3 massive problems the Pirates' front office needs to deal with right now

On the heels of an impressive series win in four games against the Chicago Cubs, and a magical comeback in game one against the Giants, vibes for Pirates fans were high. This continued into game two after a Bryan Reynolds grand slam capped off a five-run fourth inning. In a Jared Jones start, this seemed like it would be plenty considering how dominant the righty has been, and he was good that night, working six innings of three-run ball.

Yet, the bullpen's struggles continued as they allowed six runs over the final three innings, spoiling what was a great yin-and-yang day as the offense and pitching seemed to click. Guess what happened the next night? The offense and pitching worked in cohesion like a well-oiled machine, scoring five runs through four innings with yet another grand slam from Joey Bart. And yet again, the bullpen gave up another six runs over the final three innings.

Even after taking two of three from the suddenly injury-riddled Braves, it's getting pretty tiring for Pirates fans. After begging for offensive production from anywhere and making all sorts of moves to try and spark the offense, they are clicking. At the same time, fans are seeing one of the best young cores of pitchers grow and dominate together, but it is all spoiled by timely mistakes and bullpen woes.

It's good to see the front office willing to make the moves (like sending down Jack Suwinski in hopes he can figure things out), but there has to be more accountability. They need to make a bold move. Call up some help from Indianapolis or go out and acquire someone. Today we look at three moves that this front office needs to make right now.

Get the bullpen some help

The Pirates bullpen played a big part in the team squandering away another series win against a solid Giants team, and their struggles weren't just present in this series. Since May 1, the bullpen has put up the second-worst ERA in baseball and the worst in the National League. The bullpen possesses elite stuff with a 9.75 K/9 during that time which ranks fourth in baseball, but with the elite stuff comes a ridiculous lack of control. During that same time period, they are walking nearly five batters per nine innings; they are just non-competitive pitches.

The frustrating part for Pirates fans is the fact that the ownership group did a lot to try and address the bullpen. While many fans wanted them to add a solid starter (and ownership opted for the cheaper route with Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales), they doled out a fairly large contract to Aroldis Chapman (one-year, $10.5 million), who has been the worst in baseball when it comes to walks (10.38 BB/9, 2.18 higher than any other qualified pitcher).

While guys like David Bednar and Hunter Stratton have solid walk and strikeout numbers, they have been hit hard. This bullpen is a mix of guys who can't control the zone and the other half is guys who are in the zone but are getting hammered. Someone like Ryder Ryan, who pitched well before a trip to the injured list, could provide this bullpen with a more valuable arm. Perhaps a journeyman that is hungry to prove that he can pitch in the league like Ben Heller (16.8 K/9 and 2.0 BB/9 in Triple-A Indianapolis) could send a message that they will make moves if you don't perform.

Ownership needs to make a move and it needs to happen now. The starting pitching that you have, paired with how well the offense has been of late (fifth in runs scored since May 11) could make a serious push before the trade deadline (they currently are three games back of the final wild card spot).