DUMPED: Non Tendering Jack Suwinski & Joey Bart is BOTH Cheap & Smart

DUMPED: Non Tendering Jack Suwinski & Joey Bart is BOTH Cheap & Smart

Pirates have some tough decisions to make, but cutting Jack Sinsky and Joey Bart isn’t one of them. It’s not just cheap, it’s smart. And if they want to build a better roster, it starts with dumping dead weight. [Music] You are Locked On Pirates, your daily Pittsburgh Pirates podcast, part of the Locked Onet. your team every day. Welcome to Locked On Pirates, part of the Locked Onodcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network. I’m Gary Morgan, former editor at steelcity pirates.com and a lifelong fan of the black and gold. Big shout out to our everydayers. You make this show what it is. Today’s episode is all about smart roster decisions. In segment one, we’ll talk about the Pirates should non-tender several arbitration eligible players, not just to save money, but to stop throwing good money after bad. In segment two, we’re going to shift to rule five draft and the tough choices the Pirates face in protecting high upside arms like Brandon Pedois, Don, Antoine Kelly, and Esmer Lin Valdez. And in segment three, I’ll share my completely irrational but deeply held belief that Henry Davis is going to look like a much stronger hitter in 2026. Today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, and use code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. So, that’s right. I don’t want to do a lot of ceremony here, but I absolutely want to cut bait on a lot of these guys that are going to come up with these tender decisions. I think that’s where plenty of the 40man spots that I think we’re going to need are going to come from. I I I highlighted Bart and Sinsky when we started talking, but it doesn’t have to stop there. Arbitration projections for Bart, Ramirez, Holderman, Sinsky, and others. I I think you can save about $7.3 million just by getting rid of what I consider to be completely dead weight. I what I don’t want to see is the Pirates honestly feel like they can’t do any better than Joey Bart. Okay. Now, maybe what I’m going to talk about in segment three plays into this a little bit more than I care to admit. You know, maybe my belief that Henry Davis isn’t going to be awful next year plays into this, but I just don’t think Joey Bart did enough for me to want him back. And I don’t think he’s a good enough catcher, like the actual fun function of catching that I really want to play games with it because I if you’re backup, you you want to be sometimes defensively superior to your starter. I just don’t believe that that’s in his skill set. And I don’t think the bat plays enough to even pretend he’s going to take over DH. Even if like say Cut didn’t return or got hurt, I still think you’d want to do better than Joey Bart. I guess what I’m tired of is getting a guy like Joey realizing that he’s right around league average, maybe a little bit below it, and feeling like it’s at least a risk that you’re not going to do better than that. I think they can do better than that. I think they have better than that internally. Just messing around with Flores and maybe Endy and who else. I think you could you could probably come up with a better solution for how the catching position shakes out than if you just stuck with him. And I just honestly I don’t want to pay for the privilege. I just don’t. He He may not get the 2.7 that’s projected for him. In fact, that’s probably a reach. But I don’t want to pay that guy 2 million. Maybe I’m being cheap, but sometimes cheap can be right, too. I just wouldn’t spend the dollars on him. Plus, the roster spot to me is more valuable. I just I want to cut the dead weight now so that I’m not worried about it later. Why hold on to it? Why pretend you’re going to sign it? Jack Swinsky is another one. 1.7 million’s nothing. I don’t care if you want to pay a guy 1 and a half million bucks that you might end up stashing in AAA, have at it. But I’m tired of like leaving a door slightly a jar for Jack Sinsky to run through it. And to me, keeping him that gets stuck in the back of the Pirates minds like they see him as like, well, he could break out. He really could. And you know what? I guess he could. But do you want them taking that risk again this year? I don’t. I want them to just cut loose of all these people no matter what. The payroll is going to plummet 7.3 more million dollars off if if they cut all these guys that I’m suggesting. Holderman, Ramirez, Barts, Winsky. Get rid of them. It’s not just about frugality here. It’s about building a better roster. To me, I I already don’t expect the Pirates to go out and get a whole bunch of starter level players in free agency. I I don’t even expect them to acquire a ton of them in trade. I I think if you got one from each of those methods, you’re probably a little ahead of what most people expect the Pirates to actually get accomplished this off season. I mean, be real. Most of you have your expectations in the toilet. And I’m not telling you to pull them out of there. I’m just saying like being that that’s the case. Be realistic about what they’re going to do here. I’m telling you, I think two starters coming in, no matter what method you believe, is probably at least a little bit ambitious for what we’ve seen this team actually do. That being the case, if you empty out a lot of this safety net stuff, like you