Harrison believes he will play 2B, lead off, but . . .
troubles stemmed from the surgery Harrison had July 8, 2015, to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb.
Harrison feels he rushed back from rehab. An inability to properly bear weight on the left side impacted his offseason training, and that in turn played a part in his streaky 2016 season. In cold weather, particularly, the joint would stiffen, and Harrison’s swing would suffer. The thumb didn’t feel right until just before the groin was strained, he said, and by then he had built bad habits.
“This offseason, I had to go back to the drawing board,” Harrison said. “Not to change things, but just to retrain my hands to work together instead of compensating [for] not have my thumb hurt or anything. We play this game so much that we don’t realize we’re doing certain things. In the season, it’s hard to pinpoint and try to change it when you’ve been doing it for the past year.”
Harrison concluded his season, albeit abruptly, with a 10-game hitting streak that lifted his batting average to .283, its highest point since July 2. His offensive numbers had seesawed all year. On June 9, the season more than one-third complete, Harrison had a .327 average and .790 OPS — shades of his former All-Star form. And then he batted .198 in June and .213 in August.
Once placed in the leadoff role Aug. 5, Harrison was back on track. He batted .326 with 10 doubles and 17 RBIs over his last 33 games before injuring the groin legging out a double.
Harrison said he would like to stay atop the batting order, and manager Clint Hurdle likens him to a spark-plug that ignites the offense. Harrison’s speed and energy play well there — he had 19 steals last season — though his .311 onbase percentage was worst among Pirates regulars. His refusal to walk remains. In 2016, only two National League regulars with at least 400 plate appearances had lower walk rates than Harrison (3.4 percent). They were then-Cincinnati Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips (3.1) and Chicago Cubs infielder Javier Baez (3.3).
Last season was the first Harrison spent almost entirely at one position. He played 1,077⅔ innings at second base and one inning in right field. He expects to start again at second this season, but also is open to playing at third base — given the uncertainty surrounding Jung Ho Kang, whose trial for DUI-related charges begins Wednesday — and in the outfield.
“We’ve all seen baseball,” Harrison said. “It’s unpredictable.”
Harrison laughed when someone suggested he — and other utility players such as the Chicago Cubs’ do-it-all Ben Zobrist — have made “utility” less of a dirty word in baseball spheres.
“I wouldn’t say it was so much of a dirty word,” Harrison said. “It was just more of a label that a guy couldn’t play. I’m glad that label is changing, because you’ve got a lot of guys that bring a lot to the table. … It’s not being a bad player, it’s being somebody who can help the team.” Cervelli, Stoffel hurt Francisco Cervelli, the Pirates’ starting catcher, was dinged during the team’s Sunday morning workout and left early with right foot discomfort, the team announced. Officially, his status is “day to day,” but as he shuffled into the clubhouse around midday, he said, “All good.”
Cervelli did not elaborate, and Hurdle said he did not know how the injury occurred.
Cervelli left a game July 29 last year after a pitch clipped Milwaukee Brewers infielder Scooter Gennett’s pant leg and hit Cervelli on the inside of the foot. Doctors examined Cervelli and determined he did not suffer a broken bone. He played a complete game the next night.
Right-handed reliever Jason Stoffel, a non-roster invitee, has missed multiple bullpen sessions during camp because of “right shoulder discomfort,” according to the team.
“This offseason, I had to go back to the drawing board. Not to change things, but just to retrain my hands to work together instead of compensating [for] not have my thumb hurt or anything.” — Josh Harrison, Pirates second baseman, on his preparation for the season