Pirates should ride wave of good news by locking in more players

All the pieces goes proper for the Pittsburgh Pirates now. At 16-7 getting into play on Tuesday they’re off to their finest begin since 1992, and so they lastly agreed to a brand new contract extension with All-Star outfielder Bryan Reynolds signing him to an eight-year, $106M deal. 

Heck, even Potato Pete is again within the combine. 

They need to maintain all of that momentum going and prolong a further olive department to their long-suffering followers by locking in a few extra key gamers for his or her future. 

Particularly shortstop Oneil Cruz and beginning pitcher Mitch Keller. 

Pirates fandom has been outlined by two issues over time. Dropping video games, and watching as possession has not all the time put ahead a severe funding within the product on the sphere. They haven’t made many important additions from exterior, and so they haven’t all the time stored their finest gamers.

Signing Reynolds to a brand new contract is important as a result of it isn’t solely the most important contract handed out in franchise historical past, nevertheless it additionally appeared like one thing that was by no means going to occur. 

The 2 sides appeared extraordinarily far aside on numbers, whereas Reynolds turned so pissed off that he even requested a commerce throughout the offseason. The Pirates held their floor, and never solely received their finest participant signed to a brand new deal, it is usually an especially team-friendly deal that features commerce restrictions and no opt-out clause. 

However they can not cease there. Nearly as good as Reynolds is, and for as promising because the early season seems to be, the Pirates have to maintain displaying their dedication will likely be completely different with this core. That’s the reason Cruz and Keller ought to be subsequent on the extension record. 

Cruz is difficult in the meanwhile as a result of he’s at the moment sidelined with a fractured ankle and has not even performed a full season’s value of video games within the Main Leagues. However his potential is sky-high and will make him not solely the face of the franchise for the following decade, but in addition among the best gamers in baseball. 

There’s a rising development across the league for groups to signal younger stars to long-term offers early of their careers to make sure they keep by way of the primary a part of their free company eligible years, and that is likely to be the Pirates’ finest probability to maintain a participant like Cruz long-term. 

There may be some threat with it. However the potential reward is huge. 

Keller has additionally emerged as their finest beginning pitcher, and if they’ll get him signed to a deal just like the one Cincinnati simply signed with Hunter Greene it might lock in a key a part of their rotation.

The Pirates lastly have some younger expertise rising on the identical time, have already made one important signing, and have Andrew McCutchen again to assist carry optimistic vibes and a robust bat. They should present they’re severe about this core and make extra strikes to maintain them in place.