Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington introduces Pittsburgh Pirates first-round draft selection, Termarr Johnson the media after signing him to a contract with the team before a baseball game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Philadelphia Phillies in Pittsburgh, Friday, July 29, 2022.(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
PITTSBURGH — The Pirates already have a record payroll, but general manager Ben Cherington is confident he will be able to add to it through trades leading up to the deadline.
“There will be flexibility to do what we believe makes sense for the Pirates to improve the team,” Cherington said when speaking with reporters on Sunday.
The Pirates enter Sunday’s game against the Cubs one game over .500 with a 53-52 record and are two games behind the Diamondbacks for the third and final National League wild card spot.
Pittsburgh will look to bolster its roster before the Aug. 3 deadline, and Cherington is open to just about anything.
“We’re open to whatever,” he said. “There will be some stuff that we just don’t believe in. I think we should stay open-minded.”
The Pirates have already swung a couple trades this month. They dealt a draft pick and left-handed pitching prospect Jaden Woods to the White Sox for infielder Jacob Gonzalez and lefty reliever Brandon Eisert. They recently acquired right-handed reliever Ron Marinaccio from the Padres for international bonus pool money.
Gonzalez has made an impact on the lineup and was the main attraction of the deal with the White Sox, and the other two players acquired look more like stopgaps as the Pirates look for answers in a struggling bullpen.
The key focus for Cherington over the next eight days will be to address the struggling bullpen. Pittsburgh ranks 22nd in MLB and 12th of 15 National League teams with a 4.50 ERA from its relievers. The team has also blown 19 of 39 trade opportunities.
The Pirates will hope the guys they currently have on the roster improve, especially late in games, but Cherington is keeping on opened mind when it comes to adding a potential closer.
“It would be great if we could add someone who can also do that, is proven to do that, or we think is capable of doing that, has the stuff, the competitiveness, to do that,” he explained. “It’s something that we’ll keep an eye out for, but I think I think we just have to close out games, and there’s going to be more than one way to do that.”
Despite a shaky bullpen and a 3-5 showing since the All-Star break, the Pirates feel they have a team capable of making the playoffs. For the next eight days, Cherington will do what he can to improve those chances.
“We have the resources to win games and be playing baseball in October. We have to go do our jobs, and I don’t think anything’s changed. We believe this team is capable of doing that,” he explained. “We’ve got to continue to do the work to actually make that a reality.
“In the next week, some of that work is going to be related to the trade deadline. That’s the job we have. And then there’s a bunch of other stuff that happens inside the clubhouse that has to keep happening every day too. Believe in the group, believe we are capable of winning games, and playing games in October. Got to do the work to go do it.”
Mentioned in this article: Ben Cherington Pittsbugh Pirates
More about:Pirates