Living in Central Pennsylvania allows me to see a fairly even split of Phillies and Pirates paraphernalia. Phillies fans are gloating right now, while Pirates fans are worried it is more of the same in Pittsburgh.

I noticed a great debate raging on social media amongst Pirates fans about whether the Pirates ownership/management is actually trying to win. What better way to look at this issue than comparing the team in Western PA to the team on the other side of the state.

Phillies vs Pirates.

Money, Money, Money

The obvious starting point in this debate is team payroll. The Phillies currently have a payroll north of 245 million dollars. The Pirates, on the other hand, are next to last in MLB payroll at 84.5 million dollars. Now, nobody is suggesting the Pirates spend like the Phillies. Ownership in Philly basically told management they had an open checkbook. Six players on the Phillies roster make 20 million dollars or more. Just those six players alone nearly double the entire Pirates roster.

This is precisely why baseball is broken. Without a salary cap, some teams will spend a limitless amount. Other teams have said limit, and it is significantly less than the big spenders. It puts the small market teams at an unfair disadvantage.

Having said that, the owner of the Pirates is Bob Nutting, and he has no intention of spending adequately. He is concerned about the bottom line only. He is certainly not serious about winning. Nutting has found a formula that works for him. He spends as little as possible on payroll, while saving face by having his team be prominent in the community. The charity work is fantastic, but not spending to an adequate level is damning for any owner.

The Twins have a payroll 43 million dollars more than the Pirates. The Royals are 32 million more than the Pirates. The Brewers, a team the Pirates should emulate, are 22 million dollars ahead of Pittsburgh. Tampa is just ahead of Pittsburgh in payroll, yet are still 14 million more than the Pirates.

There is no reason the Pirates can’t spend in the same neighborhood as the Royals, Twins, and Brewers. That extra 30 million dollars would pay for two legitimate players. Just think where the Pirates may be if they had a legitimate first baseman and a legitimate center fielder.

The Phillies made splash signings over the last half decade. JT Realmuto is as good as it gets behind the plate. Bryce Harper is a superstar. Kyle Schwarber has changed the way we view leadoff men. Trea Turner started slowly last year, but has been fantastic ever since. Zach Wheeler is Cy Young material. Nick Castellanos is the one signing that is struggling right now.

Across the Keystone State, the Pirates signed the following dumpster fire players.

  • Rowdy Tellez: Minus the last two weeks, Tellez has been whatever is worse than horrendous.
  • Michael Taylor: hovering around .200 is just not going to cut it.
  • Yasmani Grandal: Slower than whatever is the slowest creature on Earth. Also not hitting much.
  • Marco Gonzales: moved to 60 day DL. Stinks.
  • Martin Perez: Dumps Gatorade on teammates better than he pitches.
  • Aroldis Chapman: The team actually spent significant cash on this clown. 24 walks in 23 innings pitched.

When you do your shopping at the nickel and dime store, you will almost always get things that are worth a nickel or a dime.

A salary cap is needed in baseball. An owner who cares is needed in Pittsburgh. A competent GM is also necessary in Pittsburgh.

Drafting and Developing

The Phillies have two infield cornerstones that they drafted in the first round. Alec Bohm was drafted first in 2018 and Bryson Stott was drafted first in 2019.

Bohm has 23 doubles and 51 RBI already. He has continues to get better each year. Stott is coming off a fantastic season a year ago, and though his batting average is down a tick, he is on pace for 50+ stolen bases. Both players are solid defensively.

Add to the mix defensive gem Johan Rojas, and you have three starters that were homegrown and giving solid or better production to your team.

This discussion can't end without the mention of another first round selection. Aaron Nola dipped a year ago, but is back to vintage Aaron Nola this season. Nola is a long term, possibly full career, Phillies product who has held the rotation together until help arrived. Some of that help is from another homegrown talent in Ranger Suarez. Suarez is Cy Young caliber this year, and may have to fight off his teammates for the award.

Let me end this Phillies segment by adding that the team made a shrewd trade to acquire their current closer Jose Alvarado. They gave up a marginal middle reliever in the deal.

Sure the Phillies spend crazy money, but that is some pretty solid drafting and developing(and trading) of players that are providing a huge boost to the current team.

Across to the other side of the state, not so much.

The Pirates are banking on O’Neil Cruz to become a superstar. Certainly, he has the tools. Yet, Cruz continues to be an enigma. Granted, he lost an entire year last season to injury but the inconsistencies are still frustrating. At age 25 more improvement is fair to expect. I think Cruz has as much of a chance at becoming a more powerful version of Javier Baez, a guy who swings wildly and electrifies when he connects, as he does at becoming an all star.

