To hear him tell it, from the bump off the bat, as the ball bounced up the middle toward center field, Rodolfo Castro never had a doubt.
"I knew I'd get the ball," he'd share with me later. "But ... no dive."
No dive, indeed. Which was key, since it presented the opportunity to pull off this aerial maneuver for a superlative, twist-and-shout out:
Beautiful, right?
Awesome, so there's no need to elaborate on anything else from the Pirates' "extremely frustrating," to borrow Derek Shelton's description, 8-3 loss to the Diamondbacks that'd represent the sole stain on this sunsplashed, 72-degree Sunday afternoon at PNC Park?
Nothing about their three errors and five wild pitches?
Nothing about the wiseacre in the team's in-game entertainment operation who cleverly sent the Men At Work classic 'It's A Mistake' cascading through the stadium speakers to accompany the 27th out?
Nah. Me neither. What's dud is dud.
Want to know what I've got on my mind?
Take a detour with me. A couple months into the future. Let's have a little fantasy-level fun.
Fly with me to Milwaukee, no less, forever my favorite stop on the Major League Baseball tour. Where, on the third of August, the marquee outside American Family Field shows that it'll be Pirates vs. Brewers that night. Where the program shows that it'll be matchup of National League aces: Mitch Keller vs. Corbin Burnes. And where the standings in that day's Journal-Sentinel show that these are still the Central's top two teams.
What's more, the July 31 trade deadline's just come and gone and, for the first time in far too long, the Pirates didn't distribute all their veteran assets to other teams. Nope. They kept everyone, including, of course, Andrew McCutchen. To boot, they actually added an experienced arm for the bullpen.
Better yet, Oneil Cruz's rehab's come to a conclusion, putting the perfect punctuation on a stirring sequence of rapid-fire promotions of elite prospects from the minors: First came Endy Rodriguez. Then Quinn Priester. Then, finally, after slugging 75 home runs in 150 Class AA at-bats and having the Eastern League renamed in his honor, Henry Davis arrived, as well.
Shelton and Don Kelly fill out the following lineup card:
1. Oneil Cruz, SS
2. Bryan Reynolds, LF
3. Andrew McCutchen, DH
4. Carlos Santana, 1B
5. Henry Davis, RF
6. Endy Rodriguez, C
7. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
8. Jack Suwinski, CF
9. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
Mm-hm. Time to for-real play ball.
There's production, there's power, there's speed, and all of that stretches from 1 to 9. There's even depth beyond that. Tucupita Marcano's there to spell Cruz and/or Castro, whether for health or performance reasons. Connor Joe and Ji Hwan Bae can do likewise should Suwinski stumble. Ji-Man Choi, who'll also be back by then, can do that for Santana. The three catchers can all bounce around, including Austin Hedges and including the continued involvement of Davis behind the plate.
What am I missing here? Anyone? Anything besides the obvious, omnipresent specter of new injuries?
The rotation's staying about the same, with Keller leading some mix of Vince Velasquez, Rich Hill, Roansy Contreras, Johan Oviedo, Luis Ortiz and, yeah, Priester, who's begun dominating Class AAA the way a pitcher of his pedigree should. That's seven starters, leaving lots of flexibility.
The bullpen's always going to be volatile, but David Bednar's bound to be fresh after having the first half of May to himself, Colin Holderman's stuff is too dynamic for him to stay down long, and Robert Stephenson will have long since been rocketed into the hot sun. The experienced reliever acquired at the deadline will be welcome.
All right. Wonderful. Because now here's the authentic reason I splattered all this down here: When this blissful day arrives, whether in the above form or any other, I'll no longer have to see, hear or read any more of Ben Cherington's remarks prioritizing anything other than the game that's being played right in front of him.
Meaning remarks like this on his weekly radio show here Sunday, regarding Rodriguez and Davis: "We believe both of those guys have the potential to be primary catchers on a good major-league team. For now, while they’re in the minor leagues, we believe it’s best for both of them and for the Pirates. And to some degree, we have an obligation to give them every chance to be that. Because if they can, then that impacts probably both of them and the team to the highest degree."
On whether one or both might play multiple positions in Pittsburgh, Cherington added: "We see catchers who sometimes play another position. If the offense is good enough to give the manager more flexibility and ways to keep a guy in the lineup, we see examples of that. That's something both Henry and Endy are likely capable of doing because we believe the offense has a chance to be good enough to warrant that kind of thing. Part of what we’re talking about in winning long-term is to do things that are different. If there’s an opportunity to have two guys on the team who are both capable of being primary catchers -- and might be able to do other things, also -- the options that gives a manager, it’s just unique. It helps you build a unique roster. We want to give ourselves a chance to do that, too."
OK. But my calendar still hasn't flipped from 2023.
Look, whatever one thinks of Cherington's stance on this -- I'm made my own position on it clear -- the following three concepts pop up for me:
1. He's the same guy who assembled the group I just listed up there as being worthy of everyone's excitement. So, context is everything. He's fared well at his main mission.
2. He's not going to be swayed on these two prospects. Whether it's because of Super-2 arbitration savings or legitimate developmental causes, he'll die on this proverbial hill without condition, without apology. If he could watch his major-league team drag through a dozen games of 18 runs, if he could look past preserving a 20-8 start, then he'll certainly tough out the rest.
3. Time's ticking on that stance, though.
That's why I laid out the two-month timeline up there. It's inconceivable to me that any of Rodriguez, Davis or Priester wouldn't be ready by that stage of the summer. And it's equally inconceivable to me that these Pirates, particularly in this mediocre-to-date Central, won't remain within reasonable striking distance of the Brewers or Cardinals or whoever's in first:
MLB.COM
It'd be indefensible to not act.
It'd never be more apparent to everyone, inside and outside 115 Federal, that this will finally be that future that the Pirates have been openly prioritizing all along. It'll be right freaking now. Not in 2024 or 2025 or whatever years will reap the rewards of all the Super-2 cheapness, but right there in Milwaukee with Burnes' first pitch to Cruz.
None of this is inevitable, mind you. Anyone would go broke betting on the Pirates, and I wouldn't do that even if I were the gambling type. Lots can unravel. And heck, maybe that's already begun.
Or, maybe it's bound to get even better.
That's why I singled out that Castro play. Because he's one of those players I'm positive Cherington was referencing in another remark made on this day -- "We still believe there are players on the team that are capable of more" -- even though he's got an .804 OPS, fourth-best on the roster, and can turn the occasional defensive gem like the one illustrated.
And yet, he still can't seem to make himself a fixture, partly because of lousy splits that really ought to have him hitting only right-handed -- he bats .326 vs. lefties, .206 vs. righties -- but also frequent lapses in the field and on the basepaths.
I asked Shelton about that play.
"Great play," he replied. "Going to his backhand side, good body control and a strong throw. We know Rudy's got a good arm, but that was that was a really good play."
Sure was. Especially the torso twist to permit the strong arm to do its thing, both of which are well worth a second look from a sharper angle:
I mentioned to Castro that it reminded me of another play he'd made in 2022, this one going in the other direction to begin a superb 4-6-3 double play with Cruz.
He nodded.
"Same. No dive."
That was in Milwaukee, I should add. In August.
JOE ROBBINS / GETTY
Connor Joe can't catch up with a double by the Diamondbacks' Jose Herrera in the third inning Sunday at PNC Park.
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Live file
• Standings
• Statistics
• Schedule
• Scoreboard
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• 15-day injured list: RHP Vince Velasquez (elbow)
• 60-day injured list: 1B Ji-Man Choi (Achilles), RHP Wil Crowe (shoulder), RHP JT Brubaker (elbow), SS Oneil Cruz (ankle), LHP Jarlin Garcia (elbow), RHP Max Kranick (elbow)
THE LINEUPS
Shelton's card:
1. Andrew McCutchen, DH
2. Bryan Reynolds, LF
3. Jack Suwinski, CF
4. Carlos Santana, 1B
5. Ke'Bryan Hayes, 3B
6. Connor Joe, RF
7. Rodolfo Castro, 2B
8. Tucupita Marcano, SS
9. Jason Delay, C
And for Torey Lovullo's Diamondbacks:
1. Pavin Smith, DH
2. Ketel Marte, 2B
3. Corbin Carroll, RF
4. Christian Walker, 1B
5. Lourdes Gurriel Jr., LF
6. Josh Rojas, 3B
7. Dominic Fletcher, CF
8. Geraldo Perdomo, SS
9. Jose Herrera, C
THE SCHEDULE
The Rangers are in town. No, not those Rangers. The ones from Arlington, Texas. Luis Ortiz's turn. First pitch is 6:35 p.m. Chris and Alex Stumpf will cover.
THE MULTIMEDIA
THE CONTENT
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