Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Money aside, MLB proposal could be favorable for Pirates

Now that the MLB proposal to play this summer has been presented to the MLB Players Association, it’s worth taking a look at how it affects the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Granted, it’s far from a done deal.

Where there will be a fight over financials and health protocols, many of the secondary items of the proposal sound reasonable.

1. Indecent proposal: The players already accepted a pay cut, so it’s hard to imagine they will budge on revenue sharing.

The union called the suggestion of a 50-50 revenue split a “non-starter,” likening it to a salary cap. Super agent Scott Boras urged the players to reject any renegotiation of the deal they made in March to accept a pro-rated portion of their salaries, despite the public perception they will appear greedy amid a global pandemic.

Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon, the team’s player representative, called it “a really tricky subject” last week in a guest appearance on 93.7 FM.

“Athletes don’t really ever win when we talk about salary,” Taillon said. “We understand this is a weird time for everyone. Everyone is going to have to agree to certain things. It’s not going to be a normal season. Our pay is already not normal. But when owners make extra profit and tons of money, staff and employees don’t make extra money, either.”

Taillon, however, left the door open for some optimism.

“If it made sense for the greater good of the game,” he said, “I think they’d look into it.”

2. Shortened season: By reducing the regular season to 82 games and expanding the playoff field, parity is in play.

Through the first 82 games last season, the Pirates were 39-43 despite a starting rotation that saw Taillon and Trevor Williams sidelined for a month.

But the Pirates also were in fourth place and five games back in the NL Central, and 16 games out of wild-card contention. Adding two more teams the playoff field in each league wouldn’t have helped them reach the postseason.

But that was last year.

3. Central focus: If there is a positive for the Pirates, it’s that the regional division plan isn’t as formidable as the spring-training sites setup or a loaded East division.

Under the MLB proposal, the Pirates would remain in the NL Central with their longtime rivals, the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals. To reduce travel, they would play games within the division and against the AL Central.

The Minnesota Twins (101-61) are the only 100-win team of the 10, followed by the Cleveland Indians (93-69), Cardinals (91-71), Brewers (89-73) and Cubs (84-78). None of the other teams had a winning record, and the Kansas City Royals (59-103) and Detroit Tigers (47-114) both lost more games than the Pirates (69-93).

Plus, new Pirates manager Derek Shelton was the Twins bench coach the past two seasons so he has more familiarity with the AL Central teams than any other skipper in the NL Central.

4. Universal plan: Aside from All-Star first baseman Josh Bell, who hit 37 home runs and had 116 RBIs last season, the Pirates don’t pack much power in their batting order.

The proposal to use a designated hitter in both leagues allows the Pirates to add a much-needed bat to their lineup. Shelton said last week he doesn’t plan to designate one player to be the steady DH, although Bell or right fielder Gregory Polanco appear to be likely candidates.

No matter what they do, using a DH should help the Pirates improve defensively. It could be the perfect way to move Colin Moran off third base but keep his bat in the lineup after he hit .277 with 13 homers and 80 RBIs last year, with 11 homers and 69 RBIs coming against right-handers.

5. Hey, taxi: The plan to expand rosters from 26 to 30 players and carry a 20-man taxi squad might be another issue.

While a taxi squad could allow the Pirates to keep top prospects such as shortstops Cole Tucker and Oneil Cruz and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes and pitchers JT Brubaker, Blake Cederlind, Geoff Hartlieb and Cody Ponce around the major-league team, it might be more beneficial for them to get regular playing time against other teams’ top prospects at a spring training site.

Then again, a shortened season might be the perfect time to give Hayes a shot at the starting job at third base, where he is receiving rave reviews for his Gold Glove-caliber defense, and see what he can do.