For the entire season, the Pittsburgh Pirates have been carried by their pitching staff, while seeing their offense struggle. The biggest disappointment so far has been Pedro Alvarez, who was expected to be the leader of the offense, both this year, and for years to come. The Pirates also had some disappointments from the free agent class, with Lyle Overbay and Matt Diaz failing to live up to expectations.
Going in to the trade deadline, the need for offense clearly was the top priority. The Pirates addressed that need by adding Derrek Lee and Ryan Ludwick. The deals weren’t major splashes, but they should each upgrade the team, as we’ve already gotten a glimpse of the impact Lee can have in the lineup after his two homers last night.
As I detailed yesterday, trades can still be made in August. It’s just a bit more complicated. The Pirates can still pursue upgrades this month, although there will be a lot of upgrades that will come internally, due to the large amount of players coming off the disabled list. Let’s take a look at the team as it stands right now, and focus on how each position looks, where the team could use an upgrade, and what possibilities could exist for an upgrade.
Catcher
Starter: Michael McKenry
Backup: Eric Fryer
Internal Options: Ryan Doumit (Return from DL), Chris Snyder (Return from DL)
External Options: Ramon Hernandez
Analysis: McKenry and Fryer are holding down the catching duties for now, and doing a good job. The position will get a boost when Ryan Doumit returns sometime next week. That will probably result in Fryer being sent down to AAA to catch everyday, only to return on September 1st when rosters expand. Snyder also will probably return in September, giving the Pirates four catchers, and five if you assume Jason Jaramillo gets the call.
The Pirates don’t need external help with the way McKenry and Fryer have been playing, but it will be interesting to see if they try to acquire some help during the August waiver period. One intriguing option would be Ramon Hernandez. If the Reds start falling out of the race, they could try to unload Hernandez, who makes $3 M this year, so that they can call up top prospect Devin Mesoraco. If that happens, it will be interesting to see if the Pirates take advantage of a situation like that. There was some talk about Hernandez before the trade deadline, specifically with the Giants interested. Pittsburgh picks before San Francisco in the August waiver process.
First Base
Starter: Derrek Lee
Backup: Steve Pearce
Internal Options: John Bowker, Matt Hague
External Options: N/A
Analysis: The Pirates added Derrek Lee at the deadline, and they added him to be the starting first baseman. He’s been on a hot streak lately, and had a strong second half last year. If he can continue his hot streak, and have a strong second half this year, he will hold down the position very well. I don’t see him being replaced for the remainder of the year, especially if he puts up more performances like the one we saw last night.
Second Base
Starter: Neil Walker
Backup: N/A
Internal Options: Chase d’Arnaud, Josh Harrison
External Options: N/A
Analysis: There’s not much to say here. Neil Walker is the starting second baseman, and I don’t see that changing after a month where he put up a .366/.404/.485 line in 101 at-bats.
Shortstop
Starter: Ronny Cedeno
Backup: Brandon Wood
Internal Options: Chase d’Arnaud (Return from DL)
External Options: Omar Infante
Analysis: Cedeno has been the best option for the Pirates this year, and the Pirates are thin at the position behind him. Chase d’Arnaud is currently on the disabled list, but didn’t look ready for the majors when he was replacing Cedeno the last time around. Pedro Ciriaco isn’t good offensively, but can handle the position defensively. Brandon Wood is poor defensively, and hasn’t been much more than a bench bat offensively.
It will be interesting to see if the Pirates try to trade for Omar Infante of the Florida Marlins. We heard rumors prior to the deadline that they were interested in Infante, although Florida didn’t seem to want to deal him to anyone. He would be a better bench option than Wood or Ciriaco when Cedeno is the starter, and he would be a good defensive replacement for Cedeno if he suffers another injury this year.
Third Base
Starter: Pedro Alvarez
Backup: Brandon Wood, Steve Pearce
Internal Options: N/A
External Options: Aramis Ramirez, Ty Wigginton
Analysis: Alvarez has struggled since coming back up to the majors, and might have been called up too early after what amounts to a good week in AAA. The Pirates don’t really have any internal options to replace Alvarez, and the best case scenario would be for him to start hitting. If he doesn’t start hitting, they could go with an external option. We’ve heard that they had interest in Ty Wigginton, who could be an August waiver trade candidate. It will also be interesting to see if the Cubs decide to deal Aramis Ramirez. Both the Cubs, and Ramirez, say that they don’t want a deal, although there has been some indication in the past that they could deal Ramirez in August. The Pirates would assume anywhere from $3-4 M in an August trade.
