North Shore Nine

The annual North Shore Nine over/under list is back! Jim, Dinardo, and I sat down on the most recent version of NS9 Live to discuss arbitrary numbers that we made up to find out just how little we know. Jim started us with the Discord’s King.

Ryan Borucki O/U 1.199 WHIP

Tyler: Over DiNardo: Under

The people love this man. Borucki was very effective as a Pirate last year. Dinardo fell for the hype. I’m not there with Borucki yet.

Bailey Falter O/U 15.5 Starts

Jim & DiNardo: Under

I had a hard time setting this number. I would’ve taken the over here because I think Falter will collect some starts as an opener. The other two disagree.

Jack Suwinski O/U 2.99 fWAR

Tyler & Jim – Over

Suwinski finished 2023 with a 2.79 fWAR. Jim and I both believe Suwinski sees a bump in value with the potential move to right field so we both took the over here.

Andrew McCutchen O/U April 4th For 300th Home Run

Tyler & DiNardo: Over

I really hope we’re wrong here. McCutchen will have opportunities. He’s a career .312 hitter against the Nationals with 25 home runs. I could see him getting it there.

Henry Davis O/U 10.5 Starts in Right Field

Jim & DiNardo: Under

These guys weren’t fond of the lines I set. It would be cool if Davis works out as a catcher, but I think the Pirates will give Grandal a lot of time when he’s healthy. They disagree.

Michael A. Taylor O/U 91.5 wRC+

Tyler & Dinardo – Under

Obviously, these two realize I’m the best ball-knower around here. They both now have agreed with me. Can’t blame them. Plain and simple, I don’t think Taylor can hit.

Paul Skenes O/U June 7 1/2 Debut Date

Tyler: Over DiNardo: Under

I don’t see any chance the Pirates call Skenes up before they are absolutely 100% sure Super Two has passed. DiNardo thinks he’ll get some random start before this date. He’s so dumb.

Jared Triolo O/U 12.5 DRS at Second Base

Jim & DiNardo: Under

These guys don’t know ball. If Triolo gets 1,000 innings at 2nd, he’ll crush this. I think they’re colluding against me.

Oneil Cruz O/U 28.15% Strikeout Rate

Tyler: Under Jim: Over

Negative Jim is back at it. I prefer my positive mindset. Jim thinks Cruz will be bad. I don’t.

Henry Davis O/U 11.5 Hit By Pitch

Tyler: Under DiNardo: Over

DiNardo doesn’t understand ball. Yes, Davis got hit quite a bit in the minors. Pitchers are better in the majors. Also, I think teams are going to attack him away.

Joshua Palacios O/U .5 Walkoffs

Jim: Under DiNardo: Over

I did this to bait DiNardo. I knew he would take the over. Palacios might not get a single at-bat this year. DiNardo is a big vibes guy.

Roansy Contreras O/U 185.5 Days As A Pirate

Tyler & Jim: Over

Jim and I both see Roansy being with the club all season. I just can’t see them giving up on him this year.

Rowdy Tellez O/U 1.5 Percentile Sprint Speed

Tyler: Over DiNardo: Under

Rowdy looks slimmer, he’s gotta run faster, right? That’s the only analysis I have for this.

Aroldis Chapman O/U 98.3 Fastball Velocity

Jim & DiNardo: Over

Chapman averaged 98.3 on his fastball after he was traded last year. We saw the velocity was down during Spring Training. It’s going to be interesting to follow Chapman’s velocity this year.

Pirates Team O/U 199.5 Home Runs

Tyler & Jim: Under

That’s a lot of home runs. I believe the power will be improved, but this number is huge. Gotta go under.

We wrapped up with our win total prediction. After all of the negativity from Jim during the show, he throws one of the most optimistic predictions I’ve heard. 85 wins. I’d love that. I’d also love to have a billion dollars. I followed up with my usual negativity, 74 wins. Looking back, I probably should’ve gone higher by a bit. DiNardo (who is ranked below me according to a certain list) stuck with his middleman ways and chose 79 wins. He’ll never go out on a limb.

It’s going to be a fun season.