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Pirate Morning Report: Lack Of Big Hit Leads To Fourth Straight Loss.

Final Score: Pirates 4 Cardinals 5

Why The Pirates Lost: Another disappointing outing for Bubba Chandler. He went 5 innings, giving up 3 runs on 3 hits and walking 4, pushing his ERA to nearly 5. He worked from behind most of the game. The Pirates went with the B squad in the bullpen, and it cost them. Evan Sisk and Chris Devenski pitched a combined 2 innings, giving up 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk. At one point in the game, the Pirates trailed 5-1 going into the bottom of the 7th inning. They scored 2 in the 7th and 1 in the 8th to pull within one run of the lead. They could have done so much more. In the bottom of the 9th, after Ryan O’Hearn singled to left, Marcell Ozuna had a typical frustrating Pirates at-bat. He took 2 strikes and swung at a ball out of the strike zone to strike out. The first pitch was a 97 MPH fastball sinker right down the middle. What are you waiting for? Nick Gonzales hit a high drive into left field that Nathan Church got a great jump on and caught right before it went over the fence to end the game. When you are on a losing streak, things just go this way. Maybe better luck this afternoon.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates had scored 2 runs in the bottom of the 7th. Then they loaded the bases with one out, now trailing by just 2 runs. Ryan O’Hearn was at the plate. He picked this time to have one of his worst at-bats of the season. Just like Ozuna was going to do, he took the first pitch right down the middle for a strike. He swung at the next pitch that was 6 inches inside and below the knees and fouled it off. He tried to check his swing on a sweeper, but the 3rd base umpire said he swung. Marcell (Rally Killing) Ozuna, on a 3-2 count, swung at a pitch about 3 inches inside and grounded out to third to end the inning. In the bottom of the 8th, Gonzales singled and Spencer Horwitz walked to put runners on first and second with no outs. Konnor Griffin struck out swinging on two balls outside the zone. Jake Magnum loaded the bases when his line drive one-hopper to short was booted, and everyone was safe. For the second straight inning, the Pirates had the bases loaded and 1 out. Oneil Cruz grounded out, scoring a run and putting runners on 1st and 3rd with two outs. Nick Yorke, who had gotten a big pinch hit in the previous inning, hit a soft liner to right to end the inning. The Pirates had the bases loaded with one out twice and could muster only 1 run. It was the difference in the ball game.

Next Game: This afternoon, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 12:35 PM. Paul Skenes goes today for the Pirates, and let’s hope that he can help stop the skid. He has been almost unhittable since Opening Day. Keeping Ozuna in the 4th and 5th spots in the order has proved costly for the Pirates. I know that they cannot give up on him quite yet, but how about batting him 7th or 8th? I would assume that he will be rested tomorrow. You never know about the Pirates. Maybe they will bat him leadoff. They waste Cruz in that spot now. What an organization. Five easy ways to mess up a good team, written by the Pirate management team. I guess they are literate, maybe.

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Pirates Morning Report: Proving A Point Rather Than Trying To Win

Final Score: Pirates 7 Cardinals 11

Why The Pirates Lost: The Pirates wanted to show everyone that their bullpen was depleted. In reality, it was not. The Pirates, however, live in the Twilight Zone. Don Kelly and his staff must believe that if the Pirates are 2-3 runs down going into the 7th inning, they are out of the game. This is the second time this year in that scenario that the Pirates went with a struggling pitcher when there were much more viable options available. The first time, the Pirates were only 2 runs down. Last night, the score was 6-3 going into the 7th. Yohan Ramirez was available; he had not pitched since Saturday. Isaac Mattson had only thrown 3 pitches the night before. Mason Montgomery had thrown 7 pitches the night before, and Justin Lawrence 9 pitches. Any one of those 4 pitchers could have come in. Instead, the Pirates decided to let Hunter Barco take a beating, to hell with his psyche. The Pirates wanted to show everyone that, see, our bullpen is totally exhausted, so there is no way we can win this one. The only good news here is the offense came alive, hitting 3 home runs and scoring 7 runs, but without a bullpen, what can you do but lose? It does appear that this team is going to be so mismanaged that there is no way they are going to contend.

