my first thing to do would trade the bus. He was oldn and would retire the next year in the game so I would get a young or rookie rb and they would get better each game year etc. Learned the lesson of the value of service time and the always contend model at a young age. Either trade the bus and get someone younger who won’t be a free agent for years or have the bus retire and get nothing. In the game when someone became a free agent they wanted a lot more $. But you could extend them cheaper before. So as a small child I was smarter than 90 some percent of gms at the time. I would do so many things just to find an advantage over friends or computer managed teams. Hines Ward was traded. Too slow. I wanted speed advantage at wr. Used to play competitive shooters. Lots of fun but probably not for you. Not really for me although I jump on sometimes. Now I basically just play games with good stories. Think of the best tv show or movie you seen and I am playing it. Some of these games just have A+ story, voice acting and fun. Open worlds to explore. Like you are in a great movie but you do whatever you want to do. Some are easy that anyone could do some you really need to be a gamer. If it’s hard it doesn’t bother me but you could try another. If I just want to relax I will play something easier and go back to the one I need to concentrate when in the mood to do that. There’s fighting games. Puzzle games. Hunting fishing games. Role playing games. Those are fun to be a knight or wizard and explore worlds, build your character up. They even have x games. I haven’t tried them yet. They aren’t on the Xbox lol. But was told they are better than corn from a friend who really likes his corn. I put corn because who knows if they flag the p word.
People hear games and think Madden, Call of Duty, Mario. I ain’t interested in that. Or I’m too old. Tons of games for every skill level. Pretty much name a hobby or activity or something you enjoy and there is a game. If you say you hate games then you hate tv and movies. Hate music. I played very average games but they were great because of the music. I’ve had girlfriends just watch me play games because they liked the story, like watching a movie. There’s actually people on YouTube that do videos called let’s play that have hundreds of thousands and millions of views. People watch them play a video game. I’d rather play. But it’s a good tool to see if you might be interested in that game. It’s tuff for anyone over 50 to get into I would guess because they didn’t have video games in there home. Over 60 they might not have gone to the arcade. They say not for me. Or stupid. Waste of life. I say try something new. And I always do. I couldn’t get into soccer but if I grew up in a country that has rugby and cricket, I would have no interest in football baseball. Baseball cricket are about the same. But Rugby is way better than American football. It’s all action. Soccer though, huge field, low scoring, no contact. Hockey is smaller, faster, contact. Putting something in a net sport give me hockey or lacrosse.
In short if you get bored try video games, rugby, or cricket. I got a long busy day ahead of me. So if you hear from me before dark I am coming live from the toilet. I will be checking in though. I wanna know what happened to Tim Hill. Cleared claimed or traded. If his arm isn’t toast he should be a A+ pickup for someone. Hoping it’s Pittsburgh.
I have never stepped foot in a Walmart in their entire existence
They systematically destroyed all of the mom and pop stores in every conceivable location, and my desire not to shop at big box stores that have ruined small local businesses also includes Lowes and Home Depot
If I need wood, gardening supplies or hardware, there’s a 110 year old hardware store locally I would rather pay more for than give my money to stock holders at the two big retailers that specialize in those products
I just missed the video game explosion. When I was in college, games like PacMan, Space Invaders, Berserk were all the rage at the student union. I dabbled but I never fully got into them. Marriage, raising kids, job, coaching really took all my time and focus.
Yeah, retirement means silence. The world moves on without you. I actually don’t think it’s all it’s supposed to be and must find constant tasks. Maybe when the power returns, which hopefully will be today, I’ll look up some of your recommendations
Incidentally, the problem with companies is rarely the average Joe who’s out there doing his job. It’s the corporate folks who look at the consumer as a pain in the a$$. We’ll take your money fine but screw your concerns. Cell phone carriers. Cable TV companies. It’s astounding how the aim is to frustrate you if you call
Thanks for the notes
They’ve squeezed all the small businesses out in this area, TheMan3. A small local hardware store was here for decades. Had anything you could possibly want. Squeezed out by Depot. Don’t forget the Starbucks and fast food places.
