BRADENTON, Fla. -- Bryan Reynolds isn't getting traded.
And yeah, that's a repeat. But it'll probably be the first of plenty, one for every report to the contrary, like the tweet from USA Today's Bob Nightengale late Thursday morning regarding the Pirates and Padres having talks regarding Reynolds, that's bound to keep popping up.
Here's everything I was able to learn on this Thursday at LECOM Park, where the Pirates -- with Reynolds starting in center and slugging a home run -- tied the Orioles, 4-4, in a Grapefruit League exhibition.
• He isn't getting traded. Not guessing at this. There isn't a higher team source one can have in baseball ops than the one I had in initially reporting this two weeks ago, and there isn't a higher team source than the one I found on this day ... at any level of the organization. Not one of them expects Reynolds to be traded. Not one of them is looking for it to happen.
• What Ben Cherington's doing is listening. And his objective in listening is the possibility that another team offers something ... well, stupid. Which seldom happens anywhere in Major League Baseball since Neal Huntington's firing. And it's rarer still when it comes to the Marlins and Padres, the only two teams known to be eyeing Reynolds. Both are run by smart people.
• The Pirates' actual goal with Reynolds, as confirmed by the team source here Thursday, is to get him signed to a long-term extension and have him be the anchor of this team through the four years for which the team already holds his rights and beyond.
• If they can't get him signed to a long-term extension -- and bear in mind, that always takes two -- then everything changes. But there's nothing even to analyze on that front. There hasn't yet been an approach from the Pirates to Reynolds, and that's been confirmed by both sides, including again on this day.
• There hasn't been an approach because both sides are still headed toward binding salary arbitration, which is a file-and-trial process. Meaning no settlement can be achieved in the interim. The arbitration gap between the Pirates and Reynolds is, of course, just about the dumbest thing ever. And for what it's worth, one of the aforementioned team sources confirmed for me Thursday that he shares a similar sentiment on how this has played out. Lots of regrets.
• The Reynolds camp is hopeful that a two-day window can be opened to discuss the arbitration anew and settle it. That's a concept that's been bandied about at the MLB level in recent days, and it'd apply to all players. We'll see.
• The team's been in communication with Reynolds about all three issues -- trade, the wish to keep him, arbitration -- and those lines remain open, though I'll emphasize anew that this doesn't mean talking about a long-term extension. Reynolds confirmed that communication to me, adding with a wry smile, "But all that stuff's above my pay grade."
• Reynolds isn't exactly delighted by any of this, but he's made clear to everyone -- myself included -- that he'd welcome the opportunity to stay in Pittsburgh. Also, he's hardly the type to get all rattled by anything. If this young man's house were on fire, he'd be reaching for his remote to change the channel.
• Behold the high heat he belted onto the boardwalk in the third inning:
"That one felt good," he'd tell me, referring to the ball off the bat.
It should. That pitch was preceded by a curve, so his eye level had to change dramatically. That's impressive.
• Bob Nutting, in attendance, smiled and applauded Reynolds as he circled the bases. Just sharing.
• Only because everything in baseball has to come in threes: He isn't getting traded.
JOSH LAVALLEE / DKPS
Zach Thompson pitches in the first inning Thursday in Bradenton, Fla.
• Zach Thompson, one of three players acquired in the Jacob Stallings trade, started and pitched four scoreless innings -- three hits, four strikeouts, a walk, 60 pitches, 38 strikes -- and, in the process, might've solidified his status as a starter entering the season.
Not that it'd take much this spring, with how miserably most everyone else has fared.
"I thought he threw pretty well," Derek Shelton replied when I asked about Thompson. "He continues to have good outings. I think today was the best. He used his whole repertoire, kept the ball at the bottom, the velocity stayed ... overall a really good outing."
In three spring appearances, Thompson's allowed three earned runs and seven hits over nine innings, though it should be noted that two of the three were against bottom-feeding Baltimore.
• Another day, another Diego Castillo home run:
Castillo called that pitch from the Orioles' Keegan Akin "a fast-change," and he was grinning broadly in recalling his fourth home run in five days: The first was off the Yankees' Gerrit Cole, and two others came Wednesday against the Twins in Fort Myers.
• Will Castillo make the team?
Shelton wasn't about to share even if he knew, but there are plenty of variables in Castillo's favor, even beyond all this power. Chief among them, and one that was mentioned by Shelton after this game, was that MLB formally expanded April rosters from 26 to 28 to account for the abbreviated spring training in protecting pitchers. Another is that Castillo can play shortstop, which makes him a true utility player in that he can bounce about the infield.
"If we keep him, it doesn't have to be as a full-time starter," Shelton said. "I think, with our roster, we're already going to have versatility. So he can definitely make our club."
• Notice how the TV cameras are trembling on these videos?
That's not an accident. The wind was even more brutal than usual here, wreaking havoc with fly balls, even routine popups. One of the Orioles' runs came on a popup that plopped a dozen feet in front of home plate ... with no one on the Pirates remotely at fault. I watched from the press box as the wind must've moved that ball 30 horizontal feet on the way down.
I went out on the balcony to prove this:
One of about a billion reasons I'm constantly advising anyone to ignore spring stats.
• Late innings in spring games are usually a bore, except when an organization's more gifted players are in the minors.
The Pirates were down by two in the eighth inning when Nick Gonzales, their No. 1 prospect at any position, lined a first-pitch slider the other way to the fence in right-center for an RBI double. Jared Triolo's sac fly followed to account for the final score.
Most of Gonzales' work in his first big-league camp has been on back fields, but he's appeared in five games now and is 3 for 7 with a walk and a steal.
Altoona's going to love him in 2022.
• Barely worth mentioning but, a few hours after the final out, the Pirates acquired infielder Josh VanMeter from the Diamondbacks in a trade for minor-league pitcher Listher Sosa. VanMeter, 27, slashed .212/.297/.354 in 274 at-bats in Phoenix last summer.
The lone positive: VanMeter's addition to the 40-man roster has Jared Oliva, a wholly unproductive outfielder in the system, designated for assignment.
• A good minute with Greg Allen, who just might be the starting right fielder April 7 in St. Louis:
He went 0 for 2 in this one, but he's 4 for 14 with two home runs for the spring.
• Neither of the Pirates' co-closers has conceded a run yet. Chris Stratton and David Bednar put up a zero each in this one, and they've now combined for nine scoreless innings, six hits, four walks and 10 strikeouts. And Bednar finished off his final batter in the eighth, Ryan McKenna, with a 95.9-mph four-seamer right through a hopeless swing.
Funny, but no matter how terrible things ever get for this franchise, they're always fine at the back of the bullpen. Been going on for decades.
• The Pirates' 29 home runs lead all teams in spring ball. The Dodgers are next at 27.
Yeah, I know.
• Thanks for reading my baseball stuff, as always!
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Schedule
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• Ke’Bryan Hayes, third baseman, sustained a minor right ankle sprain during practice over the weekend. He didn't play in this game, but Shelton said afterward that he'd run "straight lines at 50%" earlier, representing progress. Next step will be baserunning. Still no indication he'll miss the opener.
THE ROSTER
No moves today. Still 40 players in camp: 22 pitchers, four catchers, eight infielders, six outfielders
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Kevin Newman, SS
2. Brian Reynolds, CF
3. Ben Gamel, RF
4. Yoshi Tsutsugo, 1B
5. Greg Allen, LF
6. Michael Chavis, DH
7. Roberto Perez, C
8. Diego Castillo, 2B
9. Hunter Owen, 3B
And for Brandon Hyde's Orioles:
1. Cedric Mullins, CF
2. Ramon Urias, 2B
3. Anthony Santander, RF
4. Austin Hayes, DH
5. Tyler Nevin, 1B
6. Robinson Chirinos, C
7. Chris Owings, SS
8. Kelvin Gutierrez, 3B
9. Ryan McKenna, LF
THE SCHEDULE
It'll be a two-anthem afternoon here Friday against the Blue Jays, 1:05 p.m., at LECOM Park. Jose Quintana vs. Yusei Kikuchi. I'll be here, as will Alex Stumpf, who's back to finish out the spring.
THE CONTENT
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