As they add, Pirates see winning ways on horizon
PITTSBURGH — The Pirates took their lumps final 12 months. They are, at their core, a younger group, one that can get youthful because the season goes alongside. But with a handful of recent — and acquainted — faces within the combine, the Bucs aren’t pondering of extra rising pains.
They’re interested by successful.
“With [Andrew McCutchen] and the other signings that we made, it’s just brought a buzz to the guys that are on the team,” mentioned pitcher Mitch Keller. “We’re all texting each other. The word that’s going around is ‘win.’ That’s what we want to do. Winning is on the forefront of everyone’s mind. That’s all we’re talking about.”
The optimism is warranted. On paper, the Pirates are positioned to win extra video games than the 62 they secured in 2022. They anticipate to return a core that includes the likes of Keller, Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz, Ke’Bryan Hayes and Roansy Contreras. They ought to add to that core as high prospects, resembling Henry Davis, Endy Rodriguez and Quinn Priester, graduate from prospect lists. And, over the course of this offseason, the Bucs have complemented their youth by including expertise throughout their roster.
“They’re going to help us in our clubhouse, where now we’re to the point where some of these young guys are taking steps forward,” mentioned supervisor Derek Shelton. “Having veterans is going to be helpful. Then, some of the guys we have here are taking steps forward. Mitch took steps forward. [Hayes] took steps forward. Bryan took steps forward. It’s good to be able to add guys into that group.”
The headliner of Pittsburgh’s offseason, in fact, is the aforementioned McCutchen, who had loads of alternatives to look at the Pirates final 12 months with the Brewers. When Shelton and McCutchen talked this offseason, McCutchen started the dialog with Pittsburgh’s subsequent technology.
“One of the first things Cutch said to me was, ‘You guys have a good, young core.’ That’s exciting to me,” Shelton mentioned. “He’s a guy who played in our division last year and saw us play. I think it is important, and I think it symbolizes or maybe even reflects what we’ve tried to do here and what we’ve tried to build.”
Shelton famous that McCutchen’s return is definitely a cool story, however he emphasised that McCutchen supplies on-field worth. Shelton anticipates that McCutchen will spend time at each left and proper area, however he additionally added that the group must be cognizant of his workload.
Along with McCutchen, the Pirates have added veterans in left-handers Rich Hill and Jarlín García; first basemen Carlos Santana and Ji-Man Choi; right-hander Vince Velasquez; and catcher Austin Hedges. All of the above have data to impart. For Shelton, the acquisitions of seasoned gamers serve a testomony to what Pittsburgh is fostering.
“The one thing about veteran players is they have the opportunity to go where they want to go,” Shelton mentioned. “The exciting thing for us was these guys chose to come here and chose to come here because they’ve seen the culture that [we’ve] been building and the young players that [we] have.”
Added outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba: “Getting to this level, you didn’t just do it by yourself. You’ve got to have guys who mentor you through the ups and the downs.”
Shelton is aware of that his method to managing Pittsburgh’s veterans will likely be totally different than how he handles the youth. He mentioned his dialog with newcomers is “a little more poignant,” however he understands that his older gamers will likely be prepared to have extra suggestions and supply totally different concepts and views.
“I think ultimately it’s just communication, but it’s different kinds of communication,” Shelton mentioned.
With additions to each place group, Shelton emphasised that there will likely be loads of competitors throughout Spring Training.
“When you sign veteran players, you know they’re going to play,” Shelton mentioned. “You know they’re going to be on the club. For the young guys who got this opportunity, now there’s competition. There are guys at those spots, then there’s competition amongst that young group, which I think is really important for us.”
Shelton affirms stance on Reynolds
At the Winter Meetings, Shelton expressed his perception that Reynolds, whose commerce request turned public in December, wouldn’t be a distraction come Spring Training. On Friday, Shelton maintained that stance.
“I talked to Bryan yesterday. He continues to work,” Shelton mentioned. “We had an excellent dialog. I don’t anticipate will probably be a problem in any respect.”
