Raise the Jolly Roger - A Pittsburgh Pirates Road to Redemption

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by Tim Williams / Piratesprospects.com

Pirate City Results: Pimentel Continues to Impress, Cole Gets Work Bunting

If there’s one player who has surprised me this Spring, it’s been Stolmy Pimentel. When he came over from the Red Sox in the Joel Hanrahan trade, Pimentel looked like a fading prospect. He used to be one of the top arms in the Boston farm system. He’s still regarded as a prospect, but after struggling at the Double-A level the last two years, his hype has faded.

From what I’ve seen this Spring out of Pimentel, there’s little reason to be down on him. There’s also no reason why he should have struggled so much at the Double-A level the last two seasons with this stuff.

The right-hander didn’t have his best results of the Spring today, but it wasn’t bad. He went four innings, allowing two runs on five hits, with a walk and six strikeouts. His fastball ranged from 89-96 MPH, and he was throwing his slider in the 82-86 MPH range. He threw 73 pitches, with 48 for strikes against the Phillies’ Double-A squad.

One key to his success this Spring has been the slider. It has been an out pitch this Spring, although Pimentel hasn’t thrown it that often. He started throwing the pitch last year, and felt that the pitch improved as the year went on. His numbers definitely improved, as you can see by his ERA and K% on a month by month basis.

May – 25.1 IP, 5.33 ERA, 14.3% K/PA

June – 25.1 IP, 6.75 ERA, 11.0% K/PA

July – 26.2 IP, 4.05 ERA, 22.0% K/PA

August – 27.1 IP, 3.62 ERA, 17.7% K/PA

Pimentel will be used as a starter this year, and will begin the season in Altoona. It will be difficult to tell how he’s handling the level, since this will be his third trip through the Eastern League. Any success will come with an asterisk. He should move up to Indianapolis by mid-season, since he’s on his final option year. That will be a bigger test, but first he’s going to need the numbers in Altoona. If he pitches the way he has this Spring, that success won’t be hard to come by.

Gerrit Cole Gets Practice Bunting

I was watching the short-season games this afternoon when something threw me off. The Pirates don’t have names on the back of their jerseys in minor league camp, just numbers. They provide roster sheets with the names and numbers, but those sheets don’t include players who were sent down from major league camp. At this point in camp, it can be confusing, depending on the number.

After watching a one out single, I saw number 35 step into the box. I didn’t think much of it, since Jordan Steranka wears number 35, and was on the on-deck circle. Number 35 went to lay down a bunt, and was getting a lot of instruction from the coaching staff. That was strange that Steranka, a college player, needed the instruction. After number 35 laid down a bunt, I watched as Jordan Steranka stepped up to the plate.

What?

It wasn’t Steranka who was bunting. Turns out it was Gerrit Cole, who was getting some experience sacrificing runners over. Cole stepped in almost every half inning, or when a runner would reach base. Unfortunately for the lower level pitchers, that seemed to be every half inning. The top pitching prospect went 3-for-3 in the bunts I saw, advancing two runners from first to second, and one from second to third. After the third bunt, Jameson Taillon grabbed a bat and a helmet, stepped into the box, and took a turn at advancing the runner.

Just some of the fun of Pirate City. You think you’re going to be watching Enyel Vallejo for the first time, and then you get to watch the two top pitching prospects working on their in-game bunting skills.

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Walker Primed for Big Year

Neil Walker, who was injured late last season, talks about being healthy in 2013 and his expectations for the Pirates this season.

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by Tom Singer / MLB.com

In His First Opener, Burnett Ready to Lead Bucs

PITTSBURGH -- One year ago, he was in the midst of rehabilitating from an embarrassing Spring Training mishap. But that did not prevent A.J. Burnett from making a side trip to PNC Park for Opening Day festivities.

That was a ridiculous gesture for someone who had yet to spend a single day in the city or play a single game with the team that called it home, an 1,800-mile round trip from Florida just to trot out to the third-base line and wave. But Burnett wanted to experience the occasion with his new teammates, wanted to take the pulse of fans he would be quickening for five months.

He wanted to be there because even before winning a game, he had won over a clubhouse.

"When I came over here, I became a leader. They didn't really give me a choice. I was a leader on this team last year before I got here. On my drive down [from Arkansas to Florida], I was a leader," said Burnett, whose response to that responsibility, in both emotion and performance, was brilliant. "It is what it is -- and I love it. It brings more out of me. When I take the mound, these guys all watch me, and that makes me tick."