I too missed the original video game explosion but have made up for it to some degree by owning Play Station consoles
At 68, my body feels the age, my heart and mind feel younger
It’s summer and the vegetable garden gets most of my attention and energy now. The plum tomatoes have already ripened, the cayenne peppers are beginning to turn red and the lettuce gets picked almost daily
Lettuce is the only vegetable out of three so far that is seasonably ready. Tomatoes and peppers shouldn’t be ready until late summer
It’s so different from normal, the apples on the tree have begun turning red
This normally happens in September
I generally grow fruit trees and maintain them. I have a giant fig and two persimmons. And two blueberries. The greatest problem I have is keeping deer and rabbits away
I would think that for your vegetables it’s even more of a problem as they are at near ground level
WalMart gets blamed. But I would bet it’s not really their fault. I never thought about it or researched it. But thinking on it now how did Walmart put mom and pop out of business? You mentioned rather pay more so because they are a larger company and can buy products in bulk therefore sell them cheaper than small business. Well weren’t kmart Montgomery wards sears etc etc etc basically WalMart before WalMart? Waa there no 84 lumbers or ace hardwares? My guess would be because of the collapse of America. People stopped going to church. Stopped having community. Heck people no longer know their neighbors names anymore. You don’t know any of these mom and pops so no reason to support them. Yeah yeah you know them and your neighbors but the vast majority don’t. There’s no good jobs. People couldn’t afford the mom and pop, had to go to the cheapest option. Yeah yeah you had a good job. But the auto workers, mill workers, miners, factory workers when they were laid off and had to go work in retail ( some at Walmart ) couldn’t afford old mom and pop) Their kids who are in hundreds of thousands of student loan debt and only work they can find is in fast food and retail can’t afford mom and pop. Those are likely 2 of the biggest reasons. There was always a Walmart. The collapse of our country from what it was seems like the problem, not WalMart. I don’t know who these mom and pops are. Wish I did live in that time. I go to the cheapest most convenient place. Just like everyone else. That’s all we know..
I will give you a ton of recommendations. You will need a computer built in the last 10 yeats if you bought a future proof one or 5 years if you bought a cheapy from Walmart lol. Or a gaming console. If you need to buy one it’s risk free. You can buy a 15 year old xbox 360 for under $100 I would say or a xbox one that is 7 years old for under 200 even closer to 100 and can still play most of the latest games on the one. I will find a good listing for you on like ebay or something. If for some reason it doesn’t work ebay will refund your$. Seller will provide you a shipping label and you mail it back and get your $ back. Things usually work because who wants to lose $ shipping it and then having it shipped back right? You can play it for months even years and if you get sick of it you can sell it for the same price you paid for it or even more. Used market is steady as anything. With people having nostalgia those kids from 15 years ago now have jobs and want to buy that xbox prices may go up a bit. Games are either free or a buck or 2. Brand new they are $70 but you can get all of them on that game pass. Buy there’s years of gaming for free then a lifetime of games at a buck or 2 a piece. Dirt cheap for anyone who can avoid fomo. I can wait a year or 2 on new games. Especially as a non hardcore gamer I have thousands of games I never played. Get a wii for like $50 but not as powerful and its for like bowling or tennis in living room, you probably seen it back in day. Playstation is good too. I have a ps3. Parents bought it back in the day. Blu ray players cost a grand when they came out. Ps3 cost $500 bucks. It played blu rays and video games and had Netflix and hbo and YouTube and etc etc what a deal. Cost sony $800 to make it. They get most people in the long run via game sales. When a new console comes out for $500 it would cost you like grand $1,500 to buy a computer with similar power.
If you have smart phone go to google play and they have thousands of free games. See if any catch your interest. Console is better imo but lots of people play phone games.
