I agree! Injuries to Cervalli, not due back to July with no real backup to replace him AND Cole with tricep tightness but listed as day to day but in all reality, he will be going to the DL, this doesn't look good.Black Panther wrote:The ship is taking serious water! We better get things figured out quick or even a WC chance will be a struggle this year.
The bullpen, except for Melancon, has been uneven this year and they were a strong point the past several years. Maybe we are trying to get lightening in a bottle to many times and giving pitching coach Ray Searage too many projects to work on as our starting pitching is spotty at best.
Hitting has improved this year, leading the NL at this point but team leader McCutchen needs to start performing better at the plate. One year he is having knee problems, now it is his thumb. If you want to be the face of the team then you need to start performing year around and not just picking it up from June thru late August. I am a little frustrated with him at this point. Polanco and Marte have improved dramatically at the plate and lets hope that this is a permanent improvement. Harrison and Mercer need to be more even at the plate. Friese, Jaso and Joyce have been solid pickups but we ARE missing Walker's bat. Kang has recovered nicely from his injury last year and appears to be solid at the plate and in the field.
I thought that the Pirates management team had came to the conclusion that to be contenders year to year you would have to spend some money. I think we are still a small money team that continues to look for diamonds in the rough and pay low wages. Point in case, Neil Walker.
IMHO opinion, it is too early for Taillon to make the move to MLB but he didn't do bad in his debut the other night. With Cole possibly heading towards surgery, Taillon may be moved up for the rest of the year.
This current stretch of games vs some very good teams in the next few weeks will tell us if we are going to be buyers or sellers (like we have in the past) when the trade deadline nears. Hopefully, we will go out and pick up some good players, if only for this season, to make a serious push for the playoffs.
As of right now, our only hope is to secure a wildcard berth, hopefully a home game. Everybody in the NL Central is playing for 2nd place as the Cubs appear to be the real deal this year so I really think that our chances at catching the Cubs are ZERO.
Hurdle better start pressing the right buttons and please stop tinkering with the lineup. the only thing we have set from day to day is our outfield, Marte LF, McCutchen CF and Polanco RF. The infield is a constant state of flux. I think the everyday infield should be Kang 3B, Mercer SS, Harrison 2B and Friese 1B (simply for his veteran leadership and timely hitting). You can spot start the other guys as needed.
Just my honest opinion.
Big road trip this week with 3 each vs the Mets and Cubs. Going 3-3 is a must and 4-2 or better would be manna from heaven.
LETS GO BUCS!!!