Latest / Bucco Territory: A Pittsburgh Pirates Podcast / Skenes' WBC Gem, Henry Davis, and high-leverage bullpen options

Transcript

Skenes' WBC Gem, Henry Davis, and high-leverage bullpen options · Bucco Territory: A Pittsburgh Pirates Podcast

0:09
Speaker 1: What's up, everybody.
0:10
Speaker 2: Welcome back to another episode of Buco Territory, presented to
0:12
Speaker 2: you by the Foul Territory Network.
0:14
Speaker 1: I'm Noah Hyles.
0:15
Speaker 2: Joining me as always are my co hosts Josh Harrison
0:18
Speaker 2: aka Jy and Platinum Key aka Mark. Recording this on Tuesday,
0:23
Speaker 2: I'm live here from Bradenton, Mark and Josh. I'm sure
0:27
Speaker 2: you guys were like me on Monday evening. We were
0:30
Speaker 2: tuned in, locked in the team USA versus Mexico.
0:34
Speaker 1: And that's all will start the show today.
0:36
Speaker 2: It's a mailbag episode and we got a couple of
0:40
Speaker 2: questions that were submitted on x thanks to everyone who
0:42
Speaker 2: always submits those. But before we get into those, I
0:45
Speaker 2: just want to talk about the World Baseball Classic, guys.
0:48
Speaker 1: First things. First thoughts on Paul Skens.
0:51
Speaker 2: He goes four innings, allows one hit, one walk, no run,
0:55
Speaker 2: seven strikeouts over sixty pitches.
0:59
Speaker 3: Pretty good and in the national stage. You love to see.
1:02
Speaker 3: I mean, if you're a Pirates fan, we've seen this.
1:04
Speaker 3: We know it was so cool getting to watch the
1:07
Speaker 3: entire United States be like, this is my ace. He's shoving.
1:10
Speaker 3: He's the best picture in the world. This is an
1:12
Speaker 3: awesome feeling and it was just electric seeing that. So
1:17
Speaker 3: just what else can you say besides he's the best
1:19
Speaker 3: picture in the world. He's so good. He can bring
1:21
Speaker 3: Kevin Durant out of Twitter jail. He can go viral
1:25
Speaker 3: with looking at Bobby wit Junior with just a smile. Yeah,
1:29
Speaker 3: he's awesome. He's gonna win another side young and I
1:31
Speaker 3: can't wait. What do you think, Josh?
1:33
Speaker 4: Oh yeah, Nah, he was dominating fastball at the top
1:37
Speaker 4: of his own, tearing him up. But I noticed, I
1:40
Speaker 4: think the first three pitches of the game, I think
1:42
Speaker 4: he went split split, change up and I see him.
1:44
Speaker 4: Oh they got no shot because I mean, how do
1:47
Speaker 4: you make a You got to make a split decision
1:49
Speaker 4: between you know, that's a ten monin difference just between
1:52
Speaker 4: his change up and his fastball, and I think it
1:54
Speaker 4: split was like ninety four yep. And then I think
1:58
Speaker 4: he has so many just right above the top put
2:00
Speaker 4: his own that you could just tell guys stuff that
2:01
Speaker 4: they were on that it was.
2:03
Speaker 5: It was doors by you really good out and buy him. Uh.
2:07
Speaker 4: Definitely encouraged to see how he builds off of that
2:09
Speaker 4: head into the season. But you know, for that to
2:11
Speaker 4: be his you know, spring train to start. That's very encouraging.
2:14
Speaker 4: That's Paul being Paul.
2:15
Speaker 3: And I think that was probably Sorry, really, do you
2:17
Speaker 3: think that was the biggest stage for him yet? Yeah,
2:20
Speaker 3: he's pitched on so I think handling that pressure was
2:23
Speaker 3: really encouraging to see. I mean, he looked better than
2:26
Speaker 3: he usually does, even almost so handling that pressure and
2:30
Speaker 3: doing that was great. Are you gonna say no, Yeah,
2:32
Speaker 3: I was.
2:32
Speaker 1: Just gonna say A.
2:33
Speaker 2: Having covered him, every time he's pitching at an iconic
2:38
Speaker 2: ballpark or against a team in first place or a
2:41
Speaker 2: team with an O Tawny with you know, Lindor or
2:45
Speaker 2: a Soto or somebody like, that's when you get the
2:47
Speaker 2: best of Paul schemes.
2:48
Speaker 1: Very rarely.