don’t give them Jack Sinsky as something that might happen anymore. They just took one away themselves with Giwan Bay. They finally cut loose with Lever Pagarero, too. You know, you start moving on from some of those guys that maybe were binkies for you in a way. You really thought there was a chance they were going to break through. You quit holding the door open for them. Well, now you can go out and you can actually competently fill those bench rolls. And guess what? You can actually afford the bench rolls. Like, there’s no problem with signing a guy like Tommy Fam. There’s a problem with signing a guy like Tommy Fam and having him be your starter, you know? So, I I would just like to empty out the underbelly of this roster. Get rid of a lot of these like guys that just aren’t going to cut it. you. I’d be okay even if you took this to Alexander Canario. You know, I I I even uh geez, if you think Billy Cook’s not going to make it, you know, you didn’t give him a chance last year, don’t waste my time this year. You know, I there’s a certain level of irresponsibility that that you probably start to reach with talking like this. Like I don’t want you to go empty out every able-bodied player that could potentially help this team. I I’m not saying that. But I am saying like if they weren’t good enough last year and they’re to a point where they really kind of either should be good enough to at least get a crack or not. I mean, you’re 26, 27, 28 years old and you haven’t gotten a crack yet or nobody’s thought you had it in you or you got what, 200 at bats in a full season in the major leagues. Let bait and get better. You can get better there. You can be competitive on those types of contracts. That’s out there for you. The Pirates can go sign two or three 8 to10 million guys as opposed to one 15 to20 million guy that might not even look in the Pirates direction. If you clear some of this scrapple out, maybe there’s a little bit more of a push from behind to incentivize doing that, to prioritize doing that. The other side of the coin is maybe they look at that and they think, “Well, now we’ve got a whole bunch of kids that are going to fill all those roles.” And you know what? That’s cheap. And and I know it wouldn’t be exactly what I just said they could do with the money, which is go out and fill that those roles competently. That’s what I’d want them to do. But I got to be honest, playing these kids would not be my least favorite outcome. My least favorite outcome would be running back with the majority of the same exact mix of things. And I feel like by May we’ll be wondering why they didn’t see that it was going to be exactly the same. To me, these are the changes you can make. Cut the undergrowth. Get this thinned out. Make it look like something that you can actually confidently add to. Cutting salaries is one thing, but what you do with those freed up roster spots and dollars, that’s where the real strategy begins. Let’s talk roll five protection. NFL season is back and honestly, there’s nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans cheering on your team. But let’s be honest, getting tickets can be a real hassle. Between K’s long login screens and prices jumping at checkout, it’s frustrating. That’s why I use Game Time, the app that gives the advantage back to fans. Game Time is fast, easy, and backed by Game Time guarantee. You’ll always get 100% authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price. Plus, all fees are included. So, the price you see is the price you pay. I pulled up game time for last night’s Steeler game uh just a couple hours before it started. Saw tickets on there for about a buck 50. Good luck getting those in advance, right? Download the Game Time app, create an account, and use code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, that’s promo code locked MLB for $20 off. Swipe, tap, ticket, go. Download game time today. Hey, welcome back to Locked On Pirates and thank you for making it your first listen every day and thank you for helping Locked On become the number one sports podcast network. Um, so I don’t think there’s a whole lot that is super super urgent to add. Okay. I mean, I keep hearing about this roster crunch, all this crazy roster crunch. We got to get all these guys, you know? I don’t think you have to. I don’t I think a lot of them are just kind of guys, and this is typical around this time of year, too. you you start to panic about guys that performed well and you the key question you have to answer for yourself as a fan is okay I’m excited about this prospect do I reasonably think that my team or another team could legitimately put this player on their roster all season long. Could they Could they find a deep dark hole in the back of their bench and be real careful? Could they find a hole in their bullpen where they can stash a guy for 75% of the season to basically steal the rights of the player? Can they get that done? Do do you think that that player is going to be able to contribute at any level at the major leagues in if if he wasn’t in a role five situation? Would you be shocked that the Pirates were putting him on their 40man and considering having him be part of the major league club at this point? Those are questions that I think you have to answer. And I’ve gone through the roster and I’ve gone through the guys that I think really could or should be added to the role