Fire up the PlayStation this winter. I got a 1 2 and 3. Might get the new ps5 pro when it comes out and if I see a good sale. Was going to buy a ps4 but they had an incredible black Friday sale on xbox. I could have bought both but wasn’t into gaming at time. As a kid teen i was. I gamed more in the past few months than I did the previous 5 or 10 years.
Gardening is good. I tinker in it. Nothing ripe at moment. Need to plant more. Not too late so I might.
Not too late but generally, planting in the heat of July and corresponding drought of August means you’d better be out there often with cigar in mouth and hose in hand
My garden has a 5’ fence and a swinging gate for entry/exit
The fence is set in concrete and measures 28’x32’
At the very bottom and partially buried around the fence is chicken wire to prevent ground hogs and other digging creatures from getting in
After buying a 7” adjustable depth rear tine tiller I decided to draw a plan for the fence and implemented it to perfection
Every spring after tilling the soil, I install geo fabric to prevent weeds from growing and use a razor knife to slice small holes in the fabric for planting
The geo fabric is secured by using railroad ties
I didn’t say I bought my gardening etc from a larger store, just locally owned and older establishment within my community
I am willing to pay higher prices than what the big box stores charge but only because of my belief that they destroyed mom and pop stores
It’s not for everyone, especially those on a strict budget and have children but I am not on a strict budget and am neither married or have children
That’s yet another issue and won’t discuss, especially on an open forum
You wrote a long post that can be summed up in one word, Dream: greed. The difference between my dad’s generation—The Greatest Generation—and mine, the baby boomers all comes down to that. It’s in every part of what you listed
My dad’s generation were the givers, the builders, the dedicated. Mine is the takers, the careless destroyers, the me generation
It doesn’t matter what one’s political views are, they’re essentially all the same. It’s all people who are part of the corporate facade, the lobbyists, the PACs.
And again, it’s greed. And it’s there in every facet of our lives and most are simply not cognizant of the realities.
I’ll get off my soapbox
I’m hopeful for my kids’ generation. They’re more intelligent and more in tune with truths which were pushed aside by those my age. They see the rot, the greed, the corruption
The question will be whether they can do anything about it
You didn’t want to get political in your explanation, tired, but the generation of your children can make a difference
by using their Constitutional right and casting their ballot to vote for the best candidates who agree and are willing to change the corrupt corporate system that our generation has allowed to exist
Exactly right on all counts, my friend. And happily, they do vote and understand the importance.
If they are voting Republican or Democrat there is no hope. If they are voting for Kennedy or whoever the libertarian green party etc person is there is a lil hope. If they realize their vote is irrelevant and they need to run for office or have a large public platform there is some real hope there.
I won’t be voting. Either vote for the 2nd worst president in history or the best one since Reagan but only because the others were all top 10 awful. I have no idea if it is a selection or election. Voting isn’t secure enough. If it comes down to 1 vote I will feel bad. But analytics tells me it should never come down to 1 vote. I won’t complain. I am one of the last critical thinkers. Last of the warriors. I will survive and even thrive no matter who wins. Even of the guy who is clearly more up to the job wins I believe it’s too late. No hope. It’s over. You guys should be fine. Me as well. It’s just going to be a steady decline like it has been. Maybe a lil spike up here and there then back to decline. Don’t see it every going back. I have no idea. I was home schooled so maybe they brainwashing in schools. Maybe it’s in the food water air and I just have immunity. No idea what happened to 97 percent of the population. No idea what happened to men. No idea what happened to society but it’s accelerating down hill faster than ever. I don’t see a fix. The people are the problem.
Mulch. Drastically reduces amount of watering needed.
I’m going to steer away from politics, thanks. MLBTR doesn’t appreciate it and no one is going to change anyone’s opinion
BTW, be careful with mulch. There are kinds that can have the exact opposite effect
Lol I was right! I typed something about making America something again that’s better than good and it set out that bat signal. Comment waiting for moderation. I will correct so I can post.