2:49
Speaker 2: There's honestly just one venue where he does not bring
2:53
Speaker 2: his a game, and that's Miller Park or American Family
2:55
Speaker 2: Field whatever it's called now in Milwaukee. Aside from that,
2:59
Speaker 2: like when he's Dodger Stadium, when he's at Shay Stadium,
3:02
Speaker 2: Yankee Stadium, when he's going against the Dodgers, when he's
3:04
Speaker 2: going against the Mariners or whatever great team, the Blue Jays,
3:07
Speaker 2: whoever you throw out there, like, he rises to the
3:10
Speaker 2: occasion and I expected him to be great. I mean
3:13
Speaker 2: the full arsenal was on display. Like Josh said, I
3:16
Speaker 2: mean in the beginning, I mean the way he made
3:18
Speaker 2: Alejandro Kirk.
3:19
Speaker 1: Try to climb the ladder on that strikeout was brutal
3:22
Speaker 1: to watch. And I mean the splinker was splinkling. I mean,
3:25
Speaker 1: all of it was.
3:26
Speaker 2: All of it was really good. And honestly, what it
3:29
Speaker 2: reminded me of is when like in Sydney Crosby's earlier career,
3:35
Speaker 2: what it was like, Wow, Like the captain of the
3:38
Speaker 2: premier hockey country plays in the town that I lived in,
3:43
Speaker 2: and that's kind.
3:43
Speaker 1: Of He's not the captain. Aaron Judge is the captain
3:46
Speaker 1: of this team.
3:46
Speaker 2: And Aaron Judge had a hell of a ball game
3:48
Speaker 2: last night as well, from the home run with a
3:50
Speaker 2: great throw the third. But Paul Skins, there's something about
3:54
Speaker 2: an ace, There's something about a guy because in baseball,
3:58
Speaker 2: kind of like what we saw in the Olympics with
3:59
Speaker 2: a goal, when you have a hot pitcher, it can
4:02
Speaker 2: turn the.
4:03
Speaker 1: Game upside down. And the offense for Team USA did
4:06
Speaker 1: not really have it going. They had they had one
4:08
Speaker 1: beginning and it was enough.
4:10
Speaker 2: But Paul Skins did not let that lineup, find a
4:12
Speaker 2: rhythm until he was in the dugout, you know, with
4:15
Speaker 2: his work day over, and I think that probably would
4:18
Speaker 2: have persisted for as long as they would have let
4:20
Speaker 2: him go. It just it just goes to show that,
4:22
Speaker 2: like how dangerous this team can be if it gets
4:25
Speaker 2: to the playoffs, because you get you get that for
4:28
Speaker 2: probably double the amount of length.
4:30
Speaker 1: Right, you're probably giving him one hundred.
4:32
Speaker 2: And twenty pitches at least twice a series, if not
4:35
Speaker 2: three times, depending on how it lines up. Those are
4:39
Speaker 2: those are ball games that are easier to win than
4:42
Speaker 2: they are to lose when you have a pitcher like that.
4:44
Speaker 2: So another thing that happened in that game that I
4:48
Speaker 2: wanted to ask Josh about. We can count this as
4:50
Speaker 2: our first mail bag question. It's from Noah at J
4:54
Speaker 2: five or a J demand five or whatever you're chandling.
5:00
Speaker 5: There we go.
5:01
Speaker 2: Yes, in the very beginning of the game, we saw
5:05
Speaker 2: Randy and Rose Arena dig In try to shake cal
5:08
Speaker 2: Rawley's hand.
5:09
Speaker 1: Cara.
5:09
Speaker 2: They're obviously teammates on the Seattle Mariners. They've been teammates
5:13
Speaker 2: too for two seasons now, and cal Rawley gave them
5:18
Speaker 2: the brushoffs and No not gonna shake your hand. We
5:21
Speaker 2: saw this happen earlier in the tournament between someone forget
5:25
Speaker 2: the catcher was from Australia, I can't remember.
5:28
Speaker 1: Yeah, and those I don't think.
5:30
Speaker 2: Those guys are like familiar with each other. I think
5:32
Speaker 2: it was just like a sign of sportsmanship where these
5:34
Speaker 2: guys have a little bit more familiarity, and it certainly
5:38
Speaker 2: rubbed one of them.
5:39
Speaker 1: The wrong way.
5:39
Speaker 2: Randy rose Arena took to talk to some reporters after
5:44
Speaker 2: the game and had some colorful language. The Mariners have
5:48
Speaker 2: tried to kind of, you know, dull this down a
5:51
Speaker 2: little bit. Cal Rawle even said, you know, when we're
5:53
Speaker 2: back in Seattle, he's my brother, but right now I'm
5:55
Speaker 2: playing for Team USA. Josh as a player, I want
5:58
Speaker 2: to get your thoughts. I mean, how how would this
6:00
Speaker 2: have gone? Say, you know, if you're playing in the
6:03
Speaker 2: World Baseball Classic in Russell Martin's behind the dish and
6:06
Speaker 2: you reached out to shake his hand and he brushed
6:08
Speaker 2: you off for Francisco sur Valley for Italy, what would
6:11
Speaker 2: your reaction?