five and I’ve only come up with three more. Okay, three more guys that I think need need added and that’s because they already added Ryan Harbin. Now Ryan Harbin for me was already a questionable ad. Um I’m glad they did it. if only because of the criteria that I just discussed with you. Can you stab this guy in the back of your bullpen and hide him? Use him very sparingly, but help develop him too at the same time. He has a 100 mph fast ball. He’s got a really good slider. He’s got a good splitter. His control is awful. It is 6.54 walks per nine. That’s not going to fly at any level. So, there’s a part of me, and this is why it was questionable to me. I don’t know where you hide that guy. Okay? I don’t know where you hide that guy in a bullpen. But the reason Ryan Harbin gets protected this year and already got protected, the reason that we’re having the discussion in past tense about him getting selected to the 40man is because he was going to become a minor league free agent, which is different than role five eligible. In fact, Ryan Harbin was already role five eligible last year. people could anybody in the world could have come and taken him for free and he could throw 100 miles an hour last year too. So, part of me thought there’s a chance they’re just going to let this go. And I figured maybe they would try to sign him to that minor league, you know, contract because he really did start to break through last year a little bit, at least as far as like figuring out the mix of pitches that I think they need him to work with. And I think they’re starting to get better at dialing him in. I personally haven’t seen enough growth in the control to feel like he’s an option next year immediately for the bullpen, but it could happen. It’s just a matter of really dialing in a few things. He’s probably very similar to Johan Ramirez is the best way I can put it. Now, he doesn’t throw the same kind of slider. The slider isn’t his feature pitch. the fast ball is, but the command issues are very similar. You know how sometimes Johan Ramirez had it and sometimes he didn’t have it and more often than not didn’t. Well, that’s Ryan Harbon right now. So, that was a questionable ad for me. Brandon Bedois injured constantly. Injured constantly. 64 straight batters, 18 innings without a hit this year. Only Dennis Eckersley has gone longer than that. An 074 erra this year. Uh 10.18ks per nine in 2025. The Kent Talvby reliever of the year. Obviously he has to be protected. But this is a guy that most of you, and this is partially my fault because I didn’t bring him up either, but most of you probably didn’t know who the hell this guy was before like August. That’s when his name really started percolating. That’s when people really started hearing him again because this is one of those guys that nobody pictured being important when they started this season. He flew through every level of this system. And he has been so injured in in the past that, you know, you just never really got to see the stuff’s always been pretty good. what he did this year. Otherworldly, there’s no doubt you have to protect him from the rule five because there’s no doubt somebody would think they can hide him. And with his injury history, there’s a damn good chance you wouldn’t have to cuz he might well just get injured and give you a free roll five player. You just get to carry the whole year without it ever really affecting you. This is also a guy that has every possibility of just going to the majors and straight up starting out being good. He really could. It’s one of those ones where you got to look at realistically and say, could he be on this team in 2026? And the answer is yes. And if that answer is yes, you owe it to yourself and the player and the team to make sure you add them to the 40 man. I have no doubt Brandon Bidois will be added. This one’s a little bit of a question and it’s only because of how kind of far away he has been. You know, I I don’t think people necessarily expected what they got out of him this year, but it’s remarkable. Antoine Kelly, very good. 25 starts, 302 RA, 9.73ks per nine, 2.89 FIP, underrated. definitely I think could debut in 2026. I didn’t have him as an absolute has to be protected, but let’s just say I’ll have some critical words for them if they don’t. I think they would be missing an opportunity. Antoine Kelly’s got an opportunity to be a closer on this team. And I know we say that about an awful lot of players, but let let me just say Antoine Kelly’s got a good shot at it. This guy this guy may not stick at starter. And the only reason I say that is again this is another one that health has been an issue. Um I personally think his mix is a little better for the bullpen than it is starting. doesn’t mean that that that he can’t change my mind once he gets here, but I just think that the rotation is so full. I think we’re going to see Antoine Kelly probably debut in the bullpen, and I think it’s very likely that that that debut would be in 2026. I think it’s very likely he would get taken, too. The numbers are very good. His mix that he uses a lot anyway. He’s got some secondaries that he’s been working on that aren’t quite ready, but he’s got enough that he’s developed to a point where I believe you could feel pretty good about putting him in a bullpen. I think if you were a certain type of team, you might even consider him part of your starting mix