It's that time of year again. The time of year when you hear all the lines from players and managers about how good they can be this year, no matter what past history says. You know, the "everybody starts out with the same record" or the always clever "we had a lot of injuries last year" excuse.
Well, for the past 18 years, you have heard those lines and more coming from the Pittsburgh Pirates spring training facility in Bradenton. What if maybe, just maybe, this is the last year you hear those comments coming from the Pirates?
We all know the stats. The Pirates last winning season was way back in 1992. They trade away all their good players for prospects, which at this point, hasn't panned out. They have been called a minor league team. They hold the record for most consecutive losing seasons.
The Pirates are the laughing stock in the sports world. We get it. As somebody reading this article, you cringe just seeing those facts. How do you think ownership, management, the players and the fans feel after reading that?
Embarrassed, frustrated, angry? Yeah, that about sums it up. Since you can't go anywhere but up (so they say at least), let's try to talk positive about the Pirates. It isn't April 1st yet, so there has to be some promise, right?
This may come as a surprise to many, including most in the media who seem to find it necessary or amusing to take shots at Pittsburgh's baseball team, but there is promise for the Pirates, and it's not that far away.
To start, the organization got some much needed credibility when they hired former Rockies manager and Texas Rangers hitting coach, Clint Hurdle. Hurdle immediately brings a positive attitude to the struggling franchise. Not only is Hurdle a respected manager and World Series runner-up with the Rockies in 2007, he brings hope.
There have been a lot of managers with the Pirates over the past 18 years, but you just didn't seem to take them seriously when they spoke about the chances their team had to compete. Hurdle is different; when he speaks, he has the ability to get your attention. He honestly believes in what he says, and he spreads that enthusiasm not only to the players, but to anyone who watches the Pirates, or is a Pirates fan just hoping this long drought of losing seasons will come to an end.
Let's take a look at the players that hope to bring the Pirates back to respectability and beyond, starting with center fielder Andrew McCutchen. McCutchen has the ability to be a dynamic player. He appears ready to be a .300 AVG/20 HR/80 RBI/50 SB type of player. These players don't come around often, and he has already become the fan favorite in just under two seasons with the club.
Third basemen Pedro Alvarez, a former No. 2 selection from Vanderbilt, has all the tools to become the prototypical power hitter who can hit for average. Since being recalled last June, he hit 16 home runs with 64 RBIs in just 95 games. He did have a not so impressive .256 average, but that was after a .220 average throughout most of July and August, before he started to hit on a more consistent basis.
Second basemen Neil Walker, who is also a Pittsburgh area native, had a very solid rookie season, hitting just under .300 with 12 home runs and 66 RBIs as a rookie.
Left fielder Jose Tabata, who was the main piece acquired from the Yankees in the 2008 trade that sent Xavier Nady to the New York, along with Damaso Marte, hit .299 in 102 games as a rookie and didn't look out of place at the plate in any way.
The starting pitching is more of a question. Paul Malholm, James McDonald, Kevin Correia and Ross Ohlendorf are all set to be the front four starters in the rotation. The final No. 5 spot will be a competition between Charlie Morton, Jeff Karstens, Brad Lincoln, Brian Burres, Daniel McCutchen and Scott Olsen.
The rotation at first look is nothing to be excited about. If we look a little closer though, there are a number of reasons for optimism. Paul Maholm should bounce back from a very disappointing 2010 season. James McDonald, who was acquired at the trade deadline from the Dodgers, was the Pirates best pitcher the last two months of the season. He showed the ability to strikeout 61 batters in 64 innings, with a respectable era of 3.52. That was the first real opportunity McDonald got in the majors, and you would expect him to only get better with more experience in the major leagues.
Ohlendorf, who had a miserable 1-11 record last year, attributed to pitching through an injury, poor run support and being shut down after only 21 games due to that injury, has the ability to bounce back to his 11-10 2009 season performance. Keep in mind that Ohlendorf took the Pirates to arbitration this offseason and won his case. He also wants to prove that he can back up that pay increase.
Kevin Correia was an intriguing free agent signing from the Padres. The right hander, who went 10-10 last year with an era above 5.00, admittedly had a very disappointing season. His younger brother died in a tragic hiking accident in California, and Correia says it was extremely difficult to concentrate on baseball, and rightfully so. There is no reason not to think he can't revert back to his 2009 season, where he finished the season 12-11 with an ERA of 3.91.
The No. 5 starter spot will be up for grabs. It is very possible Charlie Morton could get that job if he carries over his solid pitching performance from the final two months of last season. Morton was the main player being brought back in the controversial Nate McClouth trade with the Atlanta Braves. Morton was consistently getting pounded by major league hitters, and it was frustrating to watch for a pitcher who has the ability that he does. It appears that the light switch was finally turned on, and Morton looked like the player GM Neil Huntington thought he was getting when he pulled the trigger on the trade. If Morton falters in spring training, there are a number of other possibilities ready to show they are ready for the role, including former top prospect Brad Lincoln.
The Pirates bullpen could be a question as well. Clint Hurdle already named Joel Hanrahan the team's opening day closer. It was a competition that didn't make it to spring training. Hurdle and the organization thought it was important to name a closer before the workouts began in Florida.
Evan Meek, who was the other candidate for the closer role, will stay as the late inning setup man. Hanrahan, is a strikeout pitcher who can throw in the high 90s, has had a tendency in the past to blow a number of saves with the Nationals, and to a lesser extent with the Pirates. Meek who filled in as a closer occasionally, didn't do a bad job, but his second-half stats slipped a bit, leaving some questions regarding his ability to save games.
If Hanrahan proves he can handle the role, the team should feed off that, and the bullpen will fall into place. The rest of the pen will probably include Chris Resop, Daniel McCutchen, Jeff Karstens, Jose Veras, Brian Burres and Joe Beimel. Sean Gallagher and Chris Leroux may also have a chance to make the club. A long shot possibility is former first-round selection Daniel Moskos who has pitched well in the minor leagues since concentrating solely on the closers role.
Finally, rounding out the position players for the Pirates is first basemen Lyle Overbay. Overbay is a veteran with a good glove and can get you about 20 home runs. He is also a very good leader in the clubhouse, and should be a good influence on the young Pirates team.
Ronny Cedeno, who was very much on the verge of playing somewhere else this season, if the Pirates could have picked up a shortstop during the winter, will try to rebound after a poor 2010 season at the plate.
Chris Snyder, who is very good defensively, but had very poor offense numbers last season, will be the starting catcher. Snyder, who has some home-run power, will need to show that power along with raising his batting average. He hit .169 in 40 games with the Pirates, and is a .229 career hitter. That needs to improve.
Right field will be a platoon between newly acquired free agent Matt Diaz and Garrett Jones. Jones, who was given every chance to be an everyday player last season, couldn't get the job done against left-handed pitching, so the organization went out and signed Diaz from the Braves.
Diaz will give the Pirates the power bat they need from the right side of the plate and will be a very good complement to Jones. Ryan Doumit, who very well may be traded before the season starts, is a utility player as of now, and probably the No. 3 catcher.
As you can see, there are some very promising signs for the Pirates this upcoming season. There are also a lot of questions, but that is no different than virtually every team in baseball. The question is, can the Pirates promise finally out weigh the questions? If that happens, 1992 may be a distant memory. You never know. Why not?
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