6:13
Speaker 6: Man?
6:13
Speaker 4: I wish Russ or Servey would a code shouldered me.
6:17
Speaker 4: They wouldn't have finished the game. Nah, not just playing
6:21
Speaker 4: but I honestly don't think that's in Russ or Servey's mentality.
6:25
Speaker 5: Granted, I think Randy has every right to be upset if.
6:33
Speaker 4: You don't know somebody like you can kind of okay,
6:36
Speaker 4: like I get between the lines.
6:37
Speaker 5: I don't know you from a cana paignt You don't
6:39
Speaker 5: owe me that.
6:40
Speaker 4: But at the same time, it goes back to just
6:43
Speaker 4: simple what I teach my kids, golden rule.
6:46
Speaker 5: Somebody acknowledged, you acknowledge him back, you know. And it
6:48
Speaker 5: wasn't like.
6:49
Speaker 4: Cal had to sit there and shake his hand, but
6:50
Speaker 4: he could have give him my head nod. You don't
6:52
Speaker 4: have to shake his hand. But man, you shared the
6:54
Speaker 4: locker room with this dude. Y'all battle together trying to
6:57
Speaker 4: play in the playoffs. It could have been a you know,
7:00
Speaker 4: mind trick to that Cal was trying to play. Obviously,
7:04
Speaker 4: you know Randy's teammates are gonna feed off of it too.
7:07
Speaker 4: You know, Randy's coming to dugout. Everybody saw it, So
7:10
Speaker 4: I don't know if it's a mind thing, but you know,
7:12
Speaker 4: mind thinking or not. If one of my teammates that's
7:14
Speaker 4: supposed to be my brother did that to me, even
7:17
Speaker 4: if we're on the opposite team.
7:19
Speaker 5: I'm hot, you know, And I think Randy had every,
7:22
Speaker 5: as I said.
7:23
Speaker 4: Right to be mad, And if that was me, I
7:25
Speaker 4: would have been mad too, especially somebody that I share
7:27
Speaker 4: a uniform with. I get it, you're planning for your country,
7:30
Speaker 4: but uh, you know, no brotherhood goes further than that,
7:34
Speaker 4: because I mean, at the end of the day, y'all
7:35
Speaker 4: don't share the same blood. But when y'all put on
7:37
Speaker 4: the same uniform, you know, so likewise, even if y'all
7:40
Speaker 4: go separate ways, you still acknowledge the man. You ain't
7:42
Speaker 4: got to give him a hug, you know, it's USA
7:44
Speaker 4: versus Mexico, but you could have just gave me. We
7:46
Speaker 4: ain't gonna shake hands, but I'll give you a little
7:48
Speaker 4: tap on the leg. You ain't even got to make
7:49
Speaker 4: eye contact. But yeah, to do that, I thought that
7:52
Speaker 4: was kind of foul. And you know a that a
7:56
Speaker 4: right is right, wrong is wrong, And you know, I
7:59
Speaker 4: think if you know somebody y'all got relationship like that,
8:01
Speaker 4: I don't think you do that.
8:02
Speaker 5: But could have been him playing my game, But I
8:04
Speaker 5: still don't don't agree with it.
8:06
Speaker 1: Yeah, I agree.
8:08
Speaker 3: The one parallel I saw really quick, I was pal
8:12
Speaker 3: Gasol and Kobe Bryant back in the Olympics, because but
8:16
Speaker 3: I think that was the scenario.
8:18
Speaker 5: Neither one neither neither one of them or Pale and Kobe.
8:21
Speaker 3: Right, you're right exactly. Yeah, I know those guys were
8:24
Speaker 3: one of them.
8:24
Speaker 4: Neither one of them have been told they got a
8:26
Speaker 4: momb of mentality Kobe mentality.
8:28
Speaker 5: Yeah, you know what I mean. So so you can
8:30
Speaker 5: save me with that.
8:33
Speaker 1: Was also in the game. Yeah, for an Olympic goal, not.
8:38
Speaker 5: This is this is fool play. Yeah, and that it
8:41
Speaker 5: doesn't matter. A game is a game.
8:42
Speaker 4: Yes, one shouldn't be more important. But that's just me.