If Burnett got such a kick out of attending a Pirates opener as a spectator, imagine how he will feel pitching one.

He gets that shot, and the ball, on Monday, winding up at 1:35 p.m. ET to deliver the 2013 season's first pitch to David DeJesus of the Chicago Cubs. Burnett will be starting his 15th season, but this will be the first he personally opens.

It could also very well be Burnett's last: He has begun to drop hints that post-2013 retirement is on his mind, such as giving it his all then "we'll see what happens after this season is over."

We do know what will happen when this season begins: Burnett will be cheered by 39,000 as he warms up in the bullpen, the cheers will grow when he cuts a path in the outfield grass toward the dugout in between catcher Russell Martin and pitching coach Ray Searage, and become deafening when he makes his slow way to the mound.

"I don't think it'll hit me till I walk on that field," Burnett said. "Yeah, I'm looking forward to it; can't wait. This is what we do; to be asked to get it off, it's really exciting. It will be fun to start the journey we're taking off on.

"There's no pressure. Besides maybe from the weather. But I can deal with snow."

That's lower-case, the left-handed-hitting J.T. Snow who used to abuse right-handers having retired a while ago. If the weather is problematic in the earliest Opening Day game in Pirates history, don't look for Burnett to show signs of distress, or even of discomfort. He will probably act like it's an 80-degree day at the beach, maybe even take the mound in short sleeves.

That is what you do when you are a team leader and 24 other guys take their cues from you. Burnett wanted that mantle when he left the Bronx and the Yankees, and finding it invigorated him and his pitching arm, from which flowed 16 victories.

"He was looking for a place to start anew, with a clean slate," manager Clint Hurdle recalled. "As soon as he walked in, he took care of the goods. He found this a good group to share his experiences with. When one of your best players is one of your hardest workers, it makes it easier for everybody."

"I go out there and try to lead by example, to motivate these guys and help them any way I can," Burnett said. "That's what keeps me coming back here every day. I consider myself that type of a player. Every time I take the mound, I do so for these guys.

"I said it a million times last year: I'm not here for my stats; I'm here to win ballgames for this team and lead it to a championship for Pittsburgh."

The Moses of Pirates baseball already has handed down his first commandment: Thou shalt not dwell on '12.

"I'm not going to answer any more last-year questions," Burnett said when the subject of last season's second-half collapse came up. "This year is about to start. The more you talk about negative things, the more it's on your mind.

"Guys figured it out. I think guys just pressed too hard, everyone tried to fix it by himself. There were a lot of bitter faces leaving the clubhouse, so we're ready to move on from that. We have to get over the fact that it happened."

The getting-over begins in earnest on Monday. Words will give way to action, the past will pan into the present.

"Now we play games that mean something," Burnett said. "Time to go."

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by Tim Williams / Piratesprospects.com

The Depth At Triple-A Forces Some Position Changes and Returns in Altoona

The cuts from major league camp left the Pittsburgh Pirates with a lot of options at the Triple-A level. Those options ended up holding a few players back in Altoona for the 2013 season. Early in minor league camp, the Pirates were playing Matt Curry, Adalberto Santos, and Andrew Lambo with the Triple-A squad. After the late cuts, all three were pushed back to Altoona. That created a roster jam in a few cases, as the Pirates had guys coming up from Bradenton at the same positions. As a result, a few of the returning prospects in Altoona will be playing at new positions this year to get their playing time in.

Matt Curry and Alex Dickerson in the Outfield

The Pirates had Clint Robinson and Matt Hague in Triple-A for most of camp. Robinson was playing first, Hague was at third, and Matt Curry was the DH, while switching off at first with Robinson. Once Jared Goedert was sent down, the order shifted. Goedert went to third, and Hague and Robinson split time at first and DH. That pushed Curry to Altoona. It’s not known whether Curry could have a shot at making the jump to Indianapolis if Robinson isn’t retained. The Pirates designated Robinson for assignment on Wednesday, and he’d have to clear waivers to go to Indianapolis. For now, Curry is with Altoona.

Alex Dickerson had been playing the entire Spring with Altoona, and will be making the jump to Double-A this year. Last year the Pirates kept Dickerson in high-A and Curry in Double-A so that both could get work at first base. This year they both need to be in Double-A, leaving a challenge for playing time. They could alternate between first base and DH, but another option came up in the last week: outfield. Curry and Dickerson have been rotating at the corner outfield spots this week in games at Pirate City, adding some flexibility that will allow them both to remain in the lineup.

