Mark Madden: Pirates need bats to contend, but expect ownership to kick can down the road

They say the standings never lie. But sometimes they do.

In the National League, nine teams are within four games of each other in the race for the second and third wild-card spots. One of those teams is over .500, another at .500. The rest have losing records.

All of those teams fancy themselves contenders, which is the beauty of MLB’s expanded playoff format.

But those teams aren’t all contenders. The Pittsburgh Pirates certainly aren’t.

The citizens are convinced they are. That also reflects the beauty of MLB’s expanded playoff format, with a nod to the efficiency of Pirates ownership’s long con.

But the Pirates can’t hit.

Hall of Fame manager Connie Mack said that pitching is 75% of the game. If that were true, the Pirates wouldn’t be three games under .500.

The Pirates are just 20-18 since phenom hurler Paul Skenes was summoned from the minors. They were 17-22 prior. That’s improvement but not much and not enough.

The Pirates mostly had been hitting for Skenes till Sunday’s 3-1 loss to visiting Tampa Bay.

Skenes allowed one run in seven innings, leaving with the score tied 1-1. The Pirates got just three hits, including a Bryan Reynolds home run that extended his hit streak to 20 games.

Reynolds is doing great. But he’s one guy.

Reliever Colin Holderman had a rare bad outing, almost doubling his ERA.

It’s not like wasting a good outing by a talented pitcher is a rare phenomenon for the Pirates: They scored just 16 runs in Jared Jones’ first eight starts.

Skenes was hurt by manager Derek Shelton starting a so-called “Sunday lineup,” which sat Nick Gonzales and Andrew McCutchen, two relatively dangerous hitters.

When Skenes pitches, use your best bats. All hands on deck.

But lack of consistent offense is a problem that needs to be solved. Sooner, not later.

Sure, it’s tough to make a trade right now because only five teams are really out of the playoff race.

So make a trade with one of those five teams. Overpay if you have to. You’d be trading prospects, not from your major-league roster.

Owner Bob Nutting said the Pirates should be “prepared to move early” in the trade market.

Nutting said it’s “incredibly important” to maximize whatever opportunity presents.

Blah, blah, blah. Talk is cheap, and so is Nutting.

Nutting spoke Friday on the occasion of Sheetz giving him money, an event that makes him happier than winning.

Nutting added a disclaimer to his call for action: “We need to think longer term about how do you manage payroll, how do you make sure we’re prepared to take advantage of any window that is open, make sure that we’re prepared over the long term? At least from my seat, it’s a broader horizon.”

“Long term” and “broader horizon” translate to “Wait till next year. Or the year after.” Kick that can down the road.

Perhaps when the Skenes era transitions to the Bubba Chandler era.

The Pirates profit hand over fist. Their players make just $85 million, the second-lowest amount in MLB. But Nutting openly frets about how to “manage payroll.”

Rooting for the Pirates is fine. But ownership simply can’t be trusted.

This season is going how Nutting wants.

The Pirates are perceived as contenders.

He got a new sponsorship.

Attendance is up, on pace for 1.7 million after 1.6 million last year. It will do even better once summer kicks in and if the Pirates can stay on the fringe of contention. Two million isn’t out of the question.

Merchandise sales are doubtless up, if only thanks to Skenes No. 30 jerseys. (Skenes is a license to print money. But when he takes control of that license, he’ll be gone.)

Nutting is getting what he wants. Success in the standings is ancillary.

So don’t expect more than a token acquisition between now and MLB’s Aug. 1 trade deadline.

Nutting also talked about “organic improvement from our players.”

That doesn’t cost anything.