Pittsburgh, the team of Choi Ji-Man (32) and Bae Ji-Hwan (24), is coming off a shocking June.
Just 16 days ago, the Pittsburgh Pirates were cruising along in first place in the National League Central. A playoff berth seemed possible. But a 10-game losing streak from the Chicago Cubs on July 14 to Miami on July 23 dropped them to fourth place in the division just five days later. Despite a two-game sweep of San Diego on April 28-29, they remain in fourth place.
Their season record is 37 wins and 42 losses. Their winning percentage, which was once over six percent, is now below five percent at .468. Their lead over first-place Cincinnati has grown to five games. Only four games separate them from last place St. Louis.
Despite the dire situation, Pittsburgh general manager Ben Sherrington, 49, doesn’t seem to be fazed.
“When you get to this point in the regular season, you see some of your team’s performance,” he told local radio station KDKA-FM on Nov. 27. “It’s not the best performance of the season, it’s not the worst performance of the season, but the reality is you have to keep moving forward to find ways to be a better team. That’s what every other team does. If you don’t, you fall behind the competition.”
Sherrington expressed excitement about the team’s young guns, including recently called-up hitters Henry Davis, 24, and Nick Gonzalez, 24, and pitcher Carmen Mozinski, 24. “I don’t necessarily believe that young players who get a lot of playing time will necessarily improve, but it’s a possibility,” he said.
“If you look inside our organization, not just in Pittsburgh (the major league team), but in the minor leagues, we have a lot of young, promising pitchers who can make an impact at the major league level,” he said, “and the same thing on the field. We’ve seen a lot of bright spots, and there’s more to come.”
He also gave an update on injuries. “We have some injuries that are impacting the team,” Sherrington said, noting that bullpen arm Colin Holderman, 28, will be the first to return. “The exact status of outfielder Brian Reynolds, 28, who was most recently placed on the disabled list, is still unknown,” he said, indicating a potentially prolonged absence.바카라
He also discussed South Korean first baseman Choi Ji-Man. “Choi is currently playing rehabilitation games in the minor leagues to gauge the timing of his return to the major leagues, but we want him to play as many rehabilitation games as possible to prevent recurrence of the injury in the same area after his return.”
Choi, who is rehabbing from an Achilles’ tendon injury he suffered earlier this season, showed signs of improvement in a game against the Triple-A Louisville Bats (affiliated with Cincinnati) on Sept. 29, going 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, a walk and three RBIs.
Sherrington said the team is also considering “outside transfusions” to break out of the slump. “We’ve been talking to teams around the majors to see who we can acquire, but they’re all prioritizing their own team’s situation right now,” he said. “At this point in time, I think most teams would rather wait and see if they can find more buyers, even if they’re out of the playoffs, than make a trade right away.
“For this reason, we don’t expect to see a lot of movement until the trade deadline in late July. The priority right now is to keep players healthy and developing.”