Inbox: Is it time to call up the prospects?

Beat reporter Adam Berry fields Pirates fans' questions

August 5th, 2019

With the Trade Deadline over and the dog days of August underway, let’s open the Inbox and answer some of your questions.

Clearly this season is over. Is it time to call up , Ke’Bryan Hayes, , Mitch Keller and others to see what they can do?
-- Will S., Pittsburgh

“Play the kids!” is a popular rallying cry this time of year, because people want to find some reason for optimism heading into next season. But here’s the thing, as I mentioned after Friday’s game: What you’re seeing now will pretty much be the core of next year’s team, too.

There will be a few subtractions between now and then, and there should be some additions (another starting pitcher? A catcher?) over the offseason. But the Pirates don’t seem to have much of an appetite for a full rebuild, which means there’s not a huge roster overhaul coming.

is going to be back at first base. is going to start somewhere in the infield. , , , , , , , , and are all under club control. It’s a similar story on the pitching side. Everyone but is under club control for next season.

Before the Pirates can evaluate the next wave, they need to make some tough decisions about what they have here.

They’re going to let Reynolds prove himself as an everyday player. They want to see what they have in Osuna given his four-corners defensive versatility and a swing change that’s led to more fly balls. They’ll see where Gonzalez and Reyes fit. They need to see what they have behind the plate to determine if they need to find a starting catcher this offseason.

Again, it’s a similar story on the pitching side. Is ’s pre-injury success sustainable as a starter? With a decision looming on his club option, what can they expect out of ? Does deserve a spot heading into next season? How will finish a full season in the rotation? Who else might emerge as an answer in the bullpen? What is ’s timetable?

These aren’t your typical “play the kids” evaluations, obviously. Most of those guys have been here for at least a season or two. But a lot of them are reaching tipping points in their careers as they head into their arbitration-eligible years.

Beyond that, yes, there is a group of prospects waiting at Triple-A Indianapolis. I’d imagine that we’ve already seen most of the players who will be called up down the stretch: Keller, Tucker, outfielder Jason Martin, infielder Kevin Kramer and the relievers who have been up and down this year. Maybe the Pirates will promote Craig and/or Hayes to get a taste of life in the Majors in September, but keep in mind neither is currently on the 40-man roster.

Why are Melky Cabrera and Liriano still on this team? They should have been traded at the Deadline! How can you say they’re looking toward the future when they’re still playing?
-- James M., Pittsburgh

This is a fair question, but the answer isn’t all that complicated. The Pirates were absolutely willing to move both veterans before the Trade Deadline, from what I understand, but there wasn’t any interest.

The Pirates typically try to do well by veterans by sending them to contending teams rather than letting them collect dust on their bench. They did that with David Freese and Adeiny Hechavarria late last August, and they hoped to do the same with Juan Nicasio before that ill-fated saga in 2017.

This year, they traded Corey Dickerson to the Phillies for an international signing slot and a player to be named later and dealt Jordan Lyles for a Double-A pitching prospect. They couldn’t find a landing spot for Cabrera or Liriano. Nor could they find a match for Jung Ho Kang, who they placed on unconditional release waivers on Sunday after designating him for assignment on Friday.

The difference is that Kang hadn’t been productive, and his presence prevented them from giving playing time to people like Osuna, Gonzalez and Reyes. Cabrera and Liriano have played their parts well, they’re considered positive influences in the clubhouse and they’re not getting everyday at-bats/innings.

With the way the season has played out, what's the likelihood there will be a shakeup in management? The Archer trade has been a disaster. … If not for once-in-a-career stats put up in the first half by Bell and two rookies (Newman/Reynolds), the Pirates would be a bottom feeder. Even GM Neal Huntington himself has admitted lately that he has to do better. Will he/should he get that chance? It's been a really bad year of performance by him by any standard.
-- Jason D., Richmond, Va.

It hasn’t been a good year, and nothing reflects that better than the Pirates’ record. The Archer trade was lauded at the time as a welcome go-for-it move, but Austin Meadows blossomed into an All-Star and Archer has a 5.01 ERA here.

They should get credit for believing in Bell and targeting Newman (a first-round pick) and Reynolds (acquired for Andrew McCutchen), among other things, but that hasn’t been enough to prop up a pitching staff that clearly wasn’t deep enough to withstand all these injuries. The offseason signings of Liriano and Cabrera worked out well, but the others -- Kang, Lyles and Lonnie Chisenhall -- didn’t pan out.

That said, I would be surprised if there’s any sort of “shakeup.” Maybe management will be persuaded to make wholesale changes if this brutal second half continues apace, but Huntington and manager Clint Hurdle are under contract through the 2021 season. If the Bucs move on, they’re essentially signaling it’s time for a full rebuild -- and whether that’s the right move or not, I don’t get the sense they’re ready to head down that road.