Shelton expecting 'fun sprint' ahead for Pirates

After months of uncertainty, we finally know the details for spring training 2.0 and the start of Major League Baseball's 2020 season.

Where? PNC Park.

When? Starting July 1.

Who? Well, that might not be as clear cut.

As part of the health and safety protocols the league and union agreed to Tuesday, players who are considered high-risk individuals for COVID-19, or live with someone who is high risk, are allowed to opt-out of the season. Each team would be allowed to decide if that player would receive service time or pay.

Two of the most notable Pirates to whom this could apply are Bryan Reynolds and Nick Burdi. Both players' and their wives have announced they are pregnant since the shutdown began in march, meaning their spouses are considered high-risk.

Reynolds finished fourth in the National League rookie of the year voting in 2019, and Burdi figured to be a key part to the Pirates' bullpen. Playing without them would be quite the blow for the Pirates, who already lost Chris Archer earlier this month after he had surgery to relieve symptoms of neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome.

Though those players have the option to opt-out, Derek Shelton believes they, and all of the other members of the Pirates, will report on July 1.

"I’m planning on everybody being in camp, and definitely respect the wishes of anybody that is high risk or has a spouse that’s high risk and definitely support people in the decisions that they make because it’s life decisions," Shelton said during a Zoom call. "We have had no indication from anybody [that they wouldn't attend] as of now. We think everybody is going to be attending.”

In a separate Zoom call, Jameson Taillon echoed his manager's beliefs.

"Everything I’ve heard so far is that everyone is going to report," Taillon said. "Guys are really fired up and excited to get back together. Obviously, there are a few guys who have some questions about wives who are pregnant or family members that might have some risks, but as far as I’m concerned, everyone is already looking at living arrangements and travel arrangements to get back to Pittsburgh."

The first spring training was cut short on Mar. 12 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pirates players had been separated from each other and competitive baseball for over three months, and Shelton believes the allure of the game coming back is going to excite his group.

"It’s what these guys do for a living, and they’ve been sitting on the sidelines for a while waiting for the day for everyone to say, ‘Okay, here we go,'" Shelton said. "So number one, I think they’re probably overly excited and ready, but I think they’re also overly cautious and optimistic, because if you pay any attention to what’s going on in the world and how we’re living, we have to take certain precautions, and that’s why the guidelines and protocols are so important.

"So I think there’s a little bit of both, but guys are ready to be back on the field, and I know our group is ready to be back on the field, so I think the excitement is the most important thing."

More from the call with Shelton:

• Earlier this week, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said he and the Steelers would support their players if they used their platform to make a statement or action to protest racial inequality. Shelton thought Tomlin's statements were "about as well as you can say it in terms of being thoughtful and classy."

"The one place I would go even further with that is making sure we’re purposeful with what our thoughts are, we’re educated, and there have been numerous conversations among our staff, among our players, among our baseball ops group," Shelton said. "I think as we move forward in the world, we have to make sure that our awareness continues to arise and we have to continue to educate ourselves."

And like Tomlin, Shelton and the Pirates will "100 percent support our players and the decisions they make" if they choose to make a symbolic gesture or protest.

"We expect them to be thoughtful, we expect for them to be classy, and we expect for our players to have purpose and education with them," Shelton said. "But they will definitely have my support and our support moving forward in terms of the decisions they make."

• Even though the league and players association were unable to reach a revised agreement for the 2020 season, the designated hitter is still coming to the National League this year as part of the safety protocols. The Pirates have several internal candidates for that DH spot -- like Josh Bell, Gregory Polanco and Colin Moran -- but Shelton said it would instead be a rotating position.

"Instead of maybe rest someone that we were going to play in our regular lineup that day, they’ll have the ability to get four or five ABs, and I think that’s extremely important for us," Shelton said. "We won’t go with one person there."

In an interview with 93.7 The Fan Wednesday, Shelton mentioned Bell, Polanco and Moran as part of that rotation, as well as possibly JT Riddle, Jose Osuna and Philip Evans.

A DH also lightens the workload for starting pitchers in a year where they will be asked to become Major-League ready in just three weeks.

"It doesn’t put our pitchers in a position, coming back in a quick spring training situation, where they have to worry about being multi-faceted," Shelton said. "They can worry about doing what they’re paid to do, and that’s pitch, and hopefully by having this, we’re eliminating injuries of a pitcher maybe being on the bases or something happening on a swing, because of the fact that we’ve had a shortened spring training."

• Speaking of the rotation, Shelton said he has a "good idea of who at least four" of the members of his rotation will be. He wants to make sure everyone gets into camp and make sure they're healthy first, but he is at least considering being creative for the fifth spot.

"We could be aggressive with that fifth spot," Shelton said. "We could be traditional with that fifth spot. We could have an opener. We could do piggyback (starters). I think that’s something we’re still kind of talking through in terms of how we’re going to do it."

To speculate on who the four starters are, Joe Musgrove and Trevor Williams are locks, and top prospect Mitch Keller seems like a very safe bet, too. As for the fourth, Derek Holland impressed coaches during spring training, and Steven Brault is healthy after suffering a left shoulder injury in March.

• As spring training 2.0 draws near, there have been several cases of positive COVID-19 tests among Major-League players and coaches, including in the Phillies, Blue Jays and Rockies camps.

Players who contract the virus will be separated from the team and replaced with a player from the taxi squad. It's not as easy to do that with a coach who might potentially need to be removed, though Shelton and his staff have discussed protocols.

"We've talked about how people would facilitate other roles and we have to be fluid with that," Shelton said. "That would just be like during the season, if someone would have to go away for a graduation or some other situation where they're away from the family, how we would fluidly change positions on our staff. [I think] just making sure that we follow the guidelines and the protocols and we socially distance ourselves and making sure that how it's laid out we abide by."

• 2020 is going to be unlike any baseball season in history, if for no other reason than it is just 60 games long. Even without the expanded playoffs, that means everyone has a chance.

"I think it's going to be a fun sprint," Shelton said. "I think everybody is going to enjoy it and I think you're going to see a lot of good, competitive baseball."