8:45
Speaker 4: I'm with Randy.
8:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's what I was gonna mention. Mark is just
8:50
Speaker 2: you know, like that. There have been people who compare
8:52
Speaker 2: those two together. But yeah, I mean Rawley from everyone
8:56
Speaker 2: that I know who's interacted with him, has played with them,
8:58
Speaker 2: is like, yeah.
9:00
Speaker 1: Like nice guy like that.
9:04
Speaker 5: Yeah.
9:05
Speaker 2: Yeah, they said that he's like, you know, just your
9:07
Speaker 2: your your typical friendly, like have to go lucky guy
9:11
Speaker 2: that everyone in the clubhouse loves. Randy or Rose Arena.
9:14
Speaker 2: I've heard nothing but good things about him too. I mean,
9:16
Speaker 2: he seemed to wear his hard on his sleeve a
9:18
Speaker 2: little bit more perhaps, and and has a little bit
9:21
Speaker 2: more of an emotional side to him. But like it
9:23
Speaker 2: seems like both of these guys are well liked in
9:26
Speaker 2: that clubhouse, and that's probably why like it rubbed Brandy
9:29
Speaker 2: the wrong way. It's like, dude, like you're you're the
9:31
Speaker 2: nice guy, Like, why why are you doing that? I
9:33
Speaker 2: agree with you, Josh, just a leg Just tap him
9:35
Speaker 2: with your glove. It's the first bat of the game.
9:37
Speaker 2: If it's bottom of the Knights and you're doing that,
9:39
Speaker 2: I'm like, what are you doing?
9:41
Speaker 1: But it's the first.
9:42
Speaker 2: Inning of a pool play game. Both of you have
9:45
Speaker 2: already advanced to the next round. I understand that USA
9:48
Speaker 2: really wanted to win that one. I understand that, like
9:51
Speaker 2: Paul skin is on the mound and it's high intensity,
9:53
Speaker 2: But it's the second at bat of the game. Dude,
9:55
Speaker 2: just just acknowledge it because.
9:58
Speaker 5: You have to have the in a week and a half.
10:01
Speaker 5: In a week and a half, y'all.
10:04
Speaker 2: Understand that people are going to see this because of
10:06
Speaker 2: what had already happened in the tournament between two guys
10:10
Speaker 2: that no one knows.
10:10
Speaker 1: They're everyone knows, everyone who watches baseball knows who these
10:14
Speaker 1: two players are.
10:15
Speaker 2: And yeah, that that could have been a nothing if
10:19
Speaker 2: Cale would have just moved his wrist two inches.
10:23
Speaker 5: But you know whatever, and I don't want to get
10:26
Speaker 5: into it.
10:26
Speaker 4: I don't know if it's a rule that maybe Team
10:28
Speaker 4: USA say, hey, we ain't shaking hands with nobody on
10:31
Speaker 4: the other side.
10:32
Speaker 5: But at the end of the.
10:32
Speaker 4: Day, like, that's still a tough spot. Hey, you can't
10:37
Speaker 4: tell me not to say what's up to my brother?
10:38
Speaker 5: Like, you know what I mean? Hey, Hey, good luck brother,
10:41
Speaker 5: But hey, we hear the whoop, y'all.
10:42
Speaker 4: You know I'll acknowledge you across the way because hey,
10:45
Speaker 4: we we we have shared some moments that you've probably
10:48
Speaker 4: seen me at my worst and seen me at my best.
10:50
Speaker 5: So who am I to sit here regardless.
10:52
Speaker 4: Of Hey, I'm with these dudes, But hey, I'm still
10:54
Speaker 4: gonna acknowledge my brother.
10:55
Speaker 5: That's just me.
10:57
Speaker 2: At the end of the day, you're riding the same
10:58
Speaker 2: plane home, you know. All right, So let's get into
11:03
Speaker 2: the mailback questions. We got a couple of marks. Start
11:05
Speaker 2: us off, What do we got here?
11:07
Speaker 1: First?
11:07
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Speaker 1: All right, first question, mark, what do we got?
12:20
Speaker 3: All right? This one comes from PB or mister peeb body,
12:25
Speaker 3: and this one's for Josh. So, Josh, what's the dynamic
12:28
Speaker 3: like when one of your boys on the teams gets
12:30
Speaker 3: traded relative to Skeins and Jerry Jones seemingly being really
12:34
Speaker 3: close with Kyle Nicholas. Is it always all business or
12:38
Speaker 3: does it stir anything up inside the locker room?
12:43
Speaker 5: Pep.
