Pirates Decision on Rowdy Tellez a Sign of Things to Come?
The Pittsburgh Pirates were in the headlines for all of the wrong reasons this week after they decided to cut Rowdy Tellez on Tuesday.
The first baseman was four at-bats shy of earning a $200,000 bonus for reaching 425 plate appearances this season before Pittsburgh chose to designate him for assignment. With the Pirates' decision to hastily cut Tellez, ESPN noted that it could be point toward them deciding to keep their hands in their pockets in the offseason.
Here are Tellez's incentives for 2024: https://t.co/Df90hyQLuU pic.twitter.com/wGzsaaG2Tt
— Ethan Hullihen (@EthanHullihen) December 16, 2023
"If the Pirates were willing to take dramatic action -- cutting infielder Rowdy Tellez -- to save $200,000, then what does that say about their upcoming offseason?" ESPN writes. "They have been as frugal as any team in the sport, but with Paul Skenes and Jared Jones in tow, there was a feeling they would move quickly to build around their two power arms. Perhaps they still will, but they lost the public relations battle this week in order to save a few bucks, which is never a good look to fans. Actions speak louder than words, so no matter what Pirates executives say about Tellez, or anything really, the winter will be the story of whether Pittsburgh will ever be serious about winning again."
Skenes and Jones give the Pirates one of the best young tandems in baseball atop their starting rotation to build around. Having those two won't matter much, though, if Pittsburgh can't score more runs next season.
The Pirates were in the bottom 10 in nearly every major stat at the plate. Given the state of their farm system, the potential solutions to those problems will more than likely have to come through free agency.
And therein lies the problem.
If the Pirates want to save $200,000 for a bonus, are they really going to be willing to spend in free agency?
Pittsburgh has to change its philosophy and approach to free agency if it's going to take the next step and get the most out of having Skenes and Jones atop its rotation. If it can't add a proven bat or two or players currently on their roster can't take the next step, it won't be far-fetched to believe it'll be more of the same next season.
