(TNS) —There is no easy way for a franchise to move on from a legendary player, especially when that player isn’t ready to retire. It is a difficult and delicate process and one that usually is met with an awkward time when the player is resistant to move on.

Players often don’t want to retire because they think they still have something to give. They don’t want to move on with their life or they want to hang on to their place in the spotlight.

It is a tale as old as sports, and it is one that can be awkward in its execution because no front office wants to appear to mistreat a fan favorite and someone who has meant a great deal to the franchise.

And that is where the Pirates are with Andrew McCutchen. And of course, true to the Pirates, they managed to make a public relations disaster out of the situation.

Let me be clear. I agree that the Pirates have every right to build their roster as they see fit. They are looking to upgrade their designated hitter position — as they should. And at 39, McCutchen is probably at the point where he should begin to think about getting on with his life’s work.

The Pirates have also attempted to upgrade their offense, and with some of the additions they have made they are squeezing McCutchen out of the lineup. Simply put, they haven’t negotiated with him about this season because they are likely ready to move on.

And, again, that is perfectly fine. I have no issues with teams determining it is time to move on from a legend. But there is a way to do it with class and dignity.

This past weekend was PiratesFest, a chance for fans to reach out and touch players, coaches and even Cherington. It is a meet-and-greet kind of event with autographs and photos and some Q&A sessions and whatnot.

McCutchen wasn’t invited because he isn’t currently under contract, but that is about as shortsighted as it comes. He is still probably the most popular player on the team, he has been a great ambassador for the Pirates and he is one of the most important players in franchise history.

Why not just bring him to PiratesFest? Let him mingle with the fans, sign autographs, create goodwill and be that ambassador that generates some much needed positive publicity for the team. It would be an easy thing to do, and that’s especially true if last season was his last in a Pirates uniform before he retires.

And then when the question of whether McCutchen will be back is broached, a simple “That is something we will continue to discuss with Andrew” would suffice as an answer. That would end any need to go into a long-winded explanation about why you as a franchise want to move on from him.

It would also at least allow people to entertain the idea that, if McCutchen is indeed squeezed out, it was on his own terms.

The Steelers did that with Ben Roethlisberger even as they pushed him out the door. Everyone knew that Roethlisberger wanted to play another year — and his comments since have confirmed this. But the Steelers made it clear they were moving on and he subsequently “retired” and received a hero’s sendoff.

Clearly, Roethlisberger wasn’t happy with the decision, as he openly talked on his podcast about how the general manager didn’t want him back. But the Steelers handled it the right way. As a result, Roethlisberger is still close with the organization, is welcomed back and comes to all the reunions and tributes and still attends games with his family.

That is how you want it to end for players who have meant so much to the organization, but it appears the Pirates and McCutchen are headed for a messy divorce and it didn’t need to be that way.

As I just wrote, McCutchen should have been invited to PiratesFest but I understand why he wasn’t.

Cherington, though, could have handled the question about him a lot better than he did. All he needed to say was “Andrew is an all-time Pirate, he has done incredible things for this organization and we are keeping an open dialogue with him about 2026,” and then moved on.

He did this at the start of his comments, saying the Pirates would love to maintain a great relationship with McCutchen into the future. But instead of ending it there, he went into some long-winded diatribe about the 40-man roster and fielding the best team and all kinds of other stuff that made it clear the team doesn’t want McCutchen back.

“Our approach this offseason has been laser-focused on what gives us the best chance to win more baseball games in Pittsburgh than we have in the past seasons,” Cherington said Saturday. “That’s going to continue to guide our decisions.”

Why go there? It was unnecessary and merely stoked the flames of an already tense relationship with McCutchen, who predictably took to Twitter to object to the way he has been treated. He asked rhetorically if other teams have treated their all-timers like this and ended with “Rip the jersey off of me. You don’t get to write my future, God does.”

The Pirates have every right to build their roster as they see fit, and so this isn’t about awarding a spot to McCutchen just because he has meant so much to them. The Pirates aren’t a charity. This isn’t the little leagues, where everyone gets to play three innings and there are orange slices after the games.

McCutchen is old and it is probably time for the Pirates to move on. I don’t dispute any of that at all.

But there is the right way and the wrong way to handle it, and the Pirates handled this the wrong way.