DK’s Daily Shot of Pirates: Squint harder!

DK’s Daily Shot of Pirates: Squint harder!

[Music] [Applause] Back on the 9th of May, when Ben Cherington was conducting a press conference in which he was pretending to have just fired Derek Shelton, that was done by Bob Nutting and only Nutting. He spoke with outright optimism about the team that he was watching and about the product that we should be expecting for the remainder of the summer. I quote directly, I don’t think you have to squint too hard to see a stronger team on the field in 2025. End quote. Oh my. Good morning to you. Good Wednesday morning. I’m Dan Kvachovich of DK Pittsburgh Sports. This is Daily Shot of Pirates. It comes your way bright and early every weekday. If you’re into football andor hockey, I also offer daily shots of Steelers and Penguins in the same place that you found this. Cubs 4 Pirates won last night at PNC Park. Paul Skins’s home finale of his brilliant season of his Sai Young season. It didn’t go great. He didn’t have all of his stuff, all of his command. three runs on seven hits and three walks over three and two/3 innings, six strikeouts. His erra soared, ballooned, erupted to 2.03. He’s going to win the Sai Young. The rest of the game was as irrelevant as all of them are anymore. Four total hits for the Cherington offense, which is one more than they had last night. one of those for extra bases, which is the same number that they had last night, except in Chrington speak, that’s actually more. And that brings us back to the actual most absurd statement of the entire year in which he described the 2024 Pirates as having done more winning than the 2023 Pirates, even though both of those teams finished with exactly 76 wins. Well, have no fear because whether one is squinting or not, the current team can’t do that. That’s right. Having just lost for the 10th time in 11 games, the Pirates are now 65 and 87. They’ve got 10 games to go. They would need 11 wins to achieve yet more magical process in the Cherington math. So, congrats to all concerned on that. Congrats to whoever it might be within Cherington’s analytics army that’s assigned to help script more of these memorable pearls. And really just a hearty overall congrats to everyone on not just having a worse record, but at being way worse at almost everything. Do you want the list of names of players who’ve gotten worse from 2024 to 25? or would you rather just see the list of the players who got better? I mean, outright better from year to year. Okay, you ready? Deep breath. Have a seat. Skins. And uh Skines, I guess. No, I’m not even like trying to be cute here or anything. Come up with another name. You can come up with players who had decent seasons or players who stayed at anticipated levels, but you can’t come up with players who got better. You can come up with a bunch of them who got worse. O’Neal Cruz is disintegrating before our eyes. Brian Reynolds way down. Got another really lousy at bat last night with guys on the bases. Henry Davis is shrinking from view. Jack Sinsky, who I didn’t think could sink any lower, is now at 126 for the year. 126 and still getting a spot in the lineup, which to me is way more a reflection of the overall organization that Cherington’s built as opposed to Jack. A Jack’s not forcing anybody at gunpoint to put him in. Pitching’s obviously been better than the hitting and it’s been helped to the credit of all concerned by a couple of younger guys coming up from Indianapolis and having a modest impact. Mike Burroughs, Braxton Ashcraft, but everyone else was pretty much right around the same. Mitch Keller 4.13 erra 30 starts durable. That’s great. But that erra isn’t. The second half fade isn’t. It’s skins. It’s really and truly skins. And for me, that begs the broader question. When Cherington speaks stuff like quote, “I don’t think you have to squint too hard to see a stronger team on the field in 2025.” End quote. What’s actually taking place? Is he actively gaslighting, treating us like we’re either idiots or insane? Is he just flat out lying, hoping that if he says stuff often enough that nothing will hear it and process it for more than a laughable split second? Or, and this one’s actually the worst of the three, is he getting information, like actual information from this army of his to support this nonsense? Like are they the ones because they, you know, are very much in danger of losing their jobs if he loses his trying to sell him on the concept that this is all just some grand and inexplicable underperformance that he’s overseeing. That all of their decisions were precise and methodical and had no chance to fail unless something went wrong on the field, something terribly unforeseen. There have been all kinds of indicators to this effect over these past few years. I’ve picked them up repeatedly. Whatever this is, it’s got to end. And for all the information and everything else that I’ve accumulated over the course of the summer that would powerfully suggest that Cherington’s going to get fired when this is done, only one person controls that process. And if that one person happens to be influenced to any tiny degree by recency bias, my god, just keep losing. Keep right on losing. 