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| A quiet offseason has MVP Andrew McCutchen feeling just fine about 2014. |
8. Pittsburg Pirates
by Hayden Hughes
The following audio was recorded a while back:
Usually when a team has the National League MVP hitting third in their lineup they are really, really good. Andrew McCutchen has been hitting third in Pittsburgh for a while now, but only recently has that translated to success on the field and Andrew McCutchen winning his first MVP in 2013. As far as McCutchen is concerned, it's easy to argue that his 2012 campaign was stronger than his MVP season last year.
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| If there was just one player I want to party with... |
79 wins in 2012 translated into a 20-game improvement as Pittsburgh tasted the playoffs for the first time in 20 years, and at the current rate Clint Hurdle is at, the Pirates will keep improving. And to further help matters for the Bucs, Starling Marte is now locked into a 6-year, $31M contract with two team options for 2020 and 2021. As long as Marte continues to hit at the top of the lineup, the only facet of his game that Pittsburgh fans might dread is his struggles stealing - leading the NL with 15 caught stolen bases in 2013.
The core of Pittsburgh's team is the envy of most other teams in the MLB. Neil Walker and Pedro Alvarez have two more years of club-control after this season, Marte, Tabata, and McCutchen are all under contract through 2016 at least, and Jordy Mercer will not be a free agent until 2019 when he will be 32 years old. That leaves Russell Martin and Gaby Sanchez unaccounted for.
Russell Martin has found a resurgence in Pittsburgh and managed to take at least fifty walks every season, so re-upping Martin might be a wise move for Pittsburgh, as few immediate catching options seem viable in-house, although Martin is 31 so finding a replacement elsewhere would be equally as wise.
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| ...Or don't do anything. The Pirates are fine. Andrew's body language just tells me everything will be alright. |
With Gregory Polanco, Pittsburgh's top offensive prospect, ready and most likely seeing a call up soon in 2014, Jose Tabata may be the odd man out and become a valuable asset in trade discussions or becoming the National League's best fourth outfielder, unless Matt Kemp regains health anytime soon. A move of Tabata could result in the successor to Gaby Sanchez at first base, who is nothing short of...well, just kind of bland. Nothing about Sanchez's game really stands out as exceptional, making him something of a sore thumb in a lineup of 5-tooled fingers, for the most part.
Along with what I assume is a contract extension at some point for Neil Walker, Pittsburgh's lineup should be plenty potent for the next few years, giving the pitching situation for the Pirates less pressure to develop in the immediate.
I've gone this far and not mentioned the rotation that Pittsburgh has assembled. And while their three, four, or five options most likely won't compete for this seasons' Cy Young Award, Liriano repeating his 2013 season and Gerrit Cole continuing to impress would be huge for Pittsburgh. But for Liriano, repeating 2013 is an essential for the Pirates to compete in 2014, as he will be the anchor of the rotation. And anchors cannot get hurt. As far as the rotation goes, fans will most likely be anxiously awaiting the arrival of top pitching prospect Jameson Taillon, who will most likely find himself in the Major Leagues by June or July.
With their youth, and financial savvy, my thought is that Pittsburgh's window to compete for a World Series starts now and closes somewhere in the next four years, depending on the pitching's development.
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| Side Note: I love these jerseys. |
1. Last Season and Offseason
a. 94-68 (Lost to STL in NLDS)
b. Signed Edinson Volquez 1 yr - $5M
2. Line Up/Rotation
Lineup:
1. Starling Marte LF
2. Jordy Mercer SS
3. Andrew McCutchen CF
4. Pedro Alvarez 3B
5. Neil Walker 2B
6. Russell Martin C
7. Gaby Sanchez 1B
8. Jose Tabata RF
Rotation:
1. Francisco Liriano
2. Gerrit Cole
3. Wandy Rodriguez
4. Charlie Morton
5. Edinson Volquez
3. Favorite/Least Favorite
a. Nick's Favorite – Young talent throughout organization
b. Hayden's Favorite – “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”
c. Nick's Least Favorite – Gaby Sanchez
d. Hayden's Least Favorite – Rodriguez’s $13M option ($5M paid by HOU, but still…)
4. Impact Players
a. Starling Marte
i. Quit getting thrown out stealing
ii. Cannot regress, take more walks
iii. Strike out less
b. Pedro Alvarez .
i. Repeat 2013
ii. Must walk more, less K’s
iii. Maybe try not pulling everything.
5. Impact Prospect(s)
a. Jameson Taillon
i. With Taillon ready, be on the lookout for a Wandy Rodriguez trade
b. Gregory Polanco
i. With Polanco ready, be on the lookout for an interesting Jose Tabata trade
c. Alen Hanson
i. With Hanson close, Mercer could be dealt
6. Midseason Status
a. First place in NL Central
b. Shopping for an upgrade at 1B or 3B if Alvarez is open to move to 1B
7. Bold Predictions
a. 91-71
b. Jameson Taillon win NL ROY
c. Trade Jose Tabata to NYM for 1B Ike Davis
d. Or check out Hayden's trade proposal involving Tabata.
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| But these jerseys are the ones that my heart truly admires. Honestly. And that's how I know fashion is not my forte. |
Podcast Playlist:
"Stood a Chance" by Taking Back Sunday
"Kong" by Austin Gibbs
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