as early as this year. He’s an impressive kid. I think they’d be foolish to not protect him. I’m just not 100% sure they will. I can’t say the same for this next guy. Esmer Valdez is an obvious protection guy. He’s going to get protected. Um, they only have, and we talked a lot about him yesterday, so I don’t want to rehash it too much, but the reasons are there, and it’s not just what he’s done in the Arizona Fall League. He he’s honestly looked really good this whole year. Um, there were some holes in his swing that I think a lot of people were very worried about. And in the off season, I can’t put it any other way than to just say he put in some big-time work, changed who he is as a player, and just came looking different. That happens. It might happen with what I’m going to talk about in segment three, too. But Emerald has done the work. This is the most obvious 40man protection there is. I think this was gonna happen before what he did in the Arizona Fall League. I really do. But I don’t think that uh I don’t think he did any himself any damage at the Arizona Fall League either. I think we should cut even more dead weight. Cut anything you want from segment one. I think there’s even more beyond that that I’d be happy to get rid of. I’ve done a show on that already. I think I have 10 or 11 that I named off. Some of them just got cut the other day to make room for the 60man guys that were coming off off the IIL. But these are really the only guys that needed added. Harbin, Bidois, Kelly, and Valdez. And I don’t believe there’s anything else. Next year, you’re going to have some more interesting conversations if people don’t progress. You know, I mean, that’s where you’ll start getting a few more names. But these, most of these guys, these are 2019 candidates. These are 2019 pickups that got screwed by the COVID year, lost some time to injury as well, and things just haven’t come back around for them until this last year. They’ve made a push. Good on them. I didn’t think the Pirates were going to have more than maybe one 40man decision that they’d have to make like this when we started last year. So I and I think that’s really impressive for real. There’s four guys that I think are basically we’re again we’re not going to be able to call Harbon a protection from the 40man because it’s not. He’s just added to keep him from going minor league free agent which is in the same spirit but not the same thing. But I can tell you I don’t think anyone had Brandon Bidois, Antoine Kelly or Esmer Valdez as locks to be added to the 40man at the end of this season. If anything, I think the problems a lot of us thought were going to come up didn’t. You know, there were some other guys that just slowed down or, you know, or made themselves, you know, irrelevant and kind of cleared up space on its own. And and they’ve done a lot of additions as the season went on that kind of took some of these decisions off the pallet in the first place. This isn’t going to be a big dramatic thing. They’re not going to have a hard time making room. I don’t see any reason to worry about this period of time at all. To me, it’s just a matter of how much scrapple they clear out of the way in the first place. And I would do a lot of that with the non-tender deadline. I would just cut bait on the vast majority of those players and be done with it. We’ve talked about who to cut, who to protect. Now, let’s talk about who to believe in. That’s right. My crazy belief in Henry Davis continues to this day. And when we come back, I’m going to try as hard as I can to explain it to you. The NBA is back and there’s no better place to get in on the action than FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Even if you miss the start of the game or want to ride that hot hand, FanDuel has live bets on everything from who will score next to the fourth quarter big comeback. Plus, you can even combine your live bets into a same game parlay for a shot at a bigger payout. It keeps every game interesting, especially when your team’s making that late push. Right now, FanDuel is giving new customers $300 in bonus bets when your first $5 bet wins. So, head to fandle.com and sign up and play your game with FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Hey everybody, welcome back to Locked On Pirates. Before we jump into our final segment, don’t forget to follow me on socials, Gary Mo20007 onx. You can find me on Facebook, just Gary Morgan. Check anywhere for Locked on Pirates that you like to hang out online, you’ll find it. Um, Henry Davis, he’s going to be better in 2026. I’m just going to say it flat out. I’ve got some reasons to believe it, but let’s kind of just do a review of what’s really happened with him first. Interesting. 2020 21 first overall pick. Strong minor league flashes 342 in Greensboro, 284 in Altuna. Injuries definitely slowed his development. There was a period of time there where I was starting to believe that he was wearing a target on his hands for how many times he was getting hit with baseballs, but you know, he he ended up getting there. 189 career average and a minus2.1 war in the major leagues. 