North Shore Nine

The signing of Aroldis Chapman was strange and not just because it will feel really weird to see him in a Pirates uniform after playing a villain with the Reds a decade ago.

It was also not needed, considering there may be more glaring needs in the starting rotation, outfield, and second base. After all, it’s not like anyone fired a gun eight times near Ben Cherington’s face to bring the Cuban Missile to the Three Rivers.

The Pirates bullpen could be considered a team strength, even before the Chapman signing. While the group’s ERA was just 18^th in baseball last year, that number feels misleading.

David Bednar has been among the best closers in baseball since ascending to the role in 2021, Colin Holderman brings triple-digit heat and an elite sweeper, and Carmen Mlodzaeriuaski was nothing but excellent following his June call-up. Add that to reverse slider king Dauri Moreta, a resurgent Ryan Borucki, and flame-throwing Rule 5 pickup Jose Hernandez and, well, that’s pretty good!

The addition of Chapman, though, got me thinking. Could the creation of a super bullpen lead to a new (or continued, depending on how you look at it) strategy that utilizes openers more than ever before and keeps every starter not named Mitch Keller from going through the lineup even twice?

The Pirates used an opener 13 times last season as this article points out (note that the Pirates used an opener one more time after the article’s publication). Now, 12 of those times came after August 19 when the rotation was all but shot. The Pirates used that strategy – an opener for the first inning or two (Colin Selby got the start in five of those), a bulk innings eater to pitch at least three innings, and then the flamethrowers from the bullpen – because they had to.

While the idea of an opener has become more common in baseball (especially in the playoffs), only the 2018 Rays used it consistently. Could the Pirates look to be trendsetters and try it both earlier in the season and at a higher rate than anyone in league history? Or could they use it early in the season as a bridge until the core of young pitching prospects reach Pittsburgh?

As we look at the roster heading into the beginning of spring training, the rotation remains a huge mystery.

Keller is the one sure bet coming off an all-star season where he established himself as a reliable mid-rotation piece. Off-season pick-ups Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales surely have spots saved but their recent injury history makes them anything but a sure thing.

After that we’re down to former top prospects like Quinn Priester and Luis Ortiz, who struggled mightily in the majors last season, waiver wire fodder like Bailey Falter and Jackson Wolf, the corpse of Roansy Contreras, or the non-roster invitee yet to be named.

Yes, the Pirates still have time to make moves. They could sign Mike Clevinger, trade for Dylan Cease or let Paul Skenes start the season on the big squad (an argument for another day). Unless they do multiple moves, there is still a paucity of quality starters. The Pirates best bet may be to use the fourth and/or fifth spot in the rotation as bullpen days out of the gate – or at least until the Super 2 deadline passes and Skenes and Jared Jones can head to Pittsburgh.

“It would be challenging with only two full starters or traditional starters,” Pirates manager and notorious short-leash holder Derek Shelton said at the end of last year. “We have done it in stretches. Last year we did it out of necessity just because of coming out of a shortened Spring Training. I think the fact that we’re exploring it and maybe experimenting with it will give us a better idea of maybe how we can function going into next season.”

The 2018 Rays used traditional relievers like Ryne Stanek (29 opens), Diego Castillo (11 opens), and Sergio Romo (5 opens) to cobble together innings. The strategy contributed to a 90-win season and the second-best team ERA in the American League, although they also benefited from Cy Young winner Blake Snell‘s 180 innings of 1.89 ERA.

Could the 2024 Pirates follow suit?

In “Big Data Baseball,” his superb book about the 2013 Pittsburgh Pirates, Travis Sawchik detailed how the Pirates utilized defensive shifts to gain a competitive advantage. While defensive shifting quickly became commonplace in baseball – to the point it was essentially banned in the last collective bargaining agreement – it’s worth remembering that it was groundbreaking only a decade ago.

Sawchik’s book explained the organizational dynamics at play during the time. General manager Neal Huntington had to first appeal to manager Clint Hurdle who in turn had to convince the players, especially starting pitchers. Going against conventional wisdom, especially in a century-old sport like baseball, is not easy.

The opener falls into that category. The use of an opener and the declined prevalence of starters sits wrong with the gray-haired contingent who thinks every starter should have the durability of Bob Gibson in 1968 (this dumbass included.)

However, with, umm, payroll issues, the Pirates cannot compete doing the same things as everyone else. Could using an opener at a rate unseen before in baseball be that advantage? There is little use in an elite bullpen when the starters get bombed every night.