Key Moment Of The Game: It had to be the pregame meeting. What were they going to do if Braxton Ashcraft had a bad night? I can hear the discussion now. If Ashcraft can’t go 6 innings or more, then we will put Hunter Barco out there until his arm falls off. What do you think, Don? Great plan, hope we score 12 runs tonight. Plus, there was real high-level strategy late in the game. With the score 11-3, Kelly pinch-hit for Brandon Lowe with Nick Yorke against a left-hander on the mound. I’m sure he wanted to show he still thought this was a good move. Yorke struck out, so at least he did not hit into a double play. Other Pirates took care of that as they hit into 4 double plays for the game. With score 11-3 don’t you think it would have been nice for Lowe to see a left hander. He also pinch-hit for the .160 batting average Henry Davis with the .161 batting average Marcell Ozuna. He struck out. I think what Kelly should have done is let Justin Lawrence bat just to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Pirates had no intention of trying to win this game.

Next game: Tonight, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. I knew that playing 13 games in 13 days would really mess the Pirates up. When you have a team that is this old and fragile, you cannot expect them to perform at a high level for this many days in a row. Now that they have had two days of rest, maybe they can salvage a series split. Bubba Chandler is going tonight for the Pirates. It was thought that he was going to start last night, but Ashcraft started instead. Chandler does need to have a good start for everyone concerned. The Pirates have lost three in a row and are in last place. It is where this team feels comfortable.

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Pirate Morning Report: Inflexible Plan Leads To Defeat

Final Score: Pirates 2 Cardinals 4

Why the Pirates Lost: The Pirates had a bullpen game with a plan. Unfortunately, it was an inflexible plan. Mason Montgomery threw 7 pitches, Justin Lawrence threw 9 pitches, and the designated bulk guy Wilber Dotel threw 44 pitches. Isaac Mattson threw three pitches. The first three pitchers were highly effective, throwing a perfect game through 6 and 2/3 innings. The Pirates could have easily stretched out this game to the point where they probably would not have had to use Soto or Dennis Santana. The Pirates had a plan and stuck with it, no matter how ridiculous it was. Dotel is a starter, for God’s sake; he could have thrown at least 16 more pitches. Mattson and Montgomery could have thrown another inning. All of this stupidity led to having to use Dennis Santana in the 9th with no backup plan. He had one of his worst outings as a Pirate, and it led to a 4-run 9th inning. Another defeat that lands squarely on this bizarre management group. I honestly think they know nothing about baseball. Even though the offense got 8 hits and 2 walks, they could only manage 2 runs. They never really threatened to score more, getting only 5 men in scoring position. This defeat really stings.

Key Moments of the Game: Not letting Mason Montgomery come out for the 2nd inning. Not letting Wilber Dotel come out for the 7th inning. That was the big bonehead move. This kid was mowing them down. Thirty-two of the forty-four pitches he had thrown were for strikes. He was in command of the game. He could have easily thrown 15 to 20 more pitches. Mattson had thrown 3 pitches and could have come out for the 8th inning. When this debacle was over, the Pirate broadcast booth said that tomorrow would be tough with a worn-out bullpen. The bullpen is not worn out. Only Santana, Dotel, and maybe Soto cannot pitch tonight. In the 4-run 9th inning, the Cardinals did get a nice break when a little chopper went down the third base line and stopped on the foul line just short of 3rd base. The rest of the Cardinals’ hits were rockets: 2 home runs and a double. You can only mismanage a game for so long until it comes back to bite you.

Next game: Tonight, the Cardinals are in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. Bubba Chandler is going for the Pirates tonight, and it is time for him to step up and have a good start. The offense also needs to pick up the pace. This is the first time the Pirates have lost two in a row since the opening two games of the season. Hopefully, management may learn from their mistakes, but I doubt it. It’s not a good start to the homestand, but maybe this will wake the offense up a little bit. There is no question that the Pirates need to shake this one off. Can they do it?

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Pirates Morning Report: Swing And A Miss

Final Score: Pirates 0 Brewers 5

Why the Pirates Lost: In the last two games, the Pirates have struck out 33 times, including 18 times yesterday. They only got two hits and only put the ball in play 12 times for the entire game. They may have had the worst inning in the history of baseball, but I will get to that later. Carmen Mlodzinski had his typical outing—a nice, solid three innings—and then he fell apart, thanks to a catcher’s interference and control issues. The fourth inning was a disaster. The inning started with a single and a double. The Pirates were playing the middle of the infield back. A low line one-hopper to Nick Gonzales got an out as the Pirates conceded the run. No problem. Garrett Mitchell struck out for the second out. Things were looking good. The count was 1-2 on Sal Frelick when, on the fourth pitch, Joey Bart was called for catcher’s interference. This put runners on first and second with two outs. Mlodzinski then gave up a single, a double, and another single, and before you could say, “How do you spell Mlodzinski?” it was 5-0, and the game was essentially over. The Pirates ended the road trip 3-3, which is not too bad, but what could have been will always be there.

