All right, we can agree, I would imagine that Mitch Keller is going to be traded, like this winter.

No?

Okay, well, maybe I should start there.

Good morning to you.

Good.

Monday morning, I'm Dan Kavachievich of D.K. Pittsburgh Sports.

This is Daily Shot of Pirates. It comes your way bright and early every weekday.

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When it comes to this franchise, anytime you're discussing or debating something

that might involve payroll, probably the best place to start. Mitch, of course, signed a five-year

$77 million extension that was in February of last year. That thing runs through 2028.

The salary figures for the next three seasons for Mitch,

who is the Pirates' highest paid player,

are 16.5 million, 18 million, and 20 million.

Now, if that doesn't already sell you on Mitch being a goner,

I'm going to try a little bit harder,

but I don't think I'll have to try too hard.

Because my further belief is that this payroll is not going to go up.

It might even go down.

Within that, you have presumably, as the owner of the franchise, as Bob Nutting,

given some sort of mandate or edict to management, judging by Travis Williams' comments at the most recent availability, to make the playoffs? That was Williams' term, not mine. Make the playoffs. You're not

going to make the playoffs with the way this team hits. Obviously, you're not going to go out and get a hitter if your payroll's not going up. You could trade prospects for a hitter, but that hitter would still probably have to make some kind of money.

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