144 average in 2024. Now he’s got, you know, home runs that he hit the first time he got called up. That was interesting. Things kind of dried up. 2025 looked awful. He he took a huge jump forward defensively and that’s what he focused on a lot in the off season preceding 2025. He wanted to become a catcher because the Pirates definitely didn’t think he could. They were putting him in some some cases third or fourth on the depth chart as far as who they thought could catch. Now, this is with the knowledge of the type of catcher Joey Bart is. So, I didn’t understand that. And Andy Rodriguez certainly wasn’t a sure thing, but he was gonna get the first shot at being there. In fact, remember that’s how the season started. Henry Davis started in Triple A until injuries started piling up because they wanted Endy to be able to play first base, too. Now, Spencer Horwitz injury maybe played into that, but that’s why they went the way they went. But Henry showed that he had the capabilities to catch. And as the season played out, I think he showed that he is undoubtedly their best catcher right now. At least defensively. But offensively, what the hell happened to this kid, right? Couldn’t hit a fast ball to save his life. He’s off plane. He’s offkilter. I mean, it’s really hard even as a layman to watch him hit and not see the problem. He just can’t catch up to the high heat. And the funny thing is that used to be his bread and butter. So here’s where I’m at with Henry, okay? Like all joking aside, I believe in the power. And the power is still very real. Even when he’s connected with it, even when he pulls it 50 feet wide of the left field foul pole, I the power is undeniable. The contact to get the power to do anything has been a problem. The approach has been a real problem. And honestly, tired legs have been a real problem that nobody wanted to talk about. But I heard last year he went to drive line and everybody was kind of thinking, well, that that should be cool. Well, come to find out, he went to drive line more to work on his defensive catching than he did his hitting. I don’t think a lot of people think of drive line in that regard, but they work on that aspect too. It’s like we had uh we had my buddy from uh Ohio Science Pitching Academy on remember and he and they also teach hitting and they also teach catching and you know general baseball mechanics and and health and nutrition and there’s a lot of forks in these roads for these specialty companies and drive line is another one. So he worked on mostly catching. Yeah, he did some hitting, but most of his hitting was done independently. He put in his own hitting cage in his house basically and just worked on it all off season, but something got screwed up because he didn’t look right from moment one this year. His timing was well off. Couldn’t decide whether he wanted to do a leg kick or a toe tap. couldn’t decide whether he wanted to crouch down or stand up straight in towards the plate, back away from the plate. I watched him make these changes all season long and nobody seemed to be able to help him and and the consistent at bats. I felt like they really tried to give him enough to to get his feet under him. Now, his defense made it more possible to do that. And Joey Bart’s lack of offense made it more palatable, too, because what were you gonna do? You’re replacing Henry with a guy that didn’t hit me either. So, I mean, what’s the difference, right? Point is, when you challenge Henry with something, he tends to go into the off season and attack it. And I know he’s been challenged with hitting, and I know he’s challenged himself with it. And I know just from talking to people that as early as it is in the off season, it has been his focus. I expect him to work very hard at it. I I’m not sitting here telling you he’s going to come back and be Will Smith. Not at all. I’m not even telling you like if you had if you’re one of those people that had your start your heart set on them going out and getting like a JT Riomuto or whatever. I’m not telling you not to. Go ahead if you want to do that. I’m just telling you I personally still have faith in Henry Davis. When you see somebody that’s that broken at the plate, sometimes it just means they’re broken. Sometimes it means, man, they’re so broken that it feels like it’s just going to be one stupid tweak that’s going to set everything off and put everything back together. It’s like going to the chiropractor and they take that little thing that just taps the back of your spine on your neck and they do it like three or four times and you don’t hear a crack, you don’t feel anything better and then they go, “Okay, that that’s your adjustment for the week.” and next thing you know, you’re walking out and you’re like, you know what? I guess I do feel a little better. I don’t know how the hell tapping my neck three times made my hip not hurt. That’s kind of what I think’s going to happen at the plate with Henry. I think they’re going to find the mechanical issue and they’re going to fix it and I think it’s going to make his game take a jump. I really do. I think you’re going to see a much more complete player next year and I think this team absolutely has to have it. You can’t miss on a 1-1. You cannot miss all the way. You can accept that you’ve drafted a defensive specialist, but that’s not what you’re trying to draft at 1-1. Sometimes the best moves are a subtraction. But the Pirates need to follow that up with meaningful additions, and that starts with keeping the right guys and believing in the ones who still have upside. Remember everybody, we’re serious about Pirates baseball because somebody has to be. Let’s go Bucks.

