North Shore Nine

Bob Nutting sat down with Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette for an exclusive interview in the Dominican Republic. Nutting is in Santo Domingo to celebrate the 2024 international free agent signing class.

Mackey discussed a myriad of topics with the Pirates’ chairman and owner, but one portion of their conversation likely caught your attention.

“I wish we were further along in this offseason than we are,” Nutting told the Post-Gazette on Saturday during an exclusive interview at the team’s Dominican Republic academy. “I’ve seen how hard [general manager] Ben [Cherington] has pushed. I’ve seen how close we’ve gotten to some deals. But we’re only halfway through. I think there’s still time. There’s still a lot of work to be done. I think Ben understands the expectations.”

– Bob Nutting via Jason Mackey

Yeah, Nutting hit all of the talking points, I know, but am I the only one sensing a little disappointment here? Sure, he’s happy that the team improved in 2023 and on paper there is a young core that could potentially lead a future Pirates postseason team. That’s why this fanbase is so frustrated. 2024 was the offseason to take that step, and as of this writing it hasn’t been taken.

These remarks by Nutting don’t exonerate him. There are moves that the Pirates will never make with him as owner. I’m not referring to the Ohtani deal, yet something like the Aaron Nola contract. Nola will average just under $25M per year over 7 years. Can you see the Pirates doing a deal like that any time soon? I can’t, but there were other options available and one by one they have evaporated.

That falls on Cherington. He has time to make it right. Nutting not only acknowledges that, he is encouraging it. It might be as close to a “crap or get off the pot” type of moment for the general manager. His boss is telling everybody that the funds are available to improve the team and he expects something to be done. Whether Cherington heeds that advice is yet to be seen.

If you haven’t read Jason’s one-on-one with Nutting yet, I’d recommend you do so.