2019 Baseball Season Predictions

[12HankQB]

They also need to play everyday. I think that's hurting them as well. 4 games in 7 days....

[PAMDGrappler]

I’m a die hard Pirates fan and have been for years.  I agree that I think they are one middle of the order thumper away from being very good.  What I disagree with is you saying that they have that player on the current roster.  None of the players you mentioned have shown that they are that player.  Dickerson sacrifices power to make contact.  He’s probably best served as a #2 or #3 hitter.  Post-juicing Melky and Marte both lack power.  Marte could be a #2 or #3, Melky is bottom of the order.  They want Bell or Kang to be that guy, and I hope one of them steps up and is, but I’m skeptical.  Bell has a lot of flaws in his swing and Kangs best days I fear are behind him.  They are lacking that dynamic middle of the order presence and I don’t see it anywhere in the system.

[12HankQB]

I’m a die hard Pirates fan and have been for years.  I agree that I think they are one middle of the order thumper away from being very good.  What I disagree with is you saying that they have that player on the current roster.  None of the players you mentioned have shown that they are that player.  Dickerson sacrifices power to make contact.  He’s probably best served as a #2 or #3 hitter.  Post-juicing Melky and Marte both lack power.  Marte could be a #2 or #3, Melky is bottom of the order.  They want Bell or Kang to be that guy, and I hope one of them steps up and is, but I’m skeptical.  Bell has a lot of flaws in his swing and Kangs best days I fear are behind him.  They are lacking that dynamic middle of the order presence and I don’t see it anywhere in the system.

Frazier, Dickerson, and Marte should be on base a lot. They're for average hitters which we need on the upper end. But Kang can certainly produce 20 hrs, Bell the same, and Polanco. They have the ability. They need Polanco to be the 20-30 homer guy batting around 290, which we have seen. When he's hot, he's phenomenal. Like I said, the pieces are there, but they never come together constantly or on time.

[PAMDGrappler]

Actually, Polanco has never hit over .258 and that has been pretty consistent for his career. Last year was his highest HR total, but how effective will he be coming off surgery? Again, I disagree that the pieces are here. I think they’re close and that one legit power hitter could be the difference. Picture the lineup with a Paul Goldschmidt in there. Why will they never make a run at a key piece like that?A guy like that is nowhere to be found in the organization...and with the starting rotation they have, they’re going to have a chance to win most nights. I just don’t know if they can score enough runs!

[12HankQB]

Actually, he has, just never for more than half a season. 2018, .280 Post All-Star: 2016, .287 Pre All-Star: .276 Post All-Star. Goldschmidt is the next closest thing to Mike Trout and will be in the HOF. Of course they could use a guy like him. The 98 win season in 2015 they have 9 guys hitting over .250, but nobody over Cervelli's .295. They didn't kill it by any means, but had everyone playing at or above average. If this pitching staff can be 2nd in the league in ERA like in 2015, then we just need the bats to be consistent. Everyone over .250, that they can do. Consistency....

[12HankQB]

This team has the pieces and can....but will they? They rarely do until they go elsewhere.

[PAMDGrappler]

We can agree to disagree on the pieces being there. They were missing the same piece in 2015, thus their early playoff exit. Having that power presence has a trickle down affect on the rest of the lineup. Even in the playoff years, players were consistently asked to have offensive roles outside of their natural skill set. They “forced” guys into middle of the lineup roles that would be better suited elsewhere (Walker, Marte, and to an extent even Cutch). In fact, Cutch said the exact same thing when he was traded to the Giants. They’re doing the same thing now with Dickerson, Bell, and Cervelli. I mentioned Goldschmidt bc he was obviously made available by the DBacks and, in my opinion, would have been worth going all in for considering the pitching staff and other supplementary pieces being there. Again, I just have a feeling this season will end up like every other “close but no cigar” season because they will not go after that 1 impact player!

[12HankQB]

We can agree to disagree on the pieces being there.  They were missing the same piece in 2015, thus their early playoff exit.  Having that power presence has a trickle down affect on the rest of the lineup.  Even in the playoff years, players were consistently asked to have offensive roles outside of their natural skill set.  They “forced” guys into middle of the lineup roles that would be better suited elsewhere (Walker, Marte, and to an extent even Cutch).  In fact, Cutch said the exact same thing when he was traded to the Giants.  They’re doing the same thing now with Dickerson, Bell, and Cervelli.  I mentioned Goldschmidt bc he was obviously made available by the DBacks and, in my opinion, would have been worth going all in for considering the pitching staff and other supplementary pieces being there.  Again, I just have a feeling this season will end up like every other “close but no cigar” season because they will not go after that 1 impact player!

They weren't missing anything in 2015. They were built to win a series that year not a one game playoff ace against ace. That was a well rounded team. They had the bad luck of the Cards having 100 wins. That team should've been in the World Series. I won't be surprised if they make the playoffs, but I would also not be surprised if they fell just short. It's only been 5 games...

[PAMDGrappler]

Small sample size for sure, but Josh Bell absolutely crushed the ball this series. That HR today was a bomb! I hope he can be a consistent source of power....I don’t mind eating crow, lol. With that consistent middle of the order presence, this team has the ability to win some games.

[crfball]

They'll win 90