Key Moments Of The Game: The Pirates had 1st and 2nd with no outs in the top of the 7th but could not score or even advance the runners. Then came the unbelievable 8th inning. The Brewers brought in a pitcher by the name of Aaron Ashby. He threw 28 pitches, but only 5 of those pitches were in the strike zone. The bare minimum the Pirates should have achieved was 5 walks and a run in with nobody out. Konnor Griffin started the inning with a 4-pitch walk. That should have been the tip-off right there. Whatever happened to the take sign? They did load the bases thanks to a misplay by the Brewers; however, they struck out twice and grounded weakly to 2nd without scoring any runs. Billy Cook took a ball and a called strike. He then swung at two pitches that were in the dirt. Jake Mangum swung at a strike, then swung at two pitches below the knees. Nick Gonzales did not see one pitch in the strike zone but swung at two of them, and finally walked on a 3-2 count, which loaded the bases. They could have been loaded two batters ago. Bryan Reynolds fouled off a pitch that was in the strike zone. Then he saw 4 straight pitches that were not even close to the zone. He swung at the last two, hitting the last one weakly to second to mercifully end this pathetic Pirates showing at the plate. The Brewers did everything they could in the 7th and 8th to get the Pirates back into the game, but the Pirates said, “We really don’t care, it’s yours.” We just can’t stand seeing the defending division champs dipping below .500.

Next Game: Tonight, the Cardinals in Pittsburgh at 6:40 PM. The Pirates open a 7 game homestand against the Cardinals playing them 4 times. They play the Reds 3 games over the weekend. Hopefully the Pirates will find a way to put the ball in play. Despite the disappointment yesterday having a 3-3 road trip is acceptable. The Pirates need to win 5 of these next 7 games if they are going to move up in the division.

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Pirates Morning Report: Winning A Tough One

Final Score: Pirates 6 Brewers 3 in 10 innings

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirates won this on sheer persistence. They were able to survive striking out 15 times, the offense going to sleep in the last 3 innings, and just a so-so pitching performance from Mitch Keller. The Brewers were pretty gutsy themselves, battling back in the bottom of the innings that the Pirates took the lead. What the Brewers could not overcome was going 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position. Mitch Keller could only go 5+ innings, being charged with 3 runs on 5 hits. He struck out 5 and walked 2, throwing 93 pitches. The Pirate bullpen may have had their best game of the year, going 5 innings and giving up just 1 hit and 2 walks. Yohan Ramirez continues to shine, having a career year so far. He pitched the bottom of the 10th and retired the side in order, striking out 2.

Key Moment Of The Game: The bottom of the 10th was much easier thanks to Nick Gonzales. The Pirates had made the score 4-3 when Bryan Reynolds hit a ground ball between short and third that scored Henry Davis with one out. The hit advanced pinch runner Nick Yorke, who was running for Marcell Ozuna. Ozuna had pinch-hit for Brandon Lowe with the Brewers having a left-hander on the mound. You have to say one thing about Kelly: he is a man of his convictions. The fact that he had pinch-hit for Lowe before, with disastrous results, did not deter him. Ozuna was able to work a one out walk. Ryan O’Hearn hit a Baltimore chop to the pitcher that moved the runners to 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs. Nick Gonzales took a 1-1 sweeper and rifled it into left field, scoring 2 runs to make the score 6-3. This made the runner on second in the bottom of the 10th for the Brewers pretty much worthless. Ramirez made sure the Brewers did not make it interesting. The win ensures the Pirates finish with a .500 record on the road. They have the opportunity for the sweep and a 4-2 road trip.

Next Game: Today, Brewers in Milwaukee, at 2:10 PM. Carmen Mlodzinski will start today for the Pirates with no sign that the Pirates are going with an opener. Sigh. I would not mind seeing Cruz get a rest today. I still cannot figure out why on earth the Pirates have him leading off. His last 7 games he is only hitting .125. He did not do well in the lead off spot last year. There are plenty of players who could lead off. Of course, I am the guy that thought they should have never signed Ramirez and brought him up North. But still, what is the rationale of leading Cruz off. Can the Sunday lineup whatever it may be pull out the sweep, with our weakest link in the rotation starting? Check it out this afternoon.

