OT: Raise the Jolly Roger: New season of plundering begins

[MrBrightside]

Is this a Pirates thing (Sunday roster) or do most teams employ this strategy?

Most teams do it to some extent but Shelton seems to go further with it than most. Maybe it’s just because I watch them more closely.

 

[metalan2]

Shelty ball. Resting the starters 4 games into season.

Now hear me out. I know it sounds crazy. But, How about we try to win EVERY game we play?

 

[Factorial]

Most teams do it to some extent but Shelton seems to go further with it than most. Maybe it’s just because I watch them more closely.

Bad for business too for home games when people know you're going to sit so many of the starters on Sundays.

 

[metalan2]

This team has played some really sloppy baseball and are 3-0. The hits and runs are there. The bullpen has been lights out.

Jared Jones was unbelievable. That debut was better than Cole's IMO.

Hard not to he excited after that showing plus Skenes dominant performance in his first go.

This. If we had a competent manager, and we focused on fundamentals, we could actually be good.

The lack of fundamentals, base running, fielding, etc, will cost us a lot of games as usual. It's just this year, we have some talent behind it.

 

[since70]

I'm glad the Pirates are doing what they should be doing against the Marlins, who are awful, it's encouraging to think they might have finally escaped being a bottom tier team

 

[MrBrightside]

This is all starting as feared with Falter and this lineup. Falter can’t be in the rotation for a remotely serious team.

 

[DJ Spinoza]

The only thing I'd say about trends and so on are that they have to be looked at over the long view. I don't even really think it's a debate that Shelton contributed immensely to the win on Friday, as he mix and matched the bullpen and pinch hit decisions extremely well.

The Pirates have consistently been extremely aggressive on the basepaths and so far we've seen it not work out pretty badly a few times. Yesterday it helped put the game basically out of reach.

Falter getting rocked might be for the best, though not if it comes at the cost of the bullpen being taxed too much. I don't really know what there is to see with him. He's bad. He might be able to walk a tightrope if he had better control, but he doesn't, and the fastball is so horrible that any MLB hitter can hammer it. There's no need to see this out. LOL Jazz nuke as I finish typing.

 

[wheelz87]

Well. Guess I can focus on college bball today

 

[Scandale du Jour]

This is all starting as feared with Falter and this lineup. Falter can’t be in the rotation for a remotely serious team.

Guy cannot get an out when guys haven't seen his pitches yet. He cannot even get another start, IMO.

 

[td_ice]

good lord......

 

[BusinessGoose]

Yup, we Faltered lol

Lot of game to try and claw back

 

[MrBrightside]

Guy cannot get an out when guys haven't seen his pitches yet. He cannot even get another start, IMO.

Nope. I’m not high on Priester and they seem to want Ortiz and Contreras in the pen but they can’t do this anymore.

 

[since70]

After last season and getting torched in ST, Falter better on the waiver wire

 

[NewAgeOutlaw]

Falter is giving me Jeff Locke flashbacks.

 

[MrBrightside]

Falter is giving me Jeff Locke flashbacks.

Locke was way better than Falter. And Locke sucked.

 

[WheresRamziAbid]

Falter is giving me Jeff Locke flashbacks.

I wish, Locke could at least be serviceable for stretches.

Faulter is just poo

 

[td_ice]

I thought this guy was just on the team to do mop up innings. Not sure why he is starting.

 

[DJ Spinoza]

At this point hopefully he can just eat enough innings that it keeps the bullpen fresh for the Nationals series. This went basically the exact way you'd imagine heading into it, but Falter was just extremely efficient in terms of having it all happen immediately.

I don't have any confidence he can even get through 4 without this getting even further out of hand, but ideally we're 3-1 with a solidly rested bullpen tomorrow.

 

[Factorial]

This is all starting as feared with Falter and this lineup. Falter can’t be in the rotation for a remotely serious team.

DFA Falter. Ridiculous to start him after his performance this spring and last season.

 

[MrBrightside]

 

[td_ice]

At this point hopefully he can just eat enough innings that it keeps the bullpen fresh for the Nationals series. This went basically the exact way you'd imagine heading into it, but Falter was just extremely efficient in terms of having it all happen immediately.

I don't have any confidence he can even get through 4 without this getting even further out of hand, but ideally we're 3-1 with a solidly rested bullpen tomorrow.

Yeah, we will see how long he can go.

Pre game Shelton was asked if he was just opening, or maybe 2 innings, and then go with Contreas. He said, "no, we are treating him as the starter and see how he does."

EDIT: on Cruz, Shelton said "we have to watch him carefully, and get him rest. He missed a whole season, so we gotta go slow with him."

On Cutch; "he had a virus that was going through the team in ST, so we want to be careful with him as well."

 

[MrBrightside]

Tellez over Cutch and Taylor against a lefty with big platoon splits is just poor management.

 

[DJ Spinoza]

Lol of course Williams would get a gift triple. Now it's frustrating when Falter comes back to give up more runs.

I guess maybe get can limp through the order a second time and we pray for luck and a quick hook -> Ortiz?

 

[NewAgeOutlaw]

De la Cruz is just asking to separate his shoulder the way he dives for the ball. He's had a lot of those plays in this series and I've cringed every single time.

 

[Scandale du Jour]

Good thing is we can score. Hopefully they make the game interesting