The Pirates will start their training camp next Wednesday at PNC Park. They’ll have to submit a 60-player participation roster by Sunday. The 20-man taxi squad will likely train at People Natural Gas Field in Altoona, home of the Bucs’ Double-A affiliate. The 60-game season will open either July 23rd or 24th.
First-year manager Derek Shelton says there may be some unusual decisions to make, especially in light of it being only a sixty-game schedule.
Shelton says player conditioning during the pandemic layoff will play a key role in determining how successful the season will be.
Pitcher and player representative Jameson Taillon will not play this season as he continues to recover from Tommy John surgery. But Taillon will be an active part of the camp and he says players will have to follow strict health protocols.
The betting site BetOnline.ag pegs the Pirates over-under at 25½ wins in the 60-game schedule. They have the Pirates in last place in the NL Central, with the Cardinals winning it at 32½. The Brewers, Cubs, and Reds are all at 31½. Overall, the web site has the Dodgers and Yankees with the best big league records, and the Orioles and Tigers with the worst.
USA Today, meanwhile, has the Pirates tied with the Marlins for the third-worst record in baseball. The six-member USA Today panel says the Bucs will finish 23-37, with only two teams worse, again the Orioles (21 wins) and Tigers (20).
The Pirates signed first-round pick Nick Gonzales yesterday. The New Mexico State middle infielder was the seventh overall selection and received a signing bonus of just less than five-and-a-half million dollars.
Gonzalez said it was an amazing experience just getting to PNC Park
Gonzalez hit .432 with 16 homers as an Aggies sophomore and was named the Cape Cod League MVP in 2019 with a .351 average and seven homers in 153 at-bats using a wood bat. He was considered the top pure hitter in the draft.
Expect a flurry of MLB moves this weekend. Rosters have been frozen since March, but that changes tomorrow with clubs allowed to sign new players. Yasiel Puig, Matt Harvey, Scooter Gennett, Melky Cabrera, Fernando Rodney and Russell Martin are some of the bigger unsigned names still on the market.
Comments