I stay away too. Don’t vote. Don’t donate. Everyone has made up their mind. They must just live large on those donations. Because I think political ads are just throwing $ away. Who are these undecided voters? I think they are just people who want to get on tv because I never seen one in person.
Mlbtr can ban if they want. It would be their loss though because I ain’t making another account. Not much of a loss though. But I get a lot of replies and create traffic. This is a old article with only 4 people looking at it. Everyone is set in their ways. No minds changing. It’s not like we go to a brand new article and start talking about the decline of the country video games and gardening. But if you go to a new article and start calling one party fans names and trying to sway people they will boot you. They hated the jab debates. Don’t like any domestic violence talk. Won’t even have comments for those stories. I get the feelings site ownership is Dem so if you are going to be open either way then it might work better for you if you lean that way. I’m neither. Not voting. Whatever voters decide is fine with me. Whatever you guys are is fine with me. I mentioned Kennedy but not because I like him or think he is better than the other 2. Just I would be impressed if you or your family was thinking outside the box.
I use whatever I have free and easy. Grass leaves paper cardboard. Usually grass right cause it’s there.
Please don’t ban me mlbtr. I will go around my city and remove everyone of those I did that stickers at every gas station. Or if I am wrong about you guys I will rock a red hat. Probably shouldn’t have typed red hat that will send a red alert off and have you guys wasting time to come over to a soon to be 4 day old nothing Burger article. Good.
Dream, I can assure you that if you’d ever like to debate politics, we can get together and have a beer. Let’s invite TheMan3, Mendoza, BuccoProjectory along
I respect MLBTR’s wishes that this is a sports forum and the vitriol that comes from political debate becomes toxic
Let’s leave it at that, ok?
As for voting, this is election simply comes down to voters with intelligence versus the intellectually constipated, morally incontinent cult.
As Gump said, “And that’s all I have to say about that”
the 2020 election was the most secure in history and this fact was determined by the DHS of that specific administration which was under the 45th president of the united states
Those people you say are the problem were most likely never taught civics in school and are oblivious to how the government functions
I know several dozen people who are afflicted by a poorly educated system
Note to the editors. I don’t blame you for not posting my last comment. Although general in terminology, I get it. And I’d have done the same. Enough already
I don’t debate politics or anything really. It’s not you guys it’s me. I’m a critical thinker. I just don’t believe something because someone said it. Theman told me the air force age cut off was 32 then 35. I had no idea so didn’t argue but I thought it was higher so today had a minute checked and it’s under 42 for airmen and 6 more years for healthcare and ministries. Just like Chapman never had a 3 innings save this year. How am I going to debate someone like that? I am pleased and amazed you put up with me. I don’t care if it’s from a government official or tv news or whatever, if something doesn’t sound right I question and research it. Can’t even watch the news. At best they are spinning things to fit their agenda. At their worst they are flat out lying. I still keep up with some news but it isn’t from any mainstream sources. The 99 percent are they lucky ones. They can sit down and watch their 1 sided news reassuring them how great their party is and how awful the other side is. They can go to fangraphs baseball america and be all excited about these overated prospects. Think how great there team would be if they just got a new manager. I am jealous. I wish lived in that world. Simply can’t do it. Nothing I did to be this way. Just the way I was born.
Let’s be serious though. One guy doesn’t remember Chapman even pitching an entire inning. The other remembers him having a 3 innings save. There’s nothing to debate about. Always down for beer though.
You can say trump and trump some more and trump again all you want. But if you type the 4 letter initials of his red hat slogan it will have to await moderation. You can’t type the current presidents last name. Used to not be able to say trump but maybe since it is a word and not just a last name they changed it? Although how often do you use it as word?
