9:30 am: The 2025 season marked the last year of the Shelton contract as a manager, Noah Hiles of Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. The terms of the extension Shelton signed in April 2023 was not made public, although the 2023 season was known to be the last year of the four -year contract, Shelton initially signed when he was hired for the first time as a skipper.
Hiles did not mention whether club options were attached or not to Shelton’s agreement beyond 2025, it therefore seems that Shelton was in a real situation of a gearbox Duck before this season. This only adds to the perception that the management mandate of Shelton was on thin ice, and Hiles noted that he had become more and more clear during the season that Shelton would be replaced. “Many members of the Pirates organization, some of whom in the clubhouse, have recognized as much at La Post-Gazette in the days preceding its dismissal,” writes Hiles.
8:45 am: The change in pirate management naturally attracted most of the headlines on Thursday, but in addition to letting Derek Shelton go, the BUCs also went from another member of coaches. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports that Pittsburgh separated from Radley Haddad, who was planning and strategy coach with the team since November 2021.
Haddad (who will be 35 years old tomorrow) is a former minor league player in the Yankees organization who ended his player career after the 2016 season. He then moved into a new role as a receiver of Big League from the Yankees, as well as as a coach assistant. Haddad worked as such until he was hired by the pirates after the 2021 campaign.
Between the departure of Haddad and Don KellyThe promotion of Bench Coach to Manager, the pirates now have two openings to fill in the staff. It is not known if other coaching changes can still be in sight, because the BUCs continue to understand how to adapt to the fly in the middle of a disappointing season. The Kelly management beginnings were at least successful, because the 3-2 victory of the Buccos against the Braves ended the night last night of Pittsburgh, although the club still has only more than 13-26 record.
The larger changes do not seem to come at least in the near future, because the owner of the pirates, Robert Nutting, told Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that General Manager Ben Cherington and President Travis Williams are not now going. “”I think that if we make a large real restructuring of the organization in mid-season, at the moment, we will not improve the team for 2025. I do not think that makes usR, “said Nutting.I am not willing to abandon what we expected, which implies a clearly better performance you have seen. I think we can get there. I don’t think everything skips 38 games in the year will help us do it. I think it would be distracting. I think that would make us get out of the track. My goal must be to repair and repair it as quickly as possible. “”
Left not said the possibility that Nutting can explore a broader “restructuring” on the road if the pirates do not start to play baseball. Cherington was hired in November 2019 to supervise a major reconstruction process which brought premium talents on the list, but the BUCs did not offer a single winning season in the more than five years of Cherington in charge of baseball operations.
The situation left the base of fans of Pittsburgh openly dismayed and it is clear that Nutting and Cherington share these frustrations. Cherington took his share of the blame during the floor with journalists (including Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) on Thursday, recognizing that “I am more responsible than anyone“For pirate struggles.
“”Certainly not lost for me that my share of this responsibility, if I had done my work perfectly for five years, could not meet you today“Said Cherington.It is certainly possible. I have it completely. It’s not all on Shelty. And I think it became clear to me that it was a choice, as difficult, that we had to make. I certainly feel responsible in the future. “”
Cherington also reiterated that he believes that he is still the person to direct the front office in the future. Likewise, Nutting defended its own continuous property of the franchise, declaring that he feels that the team can and would gain again under his management, and believes that he can raise the place of pirates in sport as a whole.
“”Given all the challenges widely in baseball, there have been a lot of discussions on the economic disparity in the game. We are never going to use this as an excuse. Never. Will never do it. But I think I am particularly well positioned at the moment to be able to help influence change in the game economy“Said Nutting.Having been for 20 years, after having made meetings of the owners for longer than that, having a very strong relationship with the commissioner’s office, I believe that I am only well placed to have a stronger voice for Pittsburgh while we are heading to the next (collective agreement). I want to make sure we don’t lose this position. I do not think that a new owner at Pittsburgh would have the same position or the same ability to defend the type of change we need. “”
Pirate fans can naturally take a certain skepticism in the Nutting remarks, and MacKey has indeed expressed something from a counterpoint to the nutting interview in a follow-up column. The owner was frequently criticized for a lack of expenses since he bought the team in 2007. The hackers ranked in the last five at the bottom of the opening day in all the seasons except three of the Nutting property, and the mass of the payroll is the pay of 99.9 mm BUCs at the start of the 2016 season (which is classified on 30 BUCS teams). As much as Nutting believes that his team is disadvantaged by the largest baseball markets, the resistance of pirates against even moderate spending is an obvious obstacle to their desire to become more competitive. Mackey
In a few news on Friday, the pirates placed the inner field player Inmanuel Valdez On the 10 -day injury list due to the left inflammation of the shoulders and recalled the interior / outfitters player Ji hwan bae of triple-a in the corresponding movement. A calendar has not been given to Valdez, or whether or not if it should be missed at any time beyond the minimum 10 days.
Acquired in a business with the Red Sox in December, Valdez struck .209 / .294 / .363 on 102 appearances for Buccos this season. Valdez had been mainly an interior field of the middle with the SOX, but its 26 appearances at the first base for the pirates represent a change marked in its use, because the previous experience of Valdez at the post consisted in just nine minor league games during his stay in the Boston and Houston Farm systems.
Since the first planned basic player Spencer Horwitz has not yet played this season, the pirates have turned to Endy Rodriguez At the first goal, then looked at Valdez like another backup plan once Rodriguez also hit the 10 -day IL. Rodriguez is still far from coming back from the right finger, so Jared Triolo And Matt Gorski Now are the best first base options in the meantime. Horwitz launched a triple-a rehabilitation assignment and could be about a week before its beginnings in 2025, although Valdez’s injury will leave even thinner hackers in short-term position.
