At his weekly press conference, the only thing Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was not asked about was his level of surprise at the news that the Pirates’ “bid” to sign free agent slugger Kyle Schwarber came up short.
My guess is that he is as completely stunned as the rest of us. Aren’t ya, Coach T?
Aren’t we all shocked to our cores that the notoriously thrifty Pirates missed out on signing a player who eventually stayed in Philadelphia for $150 million over five years?
Keep in mind that the Pirates’ entire opening day payroll last year was $86.4 million. So now we are supposed to believe that the Pirates were really willing to pledge nine figures over multiple years to a 32-year-old designated hitter?
Many in the national media apparently think we should subscribe to that notion.
Based on how overtly the Pirates are leaking that information, they sure would like it if their fans did, too.
I can’t take this bid for Schwarber seriously. This feels like a manufactured public relations puppet show.
Pardon my cynicism. Watching this team operate for the last 30 years forces those instincts to the surface rather quickly.
This would be like calling the best-looking girl in school, asking her to the prom, getting shot down and then bragging because your number is in her call log now.
Some of the other competitors for Schwarber’s services were reportedly his current team (which has money and is competitive), the Boston Red Sox (who have lots of money and are competitive) and his hometown Cincinnati Reds (who at least spend more than the Pirates).
According to various reports, the Pirates offered $100-$125 million to Schwarber. That’s a lot easier to do when you know the other teams involved are willing to go well north of that.
Have you ever seen the guy at a charity silent auction who writes his name down as the minimum opening bid on the all-expenses-paid trip to Hawaii, just so people will notice he made an effort to help the cause?
That’s Pirates general manager Ben Cherington. He’s looking for the “Aw, isn’t it nice that you tried?” reaction.
Then he’ll just walk away with a wine gift basket at the end of the night and hope you are still impressed with his generous intentions.
In Pirates terms, that wine gift basket might be five utility guys at roughly $20 million each instead of Schwarber at $100 million. Ironically, that might be a smarter purchase if Cherington selects five good bottles of wine.
Unfortunately, what in the name of Bryan De La Cruz makes you think he’s capable of that?
I hope he’s a better sommelier than he is a baseball general manager. The last thing we need is another bottle of 2025 Chardonnay from “Suwinski Vineyards.” That stuff got skunky fast.
I’m not sure why all the national media types are advancing this Pirates narrative this year. In Pittsburgh, we are used to hearing it from that team, regardless of who the GM is.
Every offseason. Every trade deadline.
Anonymous sources leaking info that: “The Pirates were so close! They nearly got (fill in the blank player) for (70% of what it would’ve taken to get the deal done). He just went the other way at the last minute!”
I know. I know. It hurts. Ohhh, so close every time, right?
Except this winter, these stories are originating from the heavy hitters in the baseball media world — Jeff Passan, Ken Rosenthal, etc. These guys aren’t naive.
Maybe they just haven’t bothered to pay attention to this yearly Pirates news cycle because they’ve never been relevant in the past. Maybe they’ve never cared to ask Cherington if he’d be willing to lie to them in the first place because, pre-Paul Skenes, the Pirates have never mattered in December outside of Pittsburgh.
Actually, they barely matter here — even with Skenes.
Also, at least this time, the Pirates are flirting with the big names. These performative swings and misses on Schwarber and Josh Naylor get attention. Then a few national headlines may include the team’s name when they settle for Jorge Polanco, Ryan O’Hearn or Kazuma Okamoto instead.
That’s more interesting to the national types than signing Tommy Pham instead of trading for Taylor Ward. Perhaps inking lefty relief pitcher Gregory Soto at $7.75 million is a start.
I suppose the Pirates’ reported desire to fish in some deeper waters could be true. Maybe publicly patting themselves on the back for chasing Schwarber will force agents of other players to return calls from a 412 area code instead of sending them to voicemail.
Maybe the noise from the players union and fellow owners about small-market teams failing to spend revenue-sharing dollars has gotten louder behind closed doors as a labor stoppage looms.
Maybe the Pirates are feeling pressure to at least get some money on the books for whatever cost-equity system gets put in place after that stoppage ends, whether that’s a salary cap/floor or not.
Maybe the lack of competitiveness is hurting Bob Nutting’s bottom line.
All of those options make sense.
What doesn’t make sense is why someone like Schwarber would ever want to play for this franchise, given its long history of losing — even if the money was equal to other offers.
Because playing baseball in Pittsburgh, all things being equal … they aren’t. Big-ticket free agents are going to charge a “Pirates Tax.”
If the Pirates make a “competitive” offer to a Schwarber-type, it isn’t all that “competitive” because the team isn’t competitive. Cherington’s offers aren’t going to be truly competitive until they are overpaying.
The money might be the same at that point, but the choice isn’t.
The problem for Cherington now is that the whole league is waiting for him to do something. Not just the few true believers in Pittsburgh.
And I’m pretty sure a basket of wine won’t be enough.