The position isn’t new for Dickerson. He played outfield his entire career until joining the Pirates. He was drafted as an outfielder, but immediately moved to first base due to a lack of range. He can play a corner spot, although he’s going to struggle defensively, putting emphasis on his bat.

“It is pretty comfortable,” Dickerson said. “I didn’t feel too out of place out there. I played there for my whole life pretty much. Right now we’re just getting my feet under me, and hopefully it works out, out there.”

Curry has played in the outfield before, but only for about ten games at the JuCo level. Like Dickerson, he doesn’t have the range to be strong defensively, which puts more emphasis on the bat. Even though he hasn’t played much outfield in his career, Curry always left that window open.

“I’m comfortable out there,” Curry said. “I’ve always taken balls in BP out there. I have an outfielder’s glove. I’ve always kept it ready to go. I knew one day that it could be a chance I could jump into one of the corner outfield spots. I’m ready for it.”

Adalberto Santos Getting Time at Third Base

Adalberto Santos was an outfielder throughout college, but has been playing second base with the Pirates at times in the last few years. He’s athletic enough that he can handle the position, and he’s getting more comfortable there with more playing time.

“Everything takes reps, with any kind of position, any kind of move,” Santos said about second base. “With the reps [at second], coming from Arizona to here and doing the reps from early camp to now, I feel a lot more comfortable. Clean up some things, and it’s starting to become second nature now. It’s been a good move.”

The Pirates didn’t have any space for Santos in Triple-A, despite him hitting for a .340 average and an .858 OPS with Altoona last year. Second base in Indianapolis will go to either Jordy Mercer or Ivan De Jesus Jr. The outfield is blocked by Jerry Sands, Felix Pie, and Alex Presley.

Space is also a problem in Altoona. Jarek Cunningham will return to the level to play second base. Drew Maggi is also an option at second, and could get some time in the outfield. Mel Rojas Jr. will make the jump to Altoona this year, and will be joined in the outfield by Andrew Lambo and Dan Grovatt. When you add Maggi, plus the occasional playing time for Curry and Dickerson, there’s not much of a spot for Santos.

The solution? Third base.

Third base is a weak spot in the Pirates system. The only third baseman on the Altoona roster is Stefan Welch. He has some good power, but only hit for a .761 OPS last year with Altoona, and doesn’t profile as much more than upper level depth. Santos has been a great hitter throughout his pro career. He doesn’t have the power you’d want from a third baseman, and it’s not known if he could make up for that with his defense. He’s looked like a future utility player, so adding third base will help his value in the long run. In the short-term, it will give him some playing time with Altoona.

“I played a couple games there in Arizona,” Santos said of the position. “The transition I don’t think would be too much of a problem. I’m looking forward to it.”

Andrew Lambo Returning From Multiple Hand Injuries

Andrew Lambo won’t be changing positions. He will still be in the outfield, competing for time with Rojas, Grovatt, and guys like Santos, Curry, Dickerson, and Maggi who could get occasional time. UPDATE: A correction here. I learned today that Lambo will be getting some time at first base this year, rotating with Curry and Dickerson between first, left field, and DH. Lambo is coming off a year where he suffered from multiple hand injuries. He tore two ligaments in his Triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) in his hand. He also broke his hamate bone, which seems like a rite of passage for Pirates hitting prospects.

The hamate injury is usually a pretty big one for a hitter by itself. It can sap power for a year. Lambo’s bigger focus was the torn ligaments. He was in a cast for two months, which is longer than the recovery time after hamate surgery alone. He noted that the extra rest could have helped the hamate heal, avoiding the loss in power.

“The hamate, you’re back in like a month,” Lambo said. “The hamate surgery is quick. With tearing my ligaments, it was in a cast for two months. So I think that the hamate healed really good, to where the focus was more the ligaments. I didn’t feel anything. When I came back the only thing I was feeling was the ligaments, but the hamate was fine.”

The outfielder had a change this off-season. He did nothing. In previous years he’s played some form of winter ball, or participated in the Arizona Fall League. This time around he had a full off-season. He worked with his trainer, did some hitting, and focused on his mechanics. So far he’s looked good at the plate in minor league Spring Training games, getting a lot of hits.

“This is Spring Training, but compared to my recent Spring Trainings I felt like I’ve been a lot more comfortable locked in at the plate, and also physically,” Lambo said. “It’s a long season. I’ve seen a lot of guys have unbelievable Springs, go into the season, it’s nowhere to be found. But I’d say whether the hits are coming or not, mentally right now just where I’m at, at the plate, I feel like