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The Pittsburgh Pirates find new ways to anger the fan base on a daily basis.
From a small payroll to Bucco Bricks to now a team legend and long-time face of the franchise, Andrew McCutchen, airing his frustrations on social media.
Pirates beat reporter Noah Hiles quoted the team’s lineup post on X (formerly Twitter) and made mention of McCutchen not being in the lineup.
The five-time All-Star and 2013 National League MVP replied to Hiles and hinted to the fans that today might not be a regularly scheduled rest day.
Entering Saturday, McCutchen was hitting .234 for the Pirates with one home run and five RBI. Despite being 38 years old, he went into Saturday with the third-highest batting average on the team among qualified hitters.
Only Joey Bart and Isiah Kiner-Falefa held better batting averages, and it shows on a nightly basis when the team struggles to score runs. As of Saturday, the Pirates scored 5+ runs in less than 25% of their games.
Derek Shelton has been notorious for creating lineups that don’t make sense to Pirates fans. He’s notorious for giving players too many days off and playing people out of position as well.
Tommy Pham, Jack Suwinski, and Bryan Reynolds were the three in the outfield on Saturday against the Cleveland Guardians. Only Reynolds entered the game with a batting average above the Mendoza line.
It’s bad enough to have one player in the lineup hitting below .140, but having two is simply inexcusable.
When players begin airing frustrations about roster decisions and lineups on social media, it’s a clear sign the manager has lost the clubhouse. While it’s only McCutchen vocalizing his concerns right now, others could follow suit.
One thing for certain is that it appears Shelton’s days as Pirates manager are limited.
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