If the one guy who forgot Chapman threw an entire inning means me, apologies. I was likely changing channels. I do that quite often when the Pirates are on. Please forgive me
As for doing due diligence with research, THAT’S THE POINT
The cult that exists ONLY believes what comes out of the mouth of their hero. In this regard, undeniable facts are reduced to biased commentary
And you wonder how Jim Jones did what he did. Or some guy in Europe back 90 years ago or so
Enough already. The conspiracy crowd, the “everyone has an agenda” mantra comes down to some strange mixture of paranoia and abject stupidity, present company excluded, of course
You’re right. There is nothing to debate. Either you discuss from intelligence or from blissful ignorance. It’s that simple. That’s where we are these days.
And Dream, we rely on you and mlb1225 for news on prospects, right?
I’m moving on from this thread and in particular, this discussion.
I am just kidding. The mind plays tricks. You missed or dosed off a inning. Ortiz or Fleming or someone probably did have a 3 innings save and theman thought it was Chapman.
The cult is 95 or so percent of voters. Half are voting for for whoever the r is and half is whoever the d is. They can have Alzheimer’s, be murder, a highschool drop out, they could even be dead! It doesn’t matter what they did or how awful a person they are. Brainwashed zombies. They see everything wrong with the other guy and even things that aren’t true but because their news source told them it’s true they believe it. Completely ignore the problems with their own guy or even worse they don’t know these things because they are only getting one side of the news. Most people just watch fox news and only see the other news from clips of them on fox news. Cherry picking what they want to use for agenda. And the other way for the other side, they ain’t watching fox news. Most people aren’t watching equal portions of msnbc and fox news. Even worse they aren’t watching the news to get fair accurate news they are choosing to watch the news thay tells them what they want to hear. I watch both sides because I have to. I deal with people and I need tp determine what they are and know how they think. I might watch the news for 15 minutes, both sides news. Not to get news for myself, just so I know who I am dealing with thinks. As far as they know I am the same as them hardcore left or right. Whatever I need to be. I always recommend to give up your news for 1 week and watch the other guys news. Nobody wants to. They simply can’t do it. To know your competition is essential. They don’t care.
I laughed so hard the other night. This is how bad the news has gotten. One president posted a video of a guys truck that has air brushed the other president hog tied on the back of his tailgate. The msnbc anchor said this is dangerous. People driving behind this truck will think the president is being held captive in this guys pick up truck. Brainwashed zombies watching this clown eating up his news. It’s over beyond the point of no return. I’m not debating anything. Just gonna sit back and watch.
You can’t move on. Your gm just let the Yankees have Hill who will now become a 3 era pitcher *if arm isn’t dead so could be a good pass. We will see. Either way he isn’t doing anything so no new article to discuss.
Mlb2 whatever is a awful source. I believe I am superior but don’t trust anyone. Do the work yourself. But it’s work so if you are going to look elsewhere I believe I am your best option. I never seen Solometo as a ace or even 2 3. Thought he was backend. Further he goes the more I ? even that. His success has a lot to do with hiding ball with funky delivery. Teenagers don’t see that often. Veteran mlb hitters have. Change up or something needs improvement to get right batters out. Should be a lefty specialist multiple innings guy or maybe 5th starter. Anything better will take velocity increase that isn’t probable to come or a strike out pitch for righties. Rest of pitchers look fine in general. Bats awful general. Except rookie ball. A and lower been looking great in general. Longs ways to go though. Competition doesn’t get real really untill AA.
Don’t think they will make an exception for him? You couldn’t buy that kind of marketing so if anyone with a iq of Forest Gump or higher has power they will make it happen no matter his age. Probably something somewhere since he was a cadet already he can do it or just make something up. Marines need young and dumb for cannon fodder but air force has a lot of high tech skill jobs, I think they take people up to 40 something. 10 years from now they might be so desperate they will take anyone they can get. I would bet he has a change of heart by then. Probably will be 300 400 500 million reasons he will keep playing baseball.
No one is supposed to hit Lodolo. They are supposed to strike out. When I checked at 7 innings he had 8 ks. Wouldn’t have been surprised to see 10 or 11 so they did well. Maybe Green can get to double digits tomorrow.
Hey Dream, what about that slump you said was over?