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Pirates Morning Report: An Almost Perfect Solid Win

Final Score: Pirates 6 Brewers 0

Why The Pirates Won: Paul Skenes retired the first 20 batters he faced, and Konnor Griffin had his most productive game as a Pirate. Skenes was totally dominant, only allowing two balls hit over 100 MPH and the same number hit into the outfield. In 7 innings, he allowed one ground ball hit, striking out 7 and walking 0. He threw 93 pitches, with 62 being strikes. His ERA is now down to 2.48 but get this: take out that ridiculous 1st inning that happened on opening day, and his ERA is 0.96 over his last 5 starts. Konnor Griffin celebrated his birthday by hitting his first career home run in the 2nd inning. You could just see the weight come off his shoulders as he rounded the bases. He went on to get 2 more hits and drive in 2 more runs. Even more significant to me is the fact that all 3 hits were to the opposite field. Let’s just hope the Pirates don’t think he needs a rest today. The Pirates had some nice 2-out hitting to score 4 of their last 5 runs after 2 were out. It was a solid win to even up the road trip at 2-2, ensuring that it won’t be a total disaster.

Key Moment Of The Game: This may be the key moment of the season. Griffin took a four-seam fastball and drilled it into the right-center field seats to start the Pirates’ scoring with one out in the top of the 3rd. The Pirates were able to add on quite nicely, scoring single runs in the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings. In the eighth, the Pirates were able to take advantage of some bungling defense by the Brewers as they made errors on consecutive at-bats to load the bases with two outs. Griffin came through with a nice single to right to make the score 6-0. The bullpen never let the Brewers off the mat, allowing the Pirates a stress-free win.

Next Game: Tonight, the Brewers in Milwaukee. Mitch Keller will be going for the Pirates. He has had only one off outing so far this season. The Brewers will be sending out their young phenom, Jacob Misiorowski. After getting off to a hot start last year in his rookie season, he has had his ups and downs since. The one thing he can do is strike out people. In 92 and 2/3 career innings, he has struck out 129 batters. He can be hit at times and has had control issues. The Pirates could seal a .500 road trip with a win tonight. So far, we have not had a goofy lineup. Will that continue? We can only pray.

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Pirates Morning Report: Lack Of Command Chandler

Final Score: Pirates 1 Rangers 6

Why the Pirates Lost: Inept starting pitching and hitting pretty much sums it up. Bubba Chandler had trouble finding the strike zone, again. Even though he “only” walked 3, he got knocked around pretty good. In just 4 innings of work, he gave up 6 runs on 7 hits while throwing 78 pitches. He gave up an inside-the-park home run on a fastball that was pretty much right down the middle. He threw two changeups in a row to Corey Seager, who took the 2nd one into the seats in right field for a 3-run homer. Nice pitch sequencing. The first two batters in the inning walked. Joc Pederson drove in the 3rd run of the game with a single, followed by the Seager home run, giving the Rangers a 6-0 lead. Even though the bullpen was well-rested, Kelly just left him in to take the beating. The offense was awful as well. Oneil Cruz hit a home run. The Pirates only had 3 at-bats with runners in scoring position, getting just 4 singles. A dominating win for the Rangers.

Key Moment Of The Game: In the top of the 6th, the Pirates had a chance to make a game of it. Jacob deGrom got the first two outs of the inning. Ryan O’Hearn then worked a 6-pitch walk. The Rangers’ manager took deGrom out of the game on his 89th pitch. They brought in Gavin Collyer, who graduated from the same school of pitching as Chandler. It took him a while, but he hit Nick Gonzales with the 7th pitch of the at-bat. He walked Spencer Horwitz on 4 pitches to load the bases. This brought Konnor (I Am Busy Counting My Money) Griffin to the plate. On a 1-2 sweeper, Griffin hit a hard ground ball down the third base line. Rangers’ third baseman Josh Jung made a diving stop on the ball, quickly got up, and threw Griffin out by a half step. If that ball gets down the line, the Pirates score 2, maybe 3 runs, and are back in the game. This was the second time in the series that the Rangers made a spectacular defensive play to prevent the Pirates from scoring multiple runs. After that, the Pirates never threatened and are now 1-2 on the road trip.

