This comes from the figurative top floor of the Pirates' structure: They're drop-dead serious about contending this summer, they've got every intention of adding to the roster where applicable, and they'll make such moves ... when Ben Cherington's ready and not a millisecond sooner.
Again, that's not from me. And that's absolutely not a prediction from me, either. Rather, it's from them. A very important one of them.
All I've got on this. No specifics came close to being shared.
• From another part of 115 Federal: Cherington can't be rushed. Just not in his DNA. He's famous internally, in fact, for forever deliberating even the most diminutive of potential transactions.
• Also from that same part of the building: The money's there to make the types of moves this roster would seem to need. It's up to Cherington to spend it -- or not -- as he sees fit, but ... well, see just above.
• If the most prominent pattern of the Pirates' latest losing season -- exceptional starting pitching wasted by excremental offense -- is weighing on any of these pitchers, they sure aren't letting it show. To the contrary, as one member of the rotation shared with me this week at PNC Park, they're all going above and beyond in focusing on how they fare and, as he put it, "what we can control." That shouldn't be taken as a shot or anything, I'll add, having been there for the full context. It's just a standard pitching approach that's been sharpened, to an extent, by this environment.
• At some stage of this summer, it'd seem, one or both of Paul Skenes and Jared Jones will need to have innings curtailed. I'm told there's no hard plan for either yet, given that no one can know about performance, injuries and other variables. But I'm also told that one or both could -- again, that's could -- have a shutdown period at something approximating midseason, similar to the approach Cherington's taken with other young pitchers in the past, where the All-Star break's coupled with another few days off.
• To emphasize this: There's no current expectation of shutting down either near season's end. The aim's to avoid that, while also prioritizing the pitchers' health.
• Had a good talk with Ke'Bryan Hayes this week. He's getting there, as he told me. And in my time with him over the years, he's been accurate about that. He'll slump, he'll beat himself up, and then he'll get there.
• I'm nowhere near as sure about Jack Suwinski, unfortunately, but it was neat to see Skenes stride across the clubhouse Wednesday upon spotting Suwinski -- after yet another Suwinski K as a pinch-hitter -- and offer an encouraging pat on the rump. Kid's been in the bigs for a month and change.
PENGUINS
• No, there's nothing related to Tristan Jarry to read into Alex Nedeljkovic being signed to a two-year, $5 million contract. At least not in terms of Jarry's status in Pittsburgh ... and at least not yet.
The next mention I hear from anyone in the organization of lost faith in Jarry will be the first. Everyone from Kyle Dubas to Mike Sullivan and below see Jarry as having starter-level skill, size and athleticism, and they'll all cite -- fairly so -- the countless occasions on which he's exhibited exactly that. And in that same spirit, I've never heard a suggestion he'd be traded.
But that doesn't mean he can't be pushed or, as we all just witnessed in the final month of this past season, surpassed. That could be by Nedeljkovic or, ultimately, by Joel Blomqvist if/when the latter's ready in Wilkes-Barre. Either way, Nedeljkovic makes for a perfect fit within any and all scenarios.
• Received the following text from Nedeljkovic last night: "Excited to be back!"
Believe it. He really wanted this. Nagged Dubas for weeks about it.
• Yet another plus: Nedeljkovic and Jarry for-real hit it off. That's not a small issue, as anyone in hockey circles would attest. They communicated, they supported each other, and that included off the ice.
• Make no mistake: David Quinn's been hired to fix Ryan Graves. Just as Todd Reirden was fired, in part, for not fixing Graves. This was a way bigger issue for all concerned than the power play, which was run by the players more than any coaches.
STEELERS
• One month to training camp, and I still can't be convinced that there won't be some form of quarterback competition. Even if it's beneath the surface, so to speak.
Look, every indication internally will remain that Russell Wilson's the starter, not just the "pole position" holder ahead of Justin Fields, per Mike Tomlin's assessment. And because of that, Wilson's going to open the preseason that way and carry that right into real games. Even if there'd have been some truly open competition set up for the summer, there wouldn't have been the time or reps to do that right while also installing a new coordinator and playbook. The first-team offense needs to work together to learn together, and Wilson's been in that "position" for months now already.
But -- and here's where it can get interesting, as I've been told in light conversation -- Tomlin's respected Fields for years and, unlike the setting he created for Mason Rudolph, he's not about to bury Fields. He'll keep both his eyes and his mind open as he observes Wilson and Fields, and he'll be open to whatever in a way he hadn't been previously. Heck, it could be that being stung in a weird way by Rudolph's sudden surge at the end of the 2023 season benefits Fields, if only because Tomlin won't want to appear blindsided again.
Make no mistake: It'll still be the thing to watch in Latrobe. And beyond. That's what I'm saying.
• There are zero suggestions of any push toward pursuing a trade with the 49ers. And I haven't heard Brandon Aiyuk's name -- as in his actual name -- from anyone on the inside. Which might explain why all of the noise regarding Aiyuk emanates from Santa Clara, Calif., and not Pittsburgh.
• Also and relevant, this is the deadest of dead periods in the NFL, in which pretty much everyone -- league officials, team execs, coaches, players, even agents -- flies off to Aruba or wherever. So don't rule out that there'll be more regarding Aiyuk and other ace wide receivers in a few weeks. Myself, I still can't fathom that Omar Khan restructured Alex Highsmith's contract on the literal eve of the draft, that he's now got $16 million in cap space, and that he'll just lug all that into the regular season. No chance.
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