We are a little less than three weeks until the start of the regular season. The Pirates, of course, have made no big moves. They made another waiver signing. Johan Oviedo probably won’t pitch until after the All Star break. Speculation continues about who will be on the 26 man roster. I am a little surprised that when you see most people’s list, Endy Rodriguez is left off. I am no Pirate insider. Seeing that so much makes me think they might be starting him off in AAA. The other two names that keep popping up are Jack Suwinski and Henry Davis. They are having pretty good springs. I see Suwinski making the team before Davis. The one thing that people seem to keep forgetting is that they both stink defensively. The outfield is so thin that taking a last chance early flier on Suwinski is probably ok. If putting Davis on the roster means taking Rodriguez off, that can be nothing but a bad move. This also means that Nick Yorke, Billy Cook, and Ji Hwan Bae will not be on the opening day roster. Bae is having a good spring at the plate. I would rather take a flier on him than on Suwinski. According to the Pirate Broadcast Booth, Adam Frazier might be slightly injured. He has not played in over a week. If he opens on the IL, that may clear a spot on the roster. There is only one sure thing when it comes to the Pirates. The best 13 players will not be on the opening day roster.
The Pirates did another waiver deal. I wonder what the record is for waiver deals over a 12 month period. The Pirates have probably set it. This time they picked up reliever Justin Thomas from the Colorado Rockies. It is surprising, despite Thomas’s raw numbers, how positive the opinions have been on this pick up. Some have gone as far to say that he is the best pick up of the off season. Pitching for Colorado always will skew a pitchers numbers. Lawrence had his best year in 2023 and his worst season in 2024. On the positive side he has stayed healthy in these two seasons appearing in 125 games. Last year he appeared in 56 games. Thirty of those were in Colorado. In 39 appearances he gave up no runs. In two appearances he gave up 5 runs. He struggled in one bad stretch in late July and early August. During this time, he gave up runs in 7 of 10 appearances. All of this led to some pretty bad numbers in 2024. In 2023 he appeared in 69 games and with an ERA of 3.72 and an ERA+ of 134. He finished strong giving up only 1 run in his last 12 games. Still, last year he seemed to lose his strikeout pitch. He also lost his control. This resulted in the worst Strike Out to Walk ratio of his career. The Pirates are hoping he regains his 2023 form. Just add him to the list of players that the Pirates hope regain their 2023 form. Ke’Bryan Hayes, Jared Triolo, Jack Suwinski, David Bednar, Colin Holderman, and Mitch Keller.
The Pirates finished last in their division. They continue to do very little to improve their team. They seem to be giving jobs to the players who contributed mightily to their last-place finish. There is still time to make moves and clean house, but it is growing short. It is possible that this could change in the blink of an eye, but I am not holding my breath. The Pirates have lots of decisions to make in these remaining 3 weeks of spring training. I am betting they won’t make very good ones.
The Goofy Game of Golf/Life Searching for the Answer 