12:43
Speaker 4: That's a good question, and everything is going to be
12:47
Speaker 4: subjective based off of the direction the team is going
12:50
Speaker 4: the fill of the clubhouse. But for the most part,
12:53
Speaker 4: everybody understands business is business, so you don't dwell too
12:57
Speaker 4: much on it. But that doesn't change the fact that,
13:01
Speaker 4: you know, those relationships and stuff that you've built might
13:05
Speaker 4: not continue to go on because you know, I'm here
13:07
Speaker 4: to say that there's a lot of guys that I've
13:09
Speaker 4: played with that you know may have gotten traded or
13:11
Speaker 4: you know, signed elsewhere in the off season.
13:14
Speaker 5: You know, sometimes those relationships don't fade.
13:16
Speaker 4: You know, guys that you're cool with, you know you're
13:17
Speaker 4: still gonna be you know, watching you know, highlights and
13:20
Speaker 4: seeing them across the way, you're gonna be texting Ale,
13:22
Speaker 4: So bro, we play, y'all. It's just one of those
13:25
Speaker 4: things where you know, like my brother was sharing the
13:27
Speaker 4: same uniform as me. Now he's on on another side.
13:30
Speaker 4: You know, I wish him the best, but uh, you know,
13:32
Speaker 4: if we're facing each other, I gotta get you. But
13:33
Speaker 4: that don't mean that we can't break bread after the game,
13:35
Speaker 4: and you know, still wish wish, wish each other well.
13:41
Speaker 2: Having covered a couple of trade deadlines, and it is
13:43
Speaker 2: always interesting to see, you know, good guys say they're goodbyes, right,
13:47
Speaker 2: like I was in the clubhouse when you know, someone
13:51
Speaker 2: like in my younger days, I remember when Tyler Glasnow
13:54
Speaker 2: got traded and seeing you guys react to that when
13:57
Speaker 2: it was happening, and there was excitement about the return
14:01
Speaker 2: for Tyler glass Now right, people were excited for Arch.
14:04
Speaker 1: But you kind of have to.
14:05
Speaker 2: Hold that in until the guy who's leaving is no
14:08
Speaker 2: longer round and then vice versa. Last last deadline, I mean,
14:12
Speaker 2: or the last couple of deadlines. I was in the
14:14
Speaker 2: room when Martine Perez was traded in Houston in the
14:18
Speaker 2: twenty four deadline. And then in twenty twenty five, I
14:21
Speaker 2: saw Caleb Ferguson saying goodbye to his teammates in San Francisco.
14:25
Speaker 2: I saw Cabrian Hayes saying goodbye to his teammates in
14:27
Speaker 2: San Francisco on the same day.
14:29
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, that broke Mark's heart.
14:31
Speaker 2: And it's it's really interesting to see it from both sides,
14:34
Speaker 2: Like you know that that Archer trade, obviously it was
14:37
Speaker 2: one of the more aggressive moves the pirates have made
14:39
Speaker 2: in recent history, and then seeing it as sellers, like
14:42
Speaker 2: Josh said, like the context of it really matters what
14:45
Speaker 2: direction they're going in.
14:46
Speaker 1: It feels like you're prepared one way or the other.
14:49
Speaker 2: But to see dudes who, like last Now, who was
14:51
Speaker 2: a prospect say goodbye to the guys who he came
14:55
Speaker 2: up to the system with are people that were kind
14:56
Speaker 2: of his mentors. And then as Cabrian Hayes to Brian
15:00
Speaker 2: was one of the first guys up in this regime,
15:03
Speaker 2: so for him to say goodbye to guys who you
15:05
Speaker 2: know arrived after him was interesting. Or just the document
15:09
Speaker 2: and just observe, all.
15:11
Speaker 3: Right, And then for our next question here comes from
15:15
Speaker 3: Jordan Flamio. I know it's spring training, need to take
15:19
Speaker 3: everything with the grain of salt, But should we be
15:21
Speaker 3: concerned about Henry Davis so asn't recorded to hit even
15:24
Speaker 3: with his new batting stance, and Jordan's so badly wants
15:27
Speaker 3: to see him succeed.
15:30
Speaker 1: I'll start here.
15:31
Speaker 2: I think it's just we're out a point where Henry
15:34
Speaker 2: Davis is who Henry Davis is.
15:36
Speaker 1: I mean, he's just not a reliable offensive hitter.
15:39
Speaker 2: And you know, until he is, and in the moment
15:44
Speaker 2: he shows that he can actually be league average at
15:47
Speaker 2: the plate, then I'll change that narrative.
15:49
Speaker 1: But at the end of the day, he's still their
15:51
Speaker 1: best option.
