This off-season plenty of teams have come under fire for their spending appetite. On one hand are teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets, who are spending money like popping champagne. Then there are also the other teams who have come under fire for not spending. The Pittsburgh Pirates, for example, have refused to spend, and it’s been a sore spot for years. But their reluctance to sign a free agent to long-term deals has reached an absurd level right now.

The last time Pirates even handed out a multi-year contract was back in 2016! In December of that year, the Pirates had signed Ivan Nova to a three-year, $26 million deal. That was nearly 3,000 days ago. Compared to the rest of the league, Pittsburgh’s approach is almost unheard of.

Every team but five has signed at least one free agent to a multi-year deal in the past two seasons. Even teams with tight budgets like the Cleveland Guardians or Miami Marlins. They too have been more aggressive than the Pirates.

The last time the Pirates signed a free agent to a multi-year contract was all the way back in December 2016, when they inked starting pitcher Iván Nova to a three-year deal worth $26 million.
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Team owner Bob Nutting has continued to grip the franchise and GM Ben Cherington has been conservative in making moves since 2019; but the Pittsburgh Pirates have at least extended some of the homegrown stars, from Ke’Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds to Mitch Keller. The problem is, they all signed long-term deals but were internal moves. Those are not investments in external talent.

That approach however would be costly, and Pittsburgh Pirates simply refused to make such financial commitments. However, the fans, of course, have been patient so fa but are not feeling like sitting idle, and have made their frustrations known on socials.

Pittsburgh Pirates fans fuming as franchise refuses to spend!

One user on Reddit highlighting the spending mentioned, “From 1993 to 2012, they had zero winning seasons. Twenty straight years under .500.” That’s a harsh reminder. By now a question may crop up: how are they still competing and staying cash positive through it all? That’s one of the longest losing streaks in North American sports history. Well, this is all thanks to revenue sharing. It’s like a lifeline for the teams like Pirates. It’s an MLB revenue-sharing system where wealthy teams contribute a portion of their earnings to small-market franchises like the Pittsburgh Pirates to help them survive.

A sarcastic enraged user said, “Hell yeah, a round of applause for the brave owners resisting the urge to spend money. Very brave of them.” MLB right now has teams spending an arm and a leg for their players. Because they have a goal, and that’s to win, right? Moreover, if the Pirates refuse to make financial strides, retaining players will be difficult. They have cornerstones in the team like Oneil Cruz, Spencer Horwitz, and Paul Skenes, all future super players. Retaining them won’t be easy if they don’t build a strong team surrounding them.

Another salty comment said, “Sad Padres noises.” However, it’s crucial to note that no matter what, the San Diego Padres have tried hard this off-season. They were even on the run for Roki Sasaki. Even though they didn’t end up getting him, they tried. Unlike teams that haven’t tried at all. However, the Padres right now sure have their ownership battles going on, which are also presenting their fair share of complications.

One person called for relegation, saying, “I am not joking when I call for relegation. There are those who would say it would break the sport, and to them I say, What’s going on now isn’t helping either.” Relegation is common in European sports, and it could light a fire under teams like the Pirates. It could force them to compete rather than coast on revenue sharing. But dropping teams to a lower league would wreck their finances and shake up the sport too.

Harshly, one user said, ‘F— Bob Nutting.” Now the fans want Nutting to sell the team, but that doesn’t seem to be happening anytime soon. There are arguments made that they are a small market team, but really that’s not a great excuse. Because look at the San Diego Padres, and what they did. They were a small market team too once, until Seidler turned things around. He didn’t think a small market team could go big; he spent big and got big returns. So it’s just the mindset at the end of the day!

Do you think that there will be a mindset change with the Pirates? Let us know in the comments.