3-6-22 – By Gary Morgan – @garymo2007 on Twitter
The Pirates are going to trade Bryan Reynolds once the CBA is signed! Oh No! They’re are two teams who could afford the prospect cost! Jason Mackey asked Bryan and he didn’t hear from the Pirates before the lockout about an extension! AHHHHHHHHH!
Look, let’s calm down a bit here folks.
I’m not here to tell you nothing bad is going to happen, or that the Pirates have suddenly changed who they are as a franchise. That said, maybe we should at least give equal billing to all rumors, not just the bad ones.
Don’t get me wrong, this fan base has been bent over the desk for quite some time, so it’s not like I expect beacons of positivity out there. Rumors are exactly that, rumors.
Do this gig long enough and you start getting sources. Some better than others, some more reliable, others less so. Do it for a lot longer or for a much bigger outlet and you get even more. Have you seen any rumors of Reynolds impending trade that anyone claimed to have a Pirates source? Thought so.
In fact, the only things we’ve seen seem to paint a picture of wanting to keep Reynolds. Ben Cherington directly said he wants to build around him. His asks, according to sources from other teams used in the reporting showed a consistent theme of asking for incredible packages. Packages in return that quite frankly would make Neil Huntington look like he pulled the wool over the Rays eyes with his deal and probably put the opposing GM in instant hot seat territory.
There are reasons for all of this. Bryan is a really good player, and a safe bet to continue being good. The Pirates have still not signed anyone to a bigger contract than Jason Kendall, STILL. Finally, from a national perspective, most don’t understand a rebuild, or when it stops being about off loading talent, and turns into letting it mature.
Is Reynolds getting traded? Well, not unless a team would actually come close to Cherington’s insane ask. That’s what I’m told, and I’ve seen nothing to refute it. Is he getting extended? I know there was an offer, I know they plan to make another.
I don’t have yes or no for you on either subject because that’s not the reality of how this stuff works. Everything is possible because you can’t ever account for what a person or rival executive will do. Reynolds said he wants to be a Pirate, but he certainly is capable of changing his mind. Let’s say he tells the Pirates, yeah, I’ve been doing some thinking and I’m not interested in signing an extension. Well, that changes things a bit doesn’t it? Suddenly that insane package turns into “kinda nuts” and down from there.
The other side of this is another Ben Cherington quote where he said the Pirates will be competitive earlier than most think.
Man, that doesn’t sound like a guy who thinks he’s got to move his best player who isn’t a free agent for 4 more years right now.
The bottom line is simply this, the Pirates have been a bad baseball team in an aggressive rebuild and until they do something that directly says they are now on the upswing like an extension or signing. Hell, even a trade of their own to acquire something for the MLB club would do. Until then the rumors are just going to keep coming.
Ben Cherington probably doesn’t care about the rumors, after all, he’s the one who knows what he’s doing, but executives often don’t see what the constant drum beat does to fans. Content creators do, because especially when we’re in a dead zone for any stories that aren’t about players and owners walking across a friggin’ parking lot.
Again, everyone who does this long enough develops sources. When you find someone local outside of the blog world who has one saying the Pirates are shopping Reynolds, then worry. Until then, it’s just something other markets would like to happen, coupled with a mentally abused fan base preparing for the worst. Because worst is typically what they’ve been fed.
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