15:52
Speaker 2: He's still he's still going to have the highest war
15:55
Speaker 2: out of the four candidates they have to be their
15:58
Speaker 2: catcher because he he does one thing really, really well,
16:01
Speaker 2: and that's the defensive side of the game. And when
16:04
Speaker 2: you're a team that's built to win through its pitching staff,
16:07
Speaker 2: you sacrifice a little bit of offense to have the
16:10
Speaker 2: guy behind the dish that gets the best out of
16:12
Speaker 2: Paul Skiings brother Chandler and Mitch Keller, Braxton Ashcraft and
16:16
Speaker 2: so on and so forth. So it is unfortunate it's
16:18
Speaker 2: kind of ironic again that this was a one to
16:20
Speaker 2: one pick who was drafted strictly because.
16:22
Speaker 1: Of what he could do at the plate.
16:24
Speaker 2: And now I mean, if he hits over two hundred,
16:28
Speaker 2: there are some people who will call that a win.
16:30
Speaker 2: So yeah, it is concerning, I guess, because it's like
16:35
Speaker 2: it's just not getting better. But at the same time, A,
16:38
Speaker 2: it is spring training. B this is kind of what
16:42
Speaker 2: it is at this point. But I mean, again, to
16:45
Speaker 2: be it's we're recording this on March tenth, and for
16:47
Speaker 2: him to not have one single hit in spring training,
16:50
Speaker 2: it's it's certainly not like the best thing to see.
16:53
Speaker 4: Yeah, I'm sure it's not fun for him. Yeah, So
16:57
Speaker 4: I mean concerning yes and no, because as you said,
17:01
Speaker 4: spring training doesn't matter. But I know, for a game
17:04
Speaker 4: that's based off of confidence, yes, you want to see
17:09
Speaker 4: a base hit. And I'm not talking as a fan,
17:11
Speaker 4: I'm talking as a player. You don't care if it
17:13
Speaker 4: comes with the ball being two inches above your knuckle
17:18
Speaker 4: and the bad exploding and going to being a dribbler.
17:20
Speaker 4: You know, you just want to touch the base to
17:22
Speaker 4: be like, Okay, this is what it feels like. Spring
17:24
Speaker 4: train is supposed to be for all of that, but
17:26
Speaker 4: he's also trying the new stance. You can try new
17:28
Speaker 4: stands in the off season in the cage all you want,
17:30
Speaker 4: but nothing's like being in the game and actual picking
17:34
Speaker 4: up vantage point, getting rhythm and timmy. So there's still
17:37
Speaker 4: two weeks left. Hopefully something clicks for him, but as
17:40
Speaker 4: you said, hasn't really done anything in the years past.
17:43
Speaker 4: But if something clicks for him, that's a bonus form.
17:46
Speaker 5: But these stats don't matter.
17:49
Speaker 4: But I think anybody would still like to see something,
17:53
Speaker 4: you know, and I'm sure him more than anybody, So
17:57
Speaker 4: you know that that's one of those things where I
17:59
Speaker 4: said he's making it and adjustment would have stance.
18:01
Speaker 5: Hopefully something clicks for him soon.
18:02
Speaker 4: But if finny thing just find some in filled out
18:05
Speaker 4: phield grass that allows him to say, okay, that's what
18:07
Speaker 4: it feels like. Sometimes you just need to get the
18:09
Speaker 4: monkey off your bat. Not playing every dance spring training too,
18:12
Speaker 4: that's the other thing.
18:13
Speaker 3: Yeah, it seems like such a long time ago that
18:15
Speaker 3: Henry was trying to start in right field because they
18:18
Speaker 3: wanted to get a major league at bats and they
18:21
Speaker 3: remember that, yeah, and now we're like, okay, can he
18:25
Speaker 3: bat in the majors. But he's perfectly fine with his
18:29
Speaker 3: defense because he brings enough value to this team with
18:32
Speaker 3: the way he manages games, Like Noah was saying, even
18:35
Speaker 3: if he doesn't hit one fifty, I mean, I still
18:37
Speaker 3: think he'll like bring a positive value to this team.
18:40
Speaker 3: So anything that he brings to the play after that
18:44
Speaker 3: is just whed like ice, like a cherry on top.
18:47
Speaker 3: I guess it's the phrase I'm looking for.
18:49
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think the big problem, and we can
18:53
Speaker 2: round it up here, is like, right now, the Pirates
18:55
Speaker 2: have four guys who are probably all number two catchers. Yeah,
18:58
Speaker 2: Like if Henry Davis can just be a league average
19:01
Speaker 2: hitter or even something close to league you're fine.