Pittsburgh Pirates cut ties with Jack Suwinski and Joey Bart—will smart subtraction unlock a winning roster? Gary Morgan argues that non-tendering underperforming arbitration-eligible players like Bart, Ramirez, Holderman, and Sawinski isn’t just about saving $7.3 million; it’s a bold step toward shedding dead weight and upgrading the bench with real talent.

Gary breaks down the Rule 5 draft conundrum, weighing the merits of protecting high-upside arms Brandon Bidois, Antoine Kelly, and Esmeralda Valdez for the 40-man roster. Can the Pirates leverage freed-up roster spots to sign impactful veterans and foster breakout performances? Critical questions include Henry Davis’s development: after focusing on defense and overcoming mechanical issues, could he emerge as a much stronger hitter in 2026? Discover which prospects could define Pittsburgh’s future and why hard decisions set the stage for a competitive season.

Follow & Subscribe on all Podcast platforms…
🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-pirates/

Locked On MLB League-Wide: Every Team, Prospects & More
🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/leagues/mlb/

Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!
PrizePicks
Download the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONMLB to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.
PrizePicks — Run Your Game.
Click Link Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONMLB

Gametime
Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONMLB for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.

FanDuel
Today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel. The NBA and NFL seasons are here, visit the FanDuel App today and start planning your futures bets now.

FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)

Pittsburgh Pirates, Pirates News, Pirates Rumors, Jack Suwinski, Joey Bart, Henry Davis, Brandon Bidois, Antoine Kelly, Esmeralda Valdez, Ryan Harbin, Johan Ramirez, Andy Rodriguez, 2024 Pirates Offseason, MLB Non-Tender, MLB Roster Moves, Pirates Roster Decisions, Locked On Pirates, Pirates Podcast, MLB Rumors, Pittsburgh Baseball, Pirates Prospects, Pirates Catchers, Pittsburgh Pirates Updates