MLB trade deadline: Can Pirates realistically target Tommy Pham, Jacob Stallings to boost offense?

On his daily First 10 podcast, Post-Gazette sports columnist Jason Mackey breaks down the Pirates’ options at the MLB trade deadline. Are names like the Miami Marlins’ Josh Bell, the Chicago White Sox’s Luis Robert and the Oakland Athletics J.J. Bleday too ambitious as potential targets to boost the offense? Do names like the White Sox’s Tommy Pham and the Colorado Rockies’ Jacob Stallings make more sense? And is outfield a bigger need than first base with Connor Joe and Rowdy Tellez now playing decently?

Jason tackles those questions, and previews the weekend series with the Tampa Bay Rays. He also gives his thoughts on the latest trade rumors tying the San Francisco 49ers’ Brandon Aiyuk to the Steelers.

For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.

hey everybody Welcome to Jason Mackey’s first 10 a quick kit podcast to get you through well your lunch break today I would say a little bit later had to finish up a Negro League story I’ve been working on relative to Willie Mays actually in his legacy in Pittsburgh don’t know when that’s going to publish online so I will abstain from spilling too many of the beans but it was a fun one to work on nonetheless I think you’ll be surprised to learn some of the hooks that Willie Mays has had into the Negro Leagues Community here in Pittsburgh obviously his Legacy is uh vast and resonates with so many black baseball uh players coaches uh people around the game talk to Tark Brock Kevin young two just delightful people around the Pirates always enjoy that and enjoy getting to write that so I finish that this morning and that will be online shortly have plenty of sports topics to get into today or or current Sports topics I should say Pirates are off uh my buddy Noah hes did an excellent story on free agent acquisitions I want to weed through that and offer my takes um starky has a column on Brandon auk the San Francisco 49ers wide receiver who may or may not make sense for the Steelers I want to give some opinion on uh what I think there and um as well as some other Pirates things some Trends I want to get into as we near the weekend in a series with the Tampa Bay Rays first want to remind you though that we’re sponsored by the NorthShore Tavern you don’t have to be a baseball fan to love it there the interior W toall Pirates their appetizers Entre cocktails and of course they can seea food on a sizzling lava stone open every day the NorthShore Tavern across from PNC Park is Pittsburgh’s home for steak on a stone and right next door of course you will see Mike’s beerbar uh this was a gift from Mike himself went over there yesterday after the game and saw Mike sukit um and he handed me this hat I I asked for the Hat actually I said I wanted to get one of these hats and he said here take this one I haven’t worn it yet so thank you Mike I appreciate it and I I I love me some hats I don’t wear them enough I enjoy it so anyway uh let’s get into the free agency talk because that’s going to be coming or not free agency I I think I said free agency earlier more trade deadline talk really and it’s it’s people that pirates fans may want them to acquire who makes sense who does not um I get asked this a lot a popular position that I think it needs to be maybe tamped down in in the worry Department like I think we should go into this with realistic realistic expectations of what the Pirates can do right like they’re they’re not going to go get the three biggest pieces on the trade market nobody expects that you’re going to have to pick where do they most need to upgrade I would argue Outfield is a bigger need than first base at this point um Rowdy tles coming around has certainly been helpful if that platoon does stick with him and Connor Joe or even just let Rowdy go and play Joe in the Outfield I’m not really sure Connor’s been kind of quiet lately so that that’s a piece of information you want to get but anyway I would go into this with Outfield as a greater priority and I would like to see them get a bullpen arm I think that you you’ve got bedar holder man and Chapman they’ve been very good on the back end but if you have guys down in the way bullpens are nowadays that’s going to happen uh they just thin out a little too quickly on the back end now I like the idea of getting Ryan baroi back um I don’t want to move Luis Ortiz from his current role at all I think it’s an interesting delineation what what he is what his title is um the Pirates are very much into him not having a title but you know call him the bulk guy call him the fif the fifth starter I’m not sure I know that he needs to keep pitching about fifth day and if you have somebody else start the game and and hunt the more advantageous matchup that’s great anyway but if you look at the trade deadline stuff and that Noah put together I again I would I would highly recommend this um he went through team by team and looked at Targets that makes sense um you know realistic targets ambitious targets analysis Etc uh one name and it’s the art attached to this story is Josh Bell um I like Josh Bell a lot personally I don’t know if I see the fit there uh don’t know what the cost would be but again if if that’s going to be a not non insignificant move for the Pirates I’d rather see them do something else and I don’t want them to get Belle’s teammate Jazz Chisum Jr who was also listed on there now Luis Robert from the white socks like sure um if I knew what the cost was that that’s more concerning to me um at this point with what the white socks can ask for and you hear that they’re asking for for it’s more than I’d be willing to pay I mean that’s like you know in my mind we’re talking about a tomarrow Johnson Bubba Chandler like the big dogs and and I don’t want to see that like I don’t think it’s that much um you that urgent that you’d want to do something like that but if you work down the list a little bit Tommy fam is another one in the white socks situation that I think could probably be had for less and that would make sense to me another guy I would circle on Noah’s list Jacob stallins um I don’t love their catching situ a and I’m curious to see what they do with it yasman grandall okay um one he’s had injury stuff in the past two he’s added nothing with the bat uh three has he made pitchers better has he been that sort of defensive uh comfort blanket or something like that I would argue that he hasn’t been I mean there was all this talk about Austin Hedges last year being a good defensive catcher and how much the Pirates value a good defensive catcher miss that and the other he hasn’t been that grand all meaning Joey Bart is hurt and not necessarily close to a return