Next Game: Tonight, Brewers in Milwaukee, 7:40 PM. The Brewers are facing the reigning Cy Young Award winners back to back. They faced Tarik Skubal last night. Even though they lost on a walk-off home run, they hit him pretty well. Skubal gave up 4 runs on 7 hits in 6 innings. Let’s hope Skenes has better luck. At times, playing in Milwaukee’s American Family Field has been a house of horrors for the Pirates. It would be nice to see that change right now.

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Pirates Morning Report: Top Of The Foul Pole To Ya

Final Score: Pirates 8 Rangers 4

Why The Pirates Won: This was a game that started eerily the same as game one of the series. The Pirates scored a run in the 1st, and the Rangers put two on the board in the 2nd. Fortunately for the Pirates, the bats did not fall asleep for the rest of the game. In another pivotal 5th inning, the Pirates scored 3 runs to take a 4-2 lead. Braxton Ashcraft pitched 7 innings, giving up 2 runs on 4 hits, walking 2, and striking out 5. He left the game with a 4-2 lead. Gregory Soto got knocked around for 2 runs on 3 hits, surrendering the lead. The Pirates came back strong in the top of the 9th, scoring 4 runs highlighted by an Oneil Cruz 3-run homer that hit the top of the foul pole and caromed into the seats. Good old lefty Jalen Beeks grooved an 80 MPH cutter, and Cruz did not miss it. This made the 9th easy for Dennis Santana as the Pirates took game 2 of the series.

Key Moments Of The Game: The 5th inning was big again, but this time it was the Pirates who scored 3 runs. In the inning, the Rangers committed the sin of walking one of the worst hitters in baseball, Henry Davis. Davis tried to help them by swinging at two pitches outside the strike zone. He came around to score one of the 3 runs. The Pirates got two big two-out hits from Brandon Lowe and Bryan Reynolds to score 2 runs. The third run scored when right fielder Brandon Nimmo decided to throw the ball anywhere in the infield. The ball traveled about halfway up the third baseline. When pitcher Jack Leiter tried to retrieve the ball, he stumbled over some items in the Pirates’ on-deck circle. He could not quite stop the ball, allowing the 3rd run to score. To make matters worse he was injured on the play. An unusual ABS challenge moment occurred in the bottom of the 7th. Josh Jung led off the inning with a single. Evan Carter had a successful challenge on the 2nd pitch of the at-bat. The count went to 3-2. On a pitch that was low, the ump called it a strike. Carter had taken a step to first base, anticipating the walk. When it was called a strike, he then turned to the dugout. It was too late to challenge. Instead of having 1st and 2nd with nobody out, the Rangers had a runner on first with one out. Kyle Higashioka hit into an inning-ending double play. The Rangers may have had him bunt or even pinch hit for him if Carter had walked. The Pirates had the big 9th inning to set up the rubber match tonight.

Next Game: Tonight, Rangers in Arlington at 8:05. Big win for the Pirates last night. Bubba Chandler takes the mound for the Pirates. The only issue for him has been finding the strike zone. Jacob deGrom goes for the Rangers. He is not the deGrom of old, but still a very formidable pitcher. I find it interesting that this is not the typical getaway day starting time of around 1 in the afternoon. In fact, this is the latest starting game of the day. The Pirate management staff is probably at their wit’s end deciding who should rest today. To hell with trying to win the game. Will this be weird lineup night? I can hardly wait.

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Pirates Morning Report: More Bullpen Blunders

Final Score: Pirates 1 Rangers 5

Why the Pirates Lost: After scoring a run in the first inning on two hits, the Pirate offense pretty much went to sleep. They only collected four more hits the rest of the game, with one walk. The Pirates did not have an extra-base hit for the game. There were lots of collars to go around. Bryan Reynolds, Henry (Am I Supposed to Hit) Davis, Marcell Ozuna, Nick Yorke, and Konnor Griffin all went hitless. A third of the Pirate lineup had an OPS of under .600. Carmen Mlodzinski had a rocky outing, being charged with five runs on six hits, throwing 92 pitches in just 4 and 1/3 innings of work. You could argue that he should not have even come out for the fifth inning.

