At first glance, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ decision to part ways with pitching coach Oscar Marin felt like self-sabotage. For long stretches of the season, run prevention was the club’s lifeline; the staff kept Pittsburgh in tight games while the offense sputtered, and the identity of this team was built around arms executing on the margins. Firing the steward of that strength is the kind of move that prompts a thousand radio call-ins and a week’s worth of “what are they doing?” segments.
But peel back a layer and the choice starts to track. According to Post-Gazette Sports columnist Jason Mackey, feedback from player exit interviews factored into the decision, and those reviews “were not kind.