Tag: Cold hard facts

The Pirates are 15-23 since the All Star break.

They are 18-27 against the 6 teams that would make the playoffs in the National League if the season ended today. Unfortunately, it does not.

Since coming off the IL Spencer Horwitz has a slash line of .159/.237/.174. Of course, the Pirates bat him lead off.

When the Pirates released Marcell Ozuna he had an OPS of .612. Here are the current OPS’s of 5 Pirates that are on the team and play fairly regularly. Jared Triolo .623, Henry Davis .561, Nick Yorke .555, Jacob Gozalez .550 and finally that pinch runner extraordinaire and defensive specialist Billy Cook .436. Four way below Ozuna and one barely better. That is 38% of the team. Ozuna was not a good signing and should have been released, but why are these players still on the team?

The Pirates have lost 14 games this year where they have scored 6 runs or more. The Reds who are in last place in the division have lost 5 games when they have scored 6 or more runs. The Brewers have lost 6 games. The Cubs have lost 5 games. The only team coming close to the Pirates is the Cardinals who have lost 12 games including 4 in a row where they scored 6 runs in each game. If the Pirates could have won half of those games, they would be 72 and 63 and .5 games out of the last playoff spot.

The final fact is that somehow, someway, the Pirate broadcast booth will put a positive spin on this mess of a season before tonight’s Cardinal’s game. As I wrote yesterday the Pirates need to go 21-6 over these final 27 games to have any chance at all. When the Pirates lose that 7th game the season will be over. Let the countdown begin.