19:06
Speaker 1: If he can hit.
19:06
Speaker 2: If you can hit to ten with ten home runs,
19:10
Speaker 2: that's you. You're fine batting that ninth because of what
19:13
Speaker 2: he can provide defensively. But Mark, when you said like
19:16
Speaker 2: like if he is like one seventy again, like that's
19:20
Speaker 2: at a point, like it's like, how is your offense
19:24
Speaker 2: that bad where it's.
19:25
Speaker 5: Taking that bad right defense?
19:28
Speaker 1: Yeah, Like are you are you hurting? How many guys
19:30
Speaker 1: are you leaving on base? How many? Like how many
19:33
Speaker 1: double plays.
19:33
Speaker 4: Are you alright.
19:36
Speaker 2: Yeah, like it's or does he get to a point
19:39
Speaker 2: where it's like, yes, just because you're the best of
19:41
Speaker 2: the bunch doesn't mean that this is still this position
19:44
Speaker 2: is still not nearly good enough as a whole. I
19:47
Speaker 2: do think, yeah, there's new scenario where he's not the
19:49
Speaker 2: best of he's not a top two out of these four,
19:53
Speaker 2: but I don't think he's a deserving one right now.
19:57
Speaker 1: I think he's a one by default.
19:58
Speaker 3: Yeah, we don't want to go back to Austin Hedges
20:00
Speaker 3: or something like that.
20:02
Speaker 1: Well at this point, yeah, with.
20:06
Speaker 3: More upside, but yeah, yes, all right. And third and
20:12
Speaker 3: final question, I'm not sold on Dennis Santana's closer and
20:16
Speaker 3: I'm concerned about him closing out games uh this year.
20:20
Speaker 3: Who else in the pen could take on that role
20:21
Speaker 3: if Tanna fails or it gets injured.
20:25
Speaker 2: I mean, I think Gregory Soto is the obvious answer, right,
20:28
Speaker 2: That's why.
20:30
Speaker 4: I mean, he's got he's got experienced, all Star, he's
20:32
Speaker 4: i mean been an All Star in that role before.
20:36
Speaker 5: And no, that was my first thought.
20:39
Speaker 4: I don't really know if there's anybody else that you
20:41
Speaker 4: would really feel comfortable really saying, of putting that role.
20:46
Speaker 4: But at the same time, we know how this game
20:50
Speaker 4: is with the rules of the bullpen, you gotta face
20:53
Speaker 4: three batters.
20:53
Speaker 5: Things happen.
20:54
Speaker 4: Sometimes guys get thrusted in a role in a situation
20:57
Speaker 4: based off of the situation of the game where this
21:00
Speaker 4: might be our seventh inning guy, but you know, eighth
21:02
Speaker 4: and ninth in the guy down due to back to
21:04
Speaker 4: back days, and we get to the ninth inning and
21:06
Speaker 4: we you know, up one, we gotta go to what
21:09
Speaker 4: our seventh inning guy may be, but off for it.
21:12
Speaker 5: Gregory Soto would be my next answer.
21:14
Speaker 4: I don't know if there's anybody else that I would
21:17
Speaker 4: really put at the same tier that would be like, Okay,
21:19
Speaker 4: this guy or Gregory.
21:21
Speaker 5: You know, if Sintanna was the falling issue, I'm going soo.
21:25
Speaker 1: Mark, I know who you're thinking.
21:26
Speaker 3: Go ahead and say, yeah, Isaac Mattson, Yeah yeah. I
21:29
Speaker 3: think Mattson still needs a little bit more experience, I'd say,
21:34
Speaker 3: but if the off speed stuff that he's been working
21:37
Speaker 3: on continues to develop and compair that with that just
21:40
Speaker 3: insane fastball, it could look like he could look like
21:45
Speaker 3: a closer. So yeah, I could see that. I think
21:49
Speaker 3: he's probably like your seventh inning guy. Right now, Mattson,
21:52
Speaker 3: is with your eighth being Soto, maybe they have like
21:57
Speaker 3: Santana coming in in the eighth a couple of times
21:59
Speaker 3: and have so close it out if it's like a better.
22:02
Speaker 5: For lefty right left, he's in the night right.
22:04
Speaker 3: Yeah, so I could see that happening a little bit.
22:06
Speaker 3: But I'm rolling with Dennis Santana. I really think he's
22:11
Speaker 3: figured things out and is comfortable with the Pirates, and
22:14
Speaker 3: I think he's gonna be a great closer this year.
