It is a sad day for the Pittsburgh Pirates as Jim Benedict, whose work has been praised from top to bottom in the organization, has departed to join the Miami Marlins as vice president of pitching.
Though the title sounds like a bizarre one, this is a compliment to a man who frankly I am surprised was even with the Pirates last season.
Benedict and Ray Searage made a great team that consistently improved Pirates pitchers. Whether they found success with the team or with another after their respective Pirates contracts expired.
The “pitching guru” also served as a special assistant to general manager Neal Huntington, another compliment to his abilities.
Having talked to the man myself a couple of times this season, it is clear that the man knows what he is talking about and has a true passion for the game. The Marlins need people such as that as it rebuilds from a disappointing 2015 season.
The Pirates, while losing a great baseball man, continue to win the respect of those around them. During the regular season, Mark DelPiano left the team, also to join the Marlins and Tyrone Brooks was interviewed for the Milwaukee Brewers general manager vacancy.
It is clear that other teams are noticing the changes the Pirates have made and how it has allowed them to become one of the most successful teams in all of baseball.
In several instances this season, Huntington has addressed the possibility of losing men that he work so closely with. This makes them hard to lose, however the Pirates GM also acknowledges that he does not want to hold anyone back from taking the next step in their careers whether it is with his team or another.
Benedict will be a hard man to replace, however Huntington tends to surround himself with good baseball men and is himself a good evaluator of talent, he has more then proven that.
It is expected that Marlins pitching coach Chuck Hernandez will not be back next season as the Marlins will overhaul again allowing Benedict to build a relationship with a new coach.
Where does that leave the Pirates? Hard to say. Ray Searage is a pretty darn good pitching guru as well, and his work should never be discounted.
With the tag team of Benedict and Searage, the previous works of disaster created by Jeff Andrews and Joe Kerrigan among others were undone.
The Pirates bullpen has been and may always be a strong part of this team. I am convinced that without Benedict and Searage, Charlie Morton would have been out of the major leagues a long time ago.
Benedict was a consistent presence at Spring Training and also made some road trips with the team as well in both his role with Huntington as well as with his “pitching guru” background.
Pittsburgh will miss Benedict, but he is more than deserving of whatever opportunities come his way.