I guess most of the Bucs batters didn’t get the memo
I’m pretty sure Dream has a sarcastic streak and that’s an example. If you’ve been reading his critiques of the front office, manager, coaches and players, he’s certainly aware of what’s going on with this team
Perpetual rebuild
Lately, Dreams comments have been so lengthy, my head hurts from trying to keep focused.
With Hunter Greene at the helm for the Reds, it should be another low run, double digit strike out performance by the pathetic Haines lead batters
And this Reds lineup hits Keller pretty well, too
so far neither team has done much but as expected, the Pirates pathetic offense has managed 9 strikeouts in 6 innings
Granted Greene is a good pitcher, many of these swings are, also as can be expected with this lineup, nowhere near the plate,
But it’s a pitcher’s duel. Question is which team will score the only run
One has to learn how to interpret Dream’s comments.
I recently purchased an ouija board and do quite well at it.
Good pitching not a slump. But even a non slump will look like a slump with such a weak lineup. Joe is in slump. Everyone else is just average or sucks. They ain’t in a slump that’s just the level of player they are.
Joe was never a full time player with the Rockies but he’s inexpensive and plays multiple positions so Shelton writes his name on the lineup card for almost every game
He’s now in a 3 for his last 34 plate appearances.
He’s not in a slump, he’s just not a good player
By the way, it’s time to send Jack back to Indy to learn again how to hit the ball
age military allows enlistment is from 17-35
I was mistaken that the limit is 32, and I should have known, I served 6 years in the Army in Engineer battalions
I thought air force was higher. Maybe it was navy or space force or something. Maybe a dreamnt it. I don’t have a photographic memory but I remember a lot of useless shhh ittttt. Though it was 40 something for some branch.
No Hill news. Will check back tonight.
Just seen in it. Released. Thought someone would claim him. His arm must be toast. Now that they don’t have to pick up his salary see what happens.
Not being reported here but Jake Lamb opted out of his contract with the Pirates and will file for free agency today
He apparently saw the writing on the wall that they will stick with Rowdy now that he’s hitting the ball with some authority
I imagine Cherington will go dumpster diving to find another triple A first baseman soon
The team’s best hitter right now is Reynolds and not just because he hit the game deciding home run in today’s game either
He was batting close to .240 a week ago and is now around .270. Plus he’s been a doubles machine and now has 20.
If only the rest of the team could pull their weight, they might just score some runs
He was a black sheep. Cherington wanted no part of him. Out like a lamb.
Because Cherington is clueless. Don’t know what Belt wanted but he opted for bargain basement instead. Then, when the add on outplays and outhits him and threatens to embarrass ever signing Tellez, he lets him walk
This guy needs to go
The Yankees signed him
We all know that Nutting was not going to eat Tellez’ contract until after the trade deadline.If we do not know that we know Nutting.
Lamb cooled off after his hot start and Rowdy has started to hit.
If he only learned how to run.
Rowdy has hit so very few dingers that yesterday when his hit appeared to be going over the center field wall, he just stood there at home plate either wondering if it had enough altitude or if he would have to move his obese body at all
I hate players that stand and gawk at their home runs before deciding to run the bases
Rowdy should have been on 3rd base instead of second because he gawked and hesitated to run
I hate lazy players. I wouldn’t sign anyone who doesn’t run out plays. Cherington knew this when he signed him. Shelton lets him do it. So desperate to save $ and have ability to trade him. I when into rebuild open minded as I do everything. But Cherington is just Huntington 2.0 Can draft fine when at top of draft. I took Cole at #1. I took Skenes at #1. Look how smart I am. Can trade good. Can’t develop worth a crap though. Instead of firing Hurdle Searge he got fired himself. Hopefully Cherington is headed down the same path with Shelton Haines. I have no idea if he can find someone better but eventually Nutting is going to pay attention. It’s either him or you. Someone needs to be the fall guy. Huntington took the fall himself. Cherington is trending that direction. His comments I have found to be annoying.