The Key Moments Of The Game: This game boiled down to the 5th inning. The score was 2-1 Rangers. In the top of the 5th, the Pirates had runners on 2nd and 3rd with two outs and Oneil Cruz at the plate. Jake Magnum singled, and Konnor Griffin reached on an error after one out. Unfortunately, Henry Davis was at bat and rocketed a 43 MPH, 4-foot ground ball back to the pitcher. This advanced the runners to 2nd and 3rd. Oneil Cruz hit a deep fly ball to left center field. Evan Carter made a great catch, leaping up and robbing Cruz of the home run. Another yard higher, and the Pirates would have had a 4-2 lead. In the bottom of the inning, Carmen Mlodzinski got lit up with a 108 MPH double to start the inning. The runner moved to third on a fly ball to center field. This was followed by another double down the third base line to make the score 3-1. There was no move by the Pirates to take him out. Corey Seager singled to make the score 4-1. Don Kelly finally made a move, but it was the wrong one. You have a well-rested bullpen. With the game still hanging in the balance, you bring in your most inexperienced reliever, William Dotel. Don’t get me wrong; I like Dotel. I think he is going to be a real stud. First, the move should have been made three batters ago. Kelly should have brought in either Soto or Montgomery. In fact, the Pirates should have started this game with Montgomery, just like they did the previous time Mlodzinski pitched, which resulted in a three-hit shutout. Why would you not to do something that was so successful again? I guess you don’t. The bullpen blunders and pitching mismanagement just continue. The Rangers scored another run to make it 5-1, and the Pirates never threatened.

Next Game: Tonight, Rangers in Arlington at 8:05. The Pirates will start Braxton Ashcraft, who has pitched very well so far this year. Brandon Lowe is dealing with a knee issue, which is a bit concerning, and Spencer Horwitz has experienced some back tightness. Hopefully, both will only be out for a short time. The next three games feature our top pitchers: Ashcraft, Chandler, and Skenes. The bullpen is well-rested. Despite the rough start to the road trip, these next three games have a promising chance of being wins. The management team is still struggling to determine who should rest when. It is challenging being part of the Pirate organization. Oh, by the way, the Pirates are currently in last place.

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Pirates Morning Report: The Hitless Catchers

The Pirates have a bevy of catchers, but there is just one problem: none of them can hit at the present moment. There is one that appears to have some hope. Catching is primarily a defensive position, and the expectations for catchers are fairly low when it comes to hitting. Unfortunately, these four catchers need even lower expectations. Here are their dismal slash lines, ranked from worst to best. Joey Bart holds the unenviable position of the lowest with an anemic slash line of .156/.222/.281, resulting in an OPS of .503. He has managed one home run and driven in three runs while having the fewest plate appearances at just 38. For reasons unknown, the Pirates have opted to play Henry Davis a bit more, citing his perceived defensive advantage. However, in the small sample size, there isn’t much difference between the two at the moment. Davis’s slash line is almost as poor, sitting at .186/.300/.256 for an OPS of .556. He has zero home runs and three RBIs in 51 plate appearances. Davis ranks 318th in OPS while Bart sits at 351st out of approximately 400 players. There has been some clamoring for the two AAA catchers to be brought up, but they aren’t much better either. Endy Rodrigues is hitting a robust .185/.291/.277 for an OPS of .568 with one home run and 13 RBIs in 80 plate appearances. Rafael Flores is starting to show some signs of life, after sitting in the mid .100’s for most of the season in AAA. Right he boasts a slash line of .208/.329/.333 for an OPS of .662, along with one home run and nine RBIs in 85 plate appearances. As it stands, none of these four catchers will cause any pitcher to shake in their boots.

The Pirates have improved greatly on the offensive side of the ball. Their offense is not good enough to afford carrying catchers that hit this poorly. It will be interesting to see how long the Pirates stick with the current duo of Bart and Davis. Right now, the decision is easy because their AAA replacements are not hitting either. Regardless, in my view, the sooner they part ways with Bart, the better. Over the next ten games or so, if Flores is trending upward and Bart is still hitting well below .200, it is time to let him go. In Bart’s case, he is out of options, which means he would be designated for assignment (DFA). I do not view it as a significant loss. I think there is a real possibility that he would clear waivers. All of this would be moot if Bart and Davis start to really hit. I think the chances of that happening are slim to none. The Pirates have played 22 games. We are heading toward that magical point of 30 to 35 games, which will mark around 20% of the season complete. The next six games are on the road against the Rangers and the Brewers. A .500 road trip is the worst the Pirates will need to do, especially in this division where no team is below .500. Then the Pirates will play four games against the Cardinals and three against the Reds, all at home. Ten straight games against division teams. Hopefully, the Pirates will stop giving games away. Thirteen games in thirteen days are coming up. This stretch should tell us if this team is for real.