Pittsburgh Pirates Continue to Spend Embarrassingly

The Pittsburgh Pirates have spent a little more money this offseason.  Still, it is not enough and it is getting really old to see them operate this way.

For many years I have tried to remain optimistic about the Pittsburgh Pirates. In my lifetime I have only seen a handful of winning seasons and technically 3 years of playoff baseball.  The way the team has operated over the last few decades has been embarrassing.

Whether it has been former President Frank Coonley, former General Manager Neal Huntington, or the current Front Office it has been the same rhetoric, ‘we are a small market team and we need to operate as such’.  Obviously, I am paraphrasing but we have been pumped by this concept for so long that we now celebrate when the team does operate like a normal Big League Baseball team.

So far the Pittsburgh Pirates have spent about $14 million this offseason.  They have signed 3 Big League Free Agents.  The team has signed veteran first baseman Carlos Santana, and pitchers Vince Velasquez and Jarlin Garcia.  Don’t get me wrong it is great to see the Pittsburgh Pirates taking a step forward and actually signing Big League free agents.

However, it is still embarrassing that this is considered to be aggressive for the Ball Club. The Bucs are currently 18th in total spending this offseason, a number that is higher than one would expect.  However, there have been many teams who have yet to make any real impactful moves.  Teams like the Toronto Blue Jays and Atlanta Braves have spent less so far. Yet, expect those two teams and others to jump up the list soon.

The San Diego Padres, who are in the same market tier as the Pittsburgh Pirates, have spent over $325 million already this offseason.  The New York Mets, who are on the complete other side of the Baseball World in terms of finances, have spent just shy of $400 million dollars already. In total, the Baseball Industry has surpassed $2.25 billion spent.  It is hard to be optimistic when the Bucs have made about a measly $14 million of that large number.  Why can every other team in Baseball seem to spend like it does not matter yet the Pittsburgh Pirates apparently have no margin for error?

Come on, what is the point?  Teams like the Mets and Dodgers are always going to spend, but no smaller market teams like the Mariners and Padres are spending now too.  Yet, the Pittsburgh Pirates continue and try to do the bare minimum.  This comes from one place and one place only, Bob Nutting.  Nutting is the most embarrassing owner in this town.  You have the prestige of the Rooney Family with the Steelers and the Fenway Group with the Penguins.

There is nothing prestigious about how Bob Nutting runs the Pittsburgh Pirates.  It is embarrassing to the city and the fan base.  Time to spend money, Bob. Baseball is moving forward and the Bucs are falling even further behind the times. There is nothing wrong with the direction of youth and building through the system, but teams do not go full rebuild anymore.  The Bucs have the farm system in place, now is the time to spend money to show the fans and team that you are trying to compete.

All Numbers are Courtesy of Spotrac