I don’t have anything against Jason delay and playing him more Henry Davis still on the concussion injured list um it’s kind of TBD at this point right like what what do you know that you’re going to get out of Henry Davis I am all in the camp of giving him more playing time but I don’t know what I’m going to get and I think somebody like Stallings could be had for cheap and I think that probably warrants a second look at least in my opinion um some of the other Rel levers though I think could make sense Tanner Scott from the Miami Marlins makes sense to me uh maybe a TJ McFarland couple of rays guys that if you’re able to get get them loose Jason Adam Pete Fairbanks um those are the types that if I’m looking at what the Pirates need to do like I want a depth outfielder and a depth reliever that’s where they should be looking to improve the team now like JJ blade from the Oakland Athletics that was one of Noah’s ambitious targets I would love it uh I think it’s fantastic 10 runs a20 Ops sign me up all day long but he’s under team control for a long long time he’s a good young player he’s only 26 like that that ask is going to be high it’s especially going to be high right now I would think as the Oakland A’s shouldn’t be motivated to do anything as we sit here on June 20th they can let teams bid against themselves and try to extract as much as possible so I don’t need them to go there but I need to feel a little bit better about the offense that they’re getting from the Outfield right now all right let’s transition over to football a little bit um Brandon IU and Joe posited that this would be the perfect move to U cap their offseason and I mean I don’t I don’t disagree I think it would be a fascinating move I think the Steelers certainly have a pretty big hole on the other side of George Pickins they need something to happen there with the departure of Deontay Johnson I mean we can all agree that that is reality right but at the same time I keep thinking about what Arthur Smith has done in previous stops how those teams have been built because I think we are seeing a little bit of a blueprint in terms of the type of people they have the type of thing they’re trying to do up front you’re trying to build from the the the middle out right like they’ve improved the offensive line okay you’re going to have an effective running game now it’s going to be a little bit different than it was done maybe in Atlanta certainly in Tennessee I mean there’s no Derrick Henry back there and that’s fine and you generally have one Elite wide receiving Target you’re trying to fill in the rest with tight ends or like you know third wide receiver guys who kind of bumped up the depth chart a little bit and I’d argue that’s probably what the Steelers have and again I’m not trying to convince you or anybody else that that’s the right move like if there is a move to improve that position I would absolutely do it but I wonder about what it would cost to get iuk number one and then what’s the next move because like he wants a contract extension he wants a top-of-the-market contract extension likely exceeding $30 million a year and I mean as much as you don’t want this to be a factor I I think a lot of George pickings but like can you then pay him are you going to have two guys on that pay scale for wide receivers and where does the ball go and does that fit with what they’ve previously done or not what they’ve previously done but what Arthur Smith has previously done in his offense it doesn’t it doesn’t like I I don’t want Russell Wilson throwing the ball downfield that much I want select shots to be to Pickins I want some wide receiver on the other side of the field to take some attention away from him but I want it to be more high percentage more ball control sustained drives involve Nai Harris and Jaylen Warren I think Pat friou should have a very big year but you’re telling me I need to allocate $30 million to Brandon auk or 30 plus million I I don’t love that um and especially for a cost and what that would mean for Pickins moving forward I just I think there’s a Target out there but I think auk is not him uh again it would make for great theater it would make for great copy and all this stuff for those of us covering the team I just know if it’s the best football move all right this weekend against the Rays couple things that I have circled I’m looking for Nick Gonzalez not quite sure what’s going on there I believe he’s ofers past 12 with four strikeouts in there pay attention to this if you’re at the Ballpark you’re watching these games um in the past maybe that has led to Nick’s downfall I think he’s gotten a little bit out of the Zone not making as much contact that’s been a problem in the past with Nick but this version of him has been much more contact oriented I’m curious to see if he’s able to bounce out of that and yet another series again for Jack swinsky I feel like you know need to find some sort of traction here this is probably nearing you know we we either got to stop playing you we got to send you down I I know people watching this are probably telling me that that happened long ago but uh the Pirates are just a little bit more pragmatic in this stuff whether whether you agree or disagree but I mean got to see something you need production out of the Outfield and and I think attention is going to start to turn out other areas in if and when Henry Davis comes back that’s another thing I’m looking for in injuries um Martin Perez very good chance that he pitches this weekend he is further ahead of the other two guys I found it interesting that this is probably nothing but Perez was not the one dumping the uh the Water the Gatorade on Brian Reynolds after yesterday’s game that went to yasmani grandal I don’t know what Martine Perez is doing um it also doesn’t matter we knew that he threw live BP um was not out for that long would not surprise me at all if he pitches this week and um big for the Pirates by the way to have that sort of depth and you figure out what to do with Luis Ortiz you know you’ve got Dalton Jeff Dennis Santana’s possible casualties um which is fine you’re making your team deeper at that point so anyway I see that I’m a few minutes over apologize as always we should call this the first 11 at this point I always seem to go to 11 minutes anyway be back here tomorrow with a Q&A segment per usual for Friday make sure you like And subscribe in the meantime and I’ll talk to you back here then thank you for watching everybody thank you for checking out this content from Post Gazette sports if you watch this video on YouTube please like the video and subscribe to our channel for all of the sports coverage the Post Gazette has to offer visit postgazette.com [Music]