Center Field
Starter: Andrew McCutchen
Backup: Xavier Paul
Internal Options: Gorkys Hernandez
External Options: N/A
Analysis: Just like Neil Walker at second base, McCutchen has this position locked down. He’s struggled lately, but the Pirates aren’t replacing him.
Left Field/Right Field
Starter: Ryan Ludwick, Garrett Jones
Backup: Xavier Paul, Steve Pearce, Matt Diaz
Internal Options: Alex Presley (Return from DL), Jose Tabata (Return from DL), Gorkys Hernandez, John Bowker
External Options: N/A
Analysis: I paired these two together because there’s a lot of uncertainty, both short term and long term, with how the Pirates will handle things. In the short term, I can’t imagine a situation where Ryan Ludwick isn’t starting. The question is, do they start Jones or Paul in the third outfield spot? Once Alex Presley comes back (which should be next week), Jones and Paul will move to the bench, and there’s a possibility that one, or both, could be off the roster. The long term question is, what happens when Tabata returns? Do they move Ludwick to the bench? Do they have Ludwick split time with Presley?
My ideal scenario for the short term would be bringing up Gorkys Hernandez, and starting him over Paul and Jones. Hernandez is one of the best, if not the best, defensive outfielders in the system. He also would provide the lineup with speed. Worst case, he’d be a better version of Xavier Paul. Once Presley and Tabata return, I’d move Ludwick to the bench, as I don’t think he should be taking playing time from either of the young outfielders.
Bench
Players: Eric Fryer, Matt Diaz, Brandon Wood, Steve Pearce, Xavier Paul
Internal Options: Ryan Ludwick, Garrett Jones, Chase d’Arnaud, Michael McKenry, Josh Harrison, Gorkys Hernandez
External Options: Waiver Trades
Analysis: The bench should get a boost once injured players start returning, thus pushing current starters back to the bench. We could also see some minor leaguers brought back up in September when rosters expand. I wouldn’t rule out a waiver claim, although I don’t think the Pirates will pay much for a bench upgrade.
Starting Rotation
Rotation: Kevin Correia, Jeff Karstens, Paul Maholm, James McDonald, Charlie Morton
Internal Options: Ross Ohlendorf (Return from DL), Brad Lincoln, Rudy Owens
External Options: Waiver Trades
Analysis: I’ve talked a lot this year about how the pitching staff has been playing over their heads. A month ago I pointed out that pretty much every starter in the rotation was due for a regression. We’ve been seeing that out of Charlie Morton and Kevin Correia lately. Jeff Karstens has struggled some in his last few outings. Paul Maholm seems to be the only pitcher who has avoided a regression so far. The Pirates have some internal help. Ross Ohlendorf is set to return from the disabled list sometime next week. Brad Lincoln and Rudy Owens are two options in AAA that can step in if the Pirates need to replace someone from the rotation. We could even see the Pirates move to a six man staff. I don’t see them looking for external help in this area, although if a lower tier starter came along in a waiver trade scenario, I could see them making that type of deal to add to their depth.
Bullpen
Closer: Joel Hanrahan
Bullpen: Chris Resop, Jose Veras, Daniel McCutchen, Jason Grilli, Joe Beimel, Tony Watson
Internal Options: Chris Leroux, Tim Wood, Daniel Moskos, Brad Lincoln, Ross Ohlendorf, Bryan Morris, Evan Meek (Return from DL)
External Options: Waiver Trades
Analysis: The bullpen has been a strong point this year, and it should receive a boost in September when rosters expand. The uncertainty of the rotation, and the extra arms could provide some more bullpen options. If the Pirates make a move in August, it would likely be for depth. Bullpen moves aren’t hard to come by in August, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Pirates went that route. It was only a year ago that they gave the bullpen a boost by adding Chris Resop and Chan Ho Park off of waivers in the first week of August.
