Pittsburgh’s PR Offseason? Schwarber Miss, Polanco Pivot & Real Trade Targets

Emma Lingan joins Adam to dissect a weird week for Pittsburgh: a public Schwarber offer that wasn’t close, Adolis García choosing Philly, Jorge Polanco to the Mets at $20M AAV, and the Pirates still without an impact bat. Is this real pursuit or just PR? If free agents keep picking contenders, should Pittsburgh go all-in on trades (Harrington/Burrows packages, surplus pitching → bats)? We lay out a practical path: targets, price tiers, and how to avoid a Tommy Pham floor outcome.

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00:00 Cold open, schedule & housekeeping

01:19 Why the Pirates’ offseason feels “so strange”

03:02 Schwarber offer: effort or optics?

06:12 The “we tried” problem & culture change reality

09:56 Adolis to Phillies: why PIT wasn’t really in it

12:01 Sit in Bob Nutting’s chair: what you do next

14:23 Use surplus arms (Harrington/Burrows) before value fades

17:28 Polanco → Mets at $20M AAV; 1B/DH fit & Alonso pivot

20:00 What a credible path forward looks like (trade > talk)

21:43 Wrap & what’s coming later this week

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