Maybe Henry Davis was a bad first pick in the 2021 draft, or maybe the coaches have been unable to develop him. Either way, Davis has been a gigantic disappointment to date.

Maybe Jack Suwinski was unhearalded for a reason. After he and Davis were demoted to AAA and then recalled to the major league team, they haven’t exactly lit the world on fire.

 

 

Maybe I was right about Ke’Bryan Hayes. He will end up hitting like his daddy. Actually that is false. Minus a two month stretch last year, he hasn’t come close to hitting as well as his daddy.

I won’t even get into all the pitchers who them Pirates traded away that blossomed with their new teams.

Temarr Johnson WAS a top 100 prospect, but not after a horrific start to this year in High A ball. Also dropping in the rankings are AA pitchers Anthony Solomento and Bubba Chandler. Only Braxton Ashcroft has made the jump to AAA out of the big three pitching prospects at Altoona.

Now, the reason the question is even being asked on social media platforms about the Pirates trying to win is the “big 3” pitchers in Pittsburgh. Paul Skenes, Jared Jones, and grizzled veteran Mitch Keller are as good of a top three starters as any team has in all of baseball. Keller has overcome his early struggles to become a legitimate high end starter. Skenes and Jones are super young, but have an abundance of talent. It is hard to see even the Pirates ruining either guy.

So, with the exception of the “Big 3” the Pirates have drafted and/or developed players very poorly. Former number one pick Nick Gonzales is trying to become another check mark in the plus column. He is having a fantastic second act for the Pirates this year. As far as trading goes, the Pirates have hit on Bryan Reynolds and for at least the first two months this season pitcher Bailey Falter.

But compared to the team in the Eastern part of the state, the Pirates are second rate at acquiring and developing players.

Conclusion

Are the Pirates trying to win?

Honestly, we all know the answer to this question. It is why the social media buzz over the last week on this topic is vexing to me. The answer is obvious, yet not straightforward.

The Pirates are trying to win on their own terms, and they are not good at it.

Anyone who has been semiconscious over the last 20 years knows the owner is not interested in winning if it costs him money. There will never be any big time free agent signings. There will never be trades that require the Pirates to take on any significant salary. I still love that the national media still pleads for Nutting to spend.

 

 

So that leaves drafting, Latin American signings, and development. To date, that is strike one, strike two, and strike three for the Pirates. They have not proven to be good at any of that stuff.

So, an owner that won’t spend, and a GM that stinks at drafting and developing is a bad recipe for “trying to win”. But, of course they are trying. They are just really poor at the trying part. Bob Nutting’s version of trying is far different than the fans expectations of trying.

If you want to see “real” trying, look no further than the other side of the state. The Phillies have ownership that have not only stated they will spend but backed up those words. On top of that, the success rate of the Phillies drafting and developing is at a championship level. That isn’t just trying, that is doing.

The better question is will the Pirates and Phillies win. That question is easy for one team and a bit of a crapshoot for the other.

The Phillies are winning, will continue to win, and will likely be the number one seed in the National League when the playoffs open in October.

The Pirates might win, at least a wildcard spot. The starting pitching will keep them in most games. If Reynolds, Hayes, and Andrew McCutchen can lead and have Cruz, Gonzales, and other young guys follow they could earn a playoff spot.

The Pirates aren’t that far away, yet they are miles away. They are trying in their own cheap, inept way. They have some good players if the coaches can just stay out of their way. They could be very dangerous in the playoffs because of those “Big 3” in the starting rotation.

It is still a real possibility the Pirates can win despite their best efforts to be…well, the Pirates.

Two Cent Takes

MLB

~There are only 4 teams over .500 in the National League. Exactly why teams like the Pirates still have plenty of hope.

~The NL East race is over. The Phillies are 9 games ahead of the Braves, and will potentially be up 15 by the All-Star break.

~The Yankees and Orioles are making the AL East a two team race, and truly both teams are playing for seeding in the playoffs.

~The Guardians and Royals have solidified themselves as the clear top two in the AL East, while Seattle is opening a gap in the AL West.

~Umpire bashing of the week. This was ruled a pass ball not a foul ball. It allowed a run to score which ultimately cost the Pirates the game. This is not a reviewable play. Why? You wonder why I constantly rail on instant replay.

 

 

NBA

~The Celtics Invitational will soon come to an end, with Dallas being the last speed bump for the Green Machine to rumble over. I am sure Celtics fans won’t be nauseating.

~With the offseason upon us, let me remind you, once again, that the 76ers should trade Joel Embiid.

NHL

~Is anyone outside of Edmonton and Florida watching the Stanley Cup finals? I still think the NHL needs to find a way to shorten a far too long season.

College Basketball

~Danny Hurley spurned the Lakers offer and will stay at UConn. Good for college basketball. Good for UConn. Good for Hurley. Hurley has a chance to go down as one of the greatest coaches in history. Why ruin that by going to a league that ignores coaches anyway.

~The latest fallout of the NIL rulings is the 1983 NC State Wolfpack players suing the NCAA. Good for them. Remember the power players, meaning the NCAA and its member institutions grabbing every dollar they could over the years on the backs of the athletes. Now the chicken’s greed is coming home to roost.

College Football

~Before criticizing the players for all the portal and NIL stuff, listen to this story about when the genius senator from Alabama, Tommy Tubberville, was coaching at Auburn and screwing his players over.

 

 

Golf

~The US Open will be played at Pinehurst this week. Pinehurst requires accuracy, not necessarily length off the tee. Hitting greens is always important, and according to defending champ Wyndham Clark, good luck on the greens. So, fairways, greens, and a whole lot of two putts. Sounds like a Scottie Scheffler special.

Actually, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Scheffler and Colin Morikawa go head to head again. Scheffler held off Morikawa at The Memorial last weekend. It was Scheffler’s fifth win in his last eight starts. Insane stretch of golf. Look at this.

 

 

Scheffler is a 3-1 favorite to win the U.S. Open. Next on the betting odds are: Xander Schauffele and Rory McIlroy(11-1), Morikawa(14-1), Bryson DeChambeau(18-1), and Victor Hovland and Brooks Koepka(22-1). I always like to give you a long shot that I like, so let’s go with Hideki Matsuyama(40-1), Cameron Smith(40-1), and Patrick Cantlay(50-1). Hideki rises to these occasions, Smith is an elite putter, and Cantlay keeps it in play. All could make a run this week.

I think Scheffler continues this amazing run with a U.S. Open championship. However, when I place my bet, I am going with a parlay of Morikawa to win and Tiger to make the cut.

The Weekly Shiny Penny

How about a good, hearty laugh this week with the shiny penny. It didn’t take long for someone to capitalize on the Scheffler/Louisville PD incident.

 

 

A Penny For My Final Thought…

Mike Tomlin got a three year contract extension.

Steelers social media began the meltdown three seconds later.

I will never understand people going crazy over something literally everyone knew was coming.

From the day them Steelers season ended, every Steelers fan knew that at some point during the offseason Mike Tomlin would get an extension. I suppose the only possible surprise here is three years instead of two years.

Yet…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not to worry. Rich Eisen always there to defend anything Mike Tomlin.

 


I am certainly on record as saying I think a new message is needed in Pittsburgh, but it isn’t going to happen. Therefore, I have switched my mindset to hoping Tomlin isn’t too stubborn to change his ways. New players and new coaches on this current edition of the Steelers give Tomlin the perfect chance to adjust his methods.

Everything the naysayers are letting loose with is at least partially accurate. Winning records aside, the playoff performances over the past decade plus —or lack thereof— is completely unacceptable. I really doubt that Tomlin doesn’t agree.

It is all a moot point.

Regardless of contract extensions, an owner in today’s NFL will fire a coach regardless. Rarely, if ever, do you hear a professional sports team suggest they couldn’t move on from a coach because of years left on a contract. They just pay it off and move forward.

Tomlin won’t be fired. Not by Art Rooney, anyway.

Tomlin will be the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers until he doesn’t want to be the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Think about it, folks. Tomlin, by all accounts, was never in danger despite some rocky times over the last few years. He wanted Kenny Pickett. He got Kenny Pickett. He survived the Kenny Pickett poop parade.

Eisen is probably not entirely wrong. The Steelers could do a lot worse. Plus, we get to hear some, more fantastic quotes and new Tomlinisms. That is worth its weight in gold.

You can get worked up over this if you want.

But, seriously, you knew it was coming.

It changes very little.

We know the stats.

We know the failures.

We know the mediocrity.

We also know Mike Tomlin is going to be the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach until he isn’t.

Mike Tomlin’s thoughts on the complaints?