It's not that the Pirates don't have answers regarding Roansy Contreras.
It's that they don't even have the questions yet.
I'll always default to being a non-alarmist, and I'll apply that doubly in discussing this young man I've come to know and admire as much as I do anyone in the Pirates' clubhouse. But what's easily been the most unsettling facet of the ongoing Contreras saga this summer -- with a new chapter added just yesterday with management moving his minor-league assignment from Class AAA Indianapolis to the quieter setting of the Florida Complex League in Bradenton -- is that even now, two months after his struggles began, no one at any level of the organization seems to know what's amiss.
As in, no one at all.
The tangibles are obvious: His velocity's way down. He gets half as many swings and misses on his fastball as he did in 2022, and his slider's lost almost all of its bite. That's transformed him from a mega-prospect akin to Oneil Cruz into just another seemingly fungible reliever. He's either hiding from his stuff by pitching at the perimeters, or he's serving up batting practice.
The intangibles, though, are anyone's guess.
He's healthy. That's the one area of universal agreement, and he's told it to me, as well. Nothing's wrong physically. He swears by it.
And yet, no one, including Oscar Marin, the pitching coach with the rich resume of advanced biomechanics, seems capable of explaining why Contreras' delivery appears to have just plain old ... slowed down. Maybe at one portion. Maybe at another. Heck, maybe not at all, since it'll vary from pitch to pitch.
On the recent series in Seattle, which I covered, the team quietly took Contreras to what's commonly called a pitching lab to seek a fresh evaluation. Put him through all the tests. Studied it through all the machinery.
The conclusion: They had no clue, either.
I won't touch the mental component, as I'm grossly unqualified and, oh, by the way, it's none of our business. All I can attest is that, on those sparse occasions where Contreras has experienced a positive bump over these past few weeks, he's lit up like a firecracker. The big smile's beaming again. The bold stride's back. Seems like himself.
Here's hoping that happens in some sustained way. With an anchor that'll hold the way Mitch Keller's breakthrough sessions at a North Carolina pitching lab did. He was throwing 100 mph, and his sights suddenly were set sky-high. The progress wasn't linear from there, but it was the foothold he needed.
I've had individual talks about Contreras with both Derek Shelton and Ben Cherington. They care about him. They see the person beyond the pitcher. I've no doubt they'll do right by him, just as I've no doubt this latest detour's being done with the best of intentions. and it's probably the best idea, as well, in that all Contreras was going to try to achieve within competition, whether here or in Indianapolis, was to impress people from at-bat to at-bat. Maybe what's needed is a more patient approach.
But I'd be doing a lousy job of balanced reporting if I didn't emphasize that, as this is being typed, no one seems to know even where to start. Everyone I've asked, everyone Alex Stumpf's asked, they just shrug.
Good luck to a good kid.
MORE PIRATES
• Now that the draft's done and Paul Skenes was, in fact, the pick, I can share that the same scout who downplayed Dylan Crews' bat for me with the 'Ping!' text, had this to say of Skenes a few weeks ago: "This is a grown-a** man among boys. And he'll be that wherever he's pitching. Pittsburgh doesn't have this player. Pittsburgh needs this player. Can't pass him up."
• Then there was this gem from a former Pittsburgh player upon reading my pumping up Crews in a column this past spring: "Crews? You're serious? Have you seen Skenes? Do you have any idea how wrong you'll be?" ... Ha! I love this job!
• Cherington wasn't lying, by the way, when he told everyone early Sunday that the Pirates hadn't decided on Skenes. Here's why: He's the decider. Obviously. But what isn't obvious -- and he's shared this with me -- is that he deliberately removes himself from the process, as much as possible, until the end, then hears what his scouts and analytics people have to say, discusses it, debates it ... and he won't share even internally until the final few hours the way the Pirates will pick. Even at No. 1 overall.
• Notice that there were zero leaks on this front? That's how. If Cherington's the only one who knows something, he never has to worry about who's sitting at his draft table spilling stuff to people like me.
• The Pirates might humor Skenes about hitting in the pros, presuming he's serious about it, but they don't generally have much appetite for that.
• When Endy Rodriguez arrives, he'll be allowed to catch far more than Henry Davis will.
PENGUINS
• Multiple moves have been made behind the scenes to welcome Mario Lemieux fully back into the fold. I'm told that the chasm's never been all that challenging -- Mario and Ron Burkle had a disagreement with Fenway Sports Group over being compensated for their role in buying out minority investors -- but all concerned seemed to have moved beyond it.
• Tristan Jarry wasn't lying when he spoke yesterday that he doesn't have a chronic injury, nor when he spoke that he's confident he can operate at full health in the coming season. It won't be easy, but it's achievable. Taylor Haase has learned what the injury was and, though we're not at liberty to share that, it can be addressed with real work and real accountability. Which is what Jarry promised Kyle Dubas the Penguins will get from him back when Dubas flew out to Edmonton, Alberta, to meet with Jarry and family a month ago, before the five-year contract was signed.
• No, Jarry never had a "chronic hip issue," as had been reported erroneously back in February by an outlet where the minuses keep piling up. He didn't have a hip issue of any kind, actually. We made that clear here at the time. Jarry corrected it himself yesterday.
• Alex Nedeljković, who'll have his surname pronounced properly by at least one reporter in town given the Serbian heritage of this Parma, Ohio, native, isn't the world's greatest goaltender. But he comes with the reputation of being a combative competitor, and I'm told he was recommended to management by Mike Vellucci, the assistant coach here who won the Calder Cup with Nedeljkovic in goal for Charlotte in 2019. All concerned fully expect Nedeljković to push not only Casey DeSmith but also, in his own way, Jarry.
• Dubas remains engaged with the Sharks regarding Erik Karlsson. The Hurricanes also are known to be engaged on this front. But any urgency that might've been there at the NHL Draft has given way to more of a don't-blink contest. Mike Grier's not in the golden position that some seem to think he is, given that the player wants out, the player's exorbitantly expensive at an $11.5 million annual cap hit, and there are only two known suitors. And if/when Carolina makes another move or two -- which Don Waddell, unlike Dubas, needs to do -- it might just be one.
STEELERS
• Kevin Dotson might've come across as near-conciliatory when initially approached by reporters, including me, a month ago as related to losing his starting job to free-agent signee Isaac Seumalo. On one hand, that's understandable given Seumalo getting a three-year, $24 million contract. Dude's going to play. But I've been assured this week that Dotson's remarks never should've been interpreted as ceding anything. He's bracing to battle for a starting job, whether it's here or somewhere else. He knows that whatever he puts on film in the preseason will catch the attention of any team seeking a starter at left guard ... including the Steelers, should something happen to Seumalo. That's not quitting.
• Starting quarterback with a radio show? Stay (literally) tuned. And if/when it eventually happens that Kenny Pickett finds such a home, I'll have plenty more to share.
• Alex Highsmith's going to get done before the season. Cut and paste.
• Joey Porter Jr.'s the last unsigned draft pick, but he'll sign. There's no drama, no dispute over whether or not he should be paid as the last selection of the first round at No. 32 overall, or the reality that he's still the first pick of the second round since the Dolphins' forfeited slot at No. 21 overall was simply vacated. The boring reality is that the entire NFL universe spends this portion of July on vacation. Even the agents.
• That's also, by the way, why there's almost no NFL news these days.
• Thanks for reading Insider. Heading to PNC Park tonight to cover Pirates vs. Giants.
