Pittsburgh columnist rips Pirates as vibes continue to spiral before trade deadline

After Bob Nutting came under fire for his comments about team payroll ahead of the July 30 trade deadline, Mark Madden of TribLIVE had some harsh words for the Pittsburgh Pirates owner:

"Nutting lies to the fans."

Harsh, but not untrue.

Madden: For Pirates, 'winning isn't the plan'

In case you missed any of the past week's drama, here's what went down: Nutting told media that Pirates general manager Ben Cherington would have the flexibility (i.e., the funds) to add some offense at the trade deadline and improve the team's chances of making a run at the postseason. Then, a report from Pittsburgh Baseball Now cited an anonymous team source saying that many members of the Pirates' front office were "furious" with Nutting's comments and believed they were "misleading, at best."

“Bob implied we’re going to have money to spend, and he got the fans excited,” the team source said. “But he told us we don’t have any money to make any significant additions.”

Now, those of us who are familiar with Nutting's work probably know better than to get excited about anything he says, particularly when it involves team payroll. According to Forbes, the Pirates are a $1.32 billion franchise; their total revenue in 2023 was $309 million, while their operating income was $68 million.

Madden pointed out that this season's revenue should exceed last season's due in large part to rising attendance numbers at PNC Park and the arrival of rookie phenom Paul Skenes. Still, the Pirates' payroll ranks 29th out of 30, and don't expect that to change because, quote, "Nutting won't commit another nickel this year."

Mind you, there is no salary cap in Major League Baseball. Nutting, whose net worth was estimated by the Los Angeles Times to exceed $1 billion as of 2020, has the money to spend in order to make the Pirates a competitive team. He simply won't.

With that, we'll leave you with some parting words from Madden:

"When will this stupid town get through its head that the Pirates have no intent to win beyond what happens cheaply and coincidentally? Winning isn’t the plan. Maximizing profit is."