22:17
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'll throw one more name out there, and this
22:20
Speaker 2: is gonna have to be a change that probably takes
22:22
Speaker 2: place mid season, but depending on how the rotation structure
22:27
Speaker 2: is mid season.
22:28
Speaker 1: Braxton Ashcraft is a guy i'd love to see back there.
22:32
Speaker 2: He's going to be a starter now, but he's obviously,
22:34
Speaker 2: like we've said on this show, he's had tons of
22:37
Speaker 2: injury history. I don't know if he's gonna ever be
22:41
Speaker 2: a guy that you can depend on being a starter
22:44
Speaker 2: from opening day right through the end of September. And
22:47
Speaker 2: if they have to move him back there rather than
22:49
Speaker 2: putting him in that long role, which they already have
22:52
Speaker 2: one really good guy in that role with Carmen Macjinski.
22:55
Speaker 2: If in this scenario of which the question came from,
23:00
Speaker 2: is Dennis Santana's down, I mean, I think option one
23:03
Speaker 2: would be you trade to get more bullpen depth, and
23:07
Speaker 2: two is.
23:09
Speaker 1: Ashcraft late in game would be really good.
23:11
Speaker 2: We saw that actually a little bit last year before
23:14
Speaker 2: he was in the starting rotation. They put him in
23:16
Speaker 2: some high leverage spots and he looked really good against
23:19
Speaker 2: some solid teams too, Euston Astros being one of them,
23:22
Speaker 2: I remember in the rain, But yeah, that would be someone,
23:26
Speaker 2: I mean, Jared Jones, same thing, but I think Jared's
23:30
Speaker 2: probably a bullet you'd like to spend more on in
23:33
Speaker 2: the rotation, where Aft, like, I don't know what Ashtraft's
23:38
Speaker 2: future looks like because of that arm health. I think
23:40
Speaker 2: this year will tell us a lot. If he can
23:42
Speaker 2: get through this whole year in the starting rotation.
23:44
Speaker 1: Then he's a starter. But if he's still this tween, you.
23:47
Speaker 2: Know, back and forth thing, I would give him some
23:50
Speaker 2: really high leverage opportunities and sit him down at the
23:53
Speaker 2: end of the year and saying like, hey man, you
23:55
Speaker 2: could keep going back and forth, or you can just
23:58
Speaker 2: take this and this be your meal ticket and you
24:01
Speaker 2: could be very very very good at.
24:02
Speaker 4: It, and I think Biver will be like a wild
24:08
Speaker 4: card basically.
24:09
Speaker 2: Yeah, exactly, So that's how I look at it. And
24:12
Speaker 2: they have other guys who can do that too. I mean,
24:14
Speaker 2: like if Bubba's inconsistent, like I know they want Bubba
24:18
Speaker 2: to be a starter long term, but like there there
24:21
Speaker 2: there's so many live arms in this organ yeah, yeah, whoever,
24:27
Speaker 2: whatever their starting rotation molds into, and it could look
24:32
Speaker 2: a lot different depending on who stays healthy, depending on
24:36
Speaker 2: who's stretched out.
24:38
Speaker 1: But there's gonna be an odd man out whenever.
24:40
Speaker 2: Bark goes back or whatever, Bark goes up for good,
24:43
Speaker 2: whenever Jared Jones is back, and and these young guys knocked.
24:47
Speaker 1: It on the door keep getting closer.
24:49
Speaker 2: There's gonna be an opportunity for a guy who has
24:52
Speaker 2: major league number three starter stuff.
24:55
Speaker 1: To just get one or two innings at the end
24:57
Speaker 1: of games, and that will be that will be something
25:00
Speaker 1: you to consider, even if Santana's healthy.
25:02
Speaker 2: Right, All right, all right, guys, any final thoughts before
25:05
Speaker 2: we wrap this up.
25:07
Speaker 3: I just make sure everyone, now if you're listening, hit
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25:36
Speaker 1: Josh any final thoughts, no go subscribe.
25:40
Speaker 4: And looking forward to you know, pool play should is
25:43
Speaker 4: over and see it's I think they mentioned it last night.
25:47
Speaker 5: On the broadcast.
25:48
Speaker 4: Is Game seven is from here on out, so we'll
25:50
Speaker 4: see even more intensity from all the teams that are
25:52
Speaker 4: in it.
25:53
Speaker 2: Absolutely all right, Well, he's Platinum kaka Mark, He's Josh
25:56
Speaker 2: Harrison aka A j Hey, I'm Noah Hyles aka the
25:59
Speaker 2: guy telling you.
26:00
Speaker 1: Thank you for tuning in to another
26:02
Speaker 2: Episode of Bucko Territory, presented to you by the Foul
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