10 out of 11. That’s certainly an inspired start. When we come back, J1Q. If you’re looking for a great dining experience, look no further than Northshore Tavern. Located directly across Federal Street from PNC Park, next door to Mike’s Beer Bar, Northshore Tavern is Pittsburgh’s home for Steak on a Stone. Enjoy your steak finished on a hot lava stone in front of you, where you ensure each piece is cooked to exactly your liking. or try their rotating selection of entre, hot sandwiches, salads, and burgers, all while enjoying the ambiance dedicated to the great players and history of the Pittsburgh Pirates all around you. Come see why everyone’s talking about Northshore Tavern and Steak on a Stone. It’s Gun Storage Check Week. Help prevent unwanted access to your firearms. No one wants their unsecured gun to be used in an accident, a suicide, or a crime. Use lock boxes, safes, and locks to secure your firearms. Learn more at gunstorage check.org. That’s gunstoch checkck.org. Brought to you by NSSF, the firearm industry trade association. Hey guys, if you’re planning to see a Pirates game, use the Game Time app to get your tickets. You can snag new ticket deals before anyone if you set it into app alerts. The app is easy to use. No surprise fees at checkout. You can see your seat view before buying. And you’re getting legit tickets delivered on time. Now, if you’re not much of a planner, you can get lastminute deals on tickets right up to the start of the event. Lowest price guarantee or game time will credit you 110% of the difference. Download the Game Time app and enter the code DK Pirates in your app profile for $20 off your first purchase. [Music] Welcome back in L of a standard J1Q. Well, there actually was a J1Q, only it was me who asked it. Yesterday’s show putting out to you plain and simple, what would you do? Not how would you react, how would you feel? What would you do if Ben Cherington gets retained? Going to read a few of these today. Andy replied, I’ve had my head wrapped around Cherington’s return for a while now. What would I do? Nothing. My continued enthusiasm for this team will come down to the owners winning the upcoming lockout after next season. Nothing matters more. Not Nutting, not Cherrington, not Don Kelly, nothing. Dave says, “I’ll be honest. I’ve been pondering this exact thing since early August. I’ll be as angry as ever, probably at level 11. But baseball’s been a huge part of my life. I played at a high level. Got a fair number of friends who made the show, and the Pirates are my lynch pin as I grow older. But that said, he just has to be fired, right? Ed says, “Being a Pirates fan is like being in a lifelong abusive relationship. I know they’ll torture me and they won’t care. They’ll lie about trying to make things better, then not lift a finger. They’ll blow smoke about not making trades for payroll purposes, then dump a starter for some D-list lottery ticket light-hitting middle infielder. None of it matters because they’re in my blood. So, I’ll pay attention if for no other reason than to be angry with them. Dwight says, “I don’t think Cherington’s getting canned. I feel and even more so after your in-depth reporting this summer that Nutting is holding on for dear life hoping that a salary cap gets put in place. We’ll see what happens. Nam says, “I will be done with them with no regrets.” Anson says, “Nothing and that’s likely what you’ll do as well, DK. I’m currently not going to games. I’m not watching the games. I’m not buying merchandise. I’ll still check the box score most days. I’ll still listen to you on my commute. I’ll still check how the prospects are doing on occasion. I’ll still be the disassociated fan that I am today. Fuzz says, “I’m already thinking about watching either the Brewers or the Phillies.” Bob says, “I’m going to continue my very slow, gradual detachment from the Pirates if Cherington is retained. His retention would be just another reminder of this tonedeaf organization that doesn’t care about the city or its fans. Buck says, “I will send sell the team lawn signs to as many people as possible, starting with Bob Nutting zip code.” Fat says, “If Cherington is not fired and a real baseball GM is not hired, I’m done. And I’ve been a fan since 1958. This team this year is the worst talent-wise in those 45 years. This owner has to go also, but if he keeps this guy, it’s over for me. DJ says, “As far as protests, I’d be up for a nationally televised game with skins pitching, a few hundred in PNC Park, but thousands on the Clemente Bridge with paper bags on their heads stating, “Sell the team, you nothing burger.” Nick says it doesn’t matter one way or the other. BL says, “I took my action already by not renewing my tickets after 25 plus seasons. I would continue to follow them next season if he’s retained, but I would most likely not attend any games. I also would continue what I’ve been doing the past few months by cheering for them to lose. I hate to root against the team that I’ve loved since I was a child, but it seems like public humiliation is the only thing that causes them to take action. Greek says, “I’ve been a partial season ticket holder since 2009, averaging about 20 plus games a year. I have already sent emails to my ticket rep and also called him and clearly stated that if Cherington is not fired at season’s end, I am out. I will ask for a refund of partial monies already paid toward next season as part of their autorenew process. What a sad thing that is for me since baseball is my favorite sport. Ohio says I would wear my sell the team hat and t-shirt and participate in any sell the team rallies, but it would seem a little bit more hopeless. Jerry says I’ll make even more fun of the fools who buy tickets. Our last word for the day goes to Brian. And there were hundreds of these. I’m not exaggerating, but Brian says, “I’ll be so upset if Cherington keeps his job that I’ll do well, nothing. I’ll still keep watching and I’ll still take a vacation day for opening day. I mean, what else am I going to do?” I have nothing to add. This was your segment, guys. I appreciate hearing from so, so many of you. Trust me when I tell you that all of them were read. Let’s do this again tomorrow. [Music]

Squint harder! There’ll be no 76 wins this time!

#Pittsburgh #Pirates #LetsGoBucs #MLB #DKPS

Hear award-winning columnist Dejan Kovacevic’s Daily Shot of Pirates every weekday morning!

SUBSCRIBE TO CHANNEL ► https://www.youtube.com/@DKPS_Pirates?sub_confirmation=1

MEMBERSHIP TO CHANNEL ► https://www.youtube.com/@DKPS_Pirates/join

OUR APPS ► https://DKPS.net/apple | https://DKPS.net/android

OUR WEBSITE ► http://www.DKPittsburghSports.com

ABOUT US ► DK Pittsburgh Sports is the proud, pioneering, fully independent venture begun in 2014 by award-winning reporter Dejan Kovacevic and featuring a professional staff covering the Pirates year-round and everywhere they go! This is where it all started!