The 2014 MLB trade deadline came and went on Thursday and the Pittsburgh Pirates were once again shut out from the party.
While big names like Jon Lester, David Price and John Lackey were moved, Pirates’ general manager Neal Huntington didn’t pull the trigger on any move that could help this team down the stretch run.
And that’s just fine.
While Pirates’ fans everywhere are disappointed and outraged about not landing a big star at the end of the day Huntington should have at least earned the trust of the fans by now. But that hasn’t happened.
He shouldn’t be given a free pass by any means, but Huntington and his staff have done enough over the course of the past few years in building and adding to this team, that they should at least be given the benefit of the doubt.
For now.
The Pirates enter play on Friday sitting six games over .500, having the best record in the National League since June 1. They sit only 2.5 games out of first place in the National League Central and only a half game out of the final wild card spot.
This comes after a poor April and with the likes of Pedro Alvarez, Starling Marte, Francisco Liriano and Gerrit Cole having poor seasons to date. If two or possibly three rebound and have big second halves, that is the equivalent to making a big deadline deal right there.
Of course that is no given, but it is also no given that paying a big price to land a big star will work out favorably either.
Look, I get it. I am disappointed as well, but the outrage being heard around Pittsburgh is a bit overboard.
Fans are wearing 20-plus years of losing on their sleeve. Huntington and his staff weren’t responsible for a majority of that.
When he says things like: “We felt like we were aggressive. At the end of the day, we felt that the right move was no move,” you have to take him at his word. He should have built up that much trust by now.
Keep in mind two things when you are bashing the Pirates front office.
The first is that this turned out not to be a prospects market.
Highly thought of prospects were not moved in big deals. Instead it was young major league ready players that teams can control for several years.
I will repeat that. Young major league ready players that teams can control for several years.
If you’re scoring at home, that means the likes of Gerrit Cole and Gregory Polanco and a few others, who were likely the first names teams asked for.
Would you ship Polanco out for a year and a half of Price? Cole for two months of Lester? Because that’s what the market dictated that teams were asking for. Guys with four of five years of control.
I didn’t think so. Neither would Huntington and his staff.
Secondly, keep in mind that the Pirates didn’t make a deal at the deadline last year either and things worked out just fine.
I’m not saying that things will work out as good this year, but it is a calculated gamble by Huntington. He’s not going to break up the current core of the team and he’s still going to look to be active in August.
Finally keep in mind that the Pirates are likely more than one piece away from winning a World Series and that’s what all this is about. Adding a guy like Price or Lester improves those chances, but does it make them favorites to win in October?
If they made that type of move and mortgaged parts of their future, they better win the World Series. At the end of the day they simply aren’t close enough where one move would put them over the top.
The Cardinals and Brewers didn’t get much better either so Pirates fans should feel fine with that. While St. Louis added a couple of arms, they did nothing to fix their struggling offense and while the Brewers added a nice piece in Gerardo Parra, they didn’t do anything to separate themselves from the rest of the division.
The one move I was disappointed with had nothing to do with Price or Lester, but Emilio Bonifacio and James Russell being dealt to the Braves for a Single-A prospect. One thing the Pirates needed to do is strengthen their bench and add another bullpen arm and the Braves got two pieces that could have strengthened the Pirates for next to nothing.
That being said, I do expect Huntington to address that.
Just because it didn’t happen yesterday doesn’t mean it won’t.
I fully expect Huntington to make a couple of deals in August. It may not be Marlon Byrd or Justin Morneau, but I expect him to add a couple of guys who can help down the stretch.
Until then, this team will be fine.
Should the Pirates have made a trade yesterday? Probably so.
Did they need to in order to compete the rest of the way? No.
While it is typical for the fan base to bash the front office for lack of moves, step back and take a deep breath.
Huntington has earned the benefit of the doubt for now.
We will see at the end of September if he made the right call.
If he didn’t then you can take off the gloves.
Photo Credit: USA Today Sports
