Cole reunion
News from the Pirates game against Gerrit Cole and the Yankees.
Sunday, has the inside track on becoming the backup catcher. The Pirates signed Guillermo Heredia as a fourth outfielder who can hit left-handed pitching.
Beyond that? Let’s take a look.
The new guy
JT Riddle has looked slick in infield drills, the quickness of his hands noticeable. Signed Jan. 31 to an $850,000 major league deal, Riddle will more than likely earn one of the three remaining spots because of his glove and versatility.
A shortstop by trade, Riddle soon will start working in the outfield, where he played with the Miami Marlins last season.
In 223 career games with Miami, Riddle, 28, has slashed .229/.269/.368, meaning fans probably shouldn’t expect a ton of offense. But against righthanded pitching, Riddle does have an OPS of .650 — still below average, which is around .700, but not horrendous provided he’s an above-average defender.
“I take pride in my defense and being able to play multiple positions,” said Riddle, who collected two hits and had a couple of strong at-bats Sunday while starting at second base. “If I can play shortstop, I feel like I can play anywhere. I’m going to work as hard as I can to get better at that position and do my best there.”
In a pinch
Jose Osuna and Erik Gonzalez are the two to focus on here.
Osuna, 27, has a .719 OPS in 250 career games, with a slash line of .246/.285/.435. He has played first base, third base, the corner outfield spots and has even pitched. Pretty well, too.
Osuna’s value isn’t so much as a fill-in — although he does offer a late-inning defensive upgrade over Bell at first, provided Bell’s spot in the order won’t come up again — as he is a quality pinch-hitter.
Nobody has more pinchhit home runs than Osuna (6) since the start of the 2018 season, and last year he slugged .875 in that role.
“You have to do your job,” Osuna said. “You have to work hard. I’m trying to make the team. I’m trying to be the same guy I’ve been the last couple of years.”
The Cole question
Gonzalez had a horrible start to 2019, broke his collarbone, then caught fire in September, cobbling together an 11-game hitting streak and hitting .322 with a .756 OPS in 20 games, including 16 starts.
While Riddle has been better against right-handers and Osuna’s splits are fairly even, Gonzalez provides a pretty good depth option against left-handed pitching. The 28-year-old had a batting average of .333 and an OPS of .735 against lefthanders in 2019.
Gonzalez also has played everywhere except pitcher and catcher, but the issue becomes what to do with Cole Tucker? The 2014 firstround pick is obviously part of the future but might find himself a victim of circumstance in 2020.
If the Pirates trade Frazier, that would open up an everyday spot for Tucker — either with him at second base or having Newman sliding over.
But until then, it’s probably not wise to stash a 23year-old on your bench. It makes more sense to allow Tucker to play every day, as he would with Class AAA Indianapolis, even though it might be a tough pill to swallow for someone who’s close development-wise.
The long shots
A big spring could change the calculus at the corners, though it’s not terribly likely.
Will Craig (first base) and Hayes are certainly close, but it’s hard to imagine them earning a big-league role out of spring training — Craig because of Bell and needing to refine his bat, and Hayes needing to show that he can provide consistent offense.
It’s far-fetched, but perhaps a crazy good spring by either could accelerate the Pirates plans. Just don’t bet on it. It’ll also be interesting to see what happens with Kevin Kramer. He has hit at Class AAA and would give the Pirates a left-handed bat off the bench, but Kramer also has a career slash line of .152/.222/.165 at the major league level.
The best bet is probably those three starting at Class AAA while the more veteran guys fill out the major league roster for opening day.