Chicago Cubs can't look past Pittsburgh Pirates

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PITTSBURGH, PA – APRIL 23: Josh Harrison #5 of the Pittsburgh Pirates slides into home plate past Wellington Castillo #5 of the Chicago Cubs after scoring the go-ahead run in the seventh inning during the game at PNC Park on April 23, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images) /

Contrary to popular belief, the Pittsburgh Pirates still have enough to be a pain to the Chicago Cubs – even after losing two franchise players in big-time trades.

Since going head-to-head in the 2015 National League Wild Card game, the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs trended in different directions. Chicago, of course, won the World Series the very next season. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, not only missed the postseason in 2016 and 2017, but failed to even crack the .500 mark.

Now, Pittsburgh is finally breaking up its core. Over the weekend, the Pirates sent right-hander Gerrit Cole to Houston for Colin Moran, outfielder Jason Martin and right-handers Joe Musgrove and Michael Feliz. Hot on the heels of that trade, Pittsburgh dealt franchise icon Andrew McCutchen to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for Kyle Crick and Bryan Reynolds.

What does all this mean? First off, Cole is out of the National League. So we’ll all just have to settle for rewatching this wonderful clip of Kyle Schwarber taking him deep into the Allegheny in that ’15 Wild Card game instead.

Young talent prevails in today’s game

Now, most say the Pirates are poised to finish firmly entrenched in the cellar of the National League Central in 2018. Without their two top players from a year ago, what else could they hope for apart from a rebuild?

But I’m here to tell you this. If you take the eye off this team and think they’ll simply roll over for the Cubs and Cardinals, you’ve got another thing coming. And the scary thing is it won’t take too long for the Pirates to be back in contention, either.

For that to happen, though, Pittsburgh needs its young pieces to step up and finally live up to the hype surrounding them. This is exactly what the Cubs needed three years ago – and they got it. Can the Pirates follow that recipe to their first division title since 1992?

WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 30: Starting pitcher Jameson Taillon #50 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on September 30, 2017 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /

Young pitching is everything

Let me begin by saying ‘no’. The Pirates are not going to win the division in 2018. But they’ve got enough talent on the roster to cause problems for the teams hoping for such an outcome. Namely, the Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers.

How? It all starts with their young pitching staff. Most importantly, right-handers Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow. Neither performed particularly well last season. Taillon, of course, missed a good chunk of the season after a brief battle with cancer. Glasnow, meanwhile, simply struggled. He pitched to a 7.69 ERA across 13 starts and a pair of relief appearances.

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For the Pirates to cause trouble in the division – and the league, at large, these two need to perform. Without them, Pittsburgh will be barreling toward its first 100-loss campaign since 2010. Behind Glasnow and Taillon, the Pirates feature the likes of Trevor Williams, Ivan Nova and perhaps Mitch Keller – ranked as the seventh-best right-handed prospect in the game by MLB.com.

Looking for a quick rebound

Just hours after trading McCutchen, Pittsburgh signed their young closer, Felipe Rivero, to a contract extension. The southpaw inked the four-year, $22 million extension with a pair of options after he broke out in 2017.

Rivero, just 25 years old, finished 40 games and notched 21 saves last year for the Bucs. He averaged 10.5 punchouts per nine and a 1.67 ERA across 73 appearances, giving manager Clint Hurdle a lethal weapon in the late innings.

What I’m saying is this: on pitching alone, this team has the pieces to wreak havoc in a division that will likely come down to the wire again in 2018. And that’s before factoring in the Pirates’ position talent, as well.

PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 19: Gregory Polanco #25 of the Pittsburgh Pirates heads to the field before the start of the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park on September 19, 2017 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

More left than you might think

There’s no disputing what Andrew McCutchen meant to the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise. He departs ranking tenth all-time in WAR, seventh in Adjusted Batting Runs, ninth in runs created and seventh in extra-base hits.

But this trade makes a lot of sense. The team’s top prospect, Austin Meadows, ranked as the 17th overall prospect in the game according to MLB.com and is clearly viewed as the center fielder of the future. With McCutchen gone, Meadows will hope to move on from an injury-plagued 2017 and claim the role for himself.

Of course, Moran, acquired in the Cole trade, will be a big piece of the future, as well. But there’s a lot more to this team than unproven prospects.

The offense will be headlined by the likes of Josh Harrison, Josh Bell, Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco. While Moran finishes rounding out, David Freese brings a veteran presence, along with catcher Francisco Cervelli and Jordy Mercer. The best part for Pittsburgh? None of these players is older than 31 – outside of Freese.

This lineup has a ton of potential. Bell was a finalist in NL Rookie of the Year voting last year. Harrison is a versatile talent on both sides of the ball and Marte and Polanco could eventually be one of the most potent outfield combinations in the league.

So, even without McCutchen, this offense has plenty of gas left in the tank.

CHICAGO, IL – JULY 07: Kris Bryant #17 of the Chicago Cubs greets teammate Anthony Rizzo #44 after Rizzo hit a two run home run in the 4th inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field on July 7, 2017 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

Cubs simply further along in the process

This Pirates team is where the Cubs were four years ago. There’s clear talent on the roster, but it’s unclear if this group will ever all hit their stride simultaneously.

Chicago, meanwhile, boasts two of the best players in the game in Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo. Willson Contreras broke out in a big way last year and the team’s middle infield combination of Addison Russell and Javier Baez puts together dazzling plays on a daily basis.

In short, there’s a lot to like.

But as talented – and proven – as this Cubs team is, they’d be fools to think the Pirates are a pushover. If you go into 2018 with this mindset, your head-to-head matchups with the Bucs may very well cost you a third-straight division title.

Next: Does loss of Rivera show the Cubs' hand?

So don’t breathe a sigh of relief, Cubs fans. Both of these trades made Pittsburgh infinitely more well-suited for long term competitiveness and a day may soon come where the Pirates are knocking on the door at Wrigley.

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