The Pirates Passed Their First Real Test at Wrigley

The Pirates passed an early test at Wrigley, taking 2 of 3 from the Cubs, but Alex Stumpf explains why the series still left some real concerns behind. On this episode of OffBeat, Alex breaks down strong starts from Carmen Mlodzinski, Braxton Ashcraft, and Bubba Chandler, the continued production from Oneil Cruz and the offense, and why the bullpen and defense still feel like the biggest threats to this team’s ceiling. He also looks at Justin Lawrence’s struggles, Yohan Ramirez emerging as a real bullpen weapon, and why this might be the clearest path the Pirates have had to contend in the NL Central in years. If the Pirates are for real, this weekend told us a lot. Join this channel to get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9ZY250XUYiS-yX7xOQCdLA/join Use Promo Code NS9 for 30% off your first order at https://www.gritily.com Use Promo Code NORTHSHORENINE for $20 off your first order at https://www.seatgeek.com LIKE and SUBSCRIBE with NOTIFICATIONS ON if you enjoyed the show! NS9 MERCH: https://northshorenine.myspreadshop.com ►Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/NorthShoreNine ►Website: https://www.northshorenine.com ►Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/northshorenine ►TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@northshorenine ►Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/northshorenine ►Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/northshorenine ►Discord: https://discord.gg/3HVYPg544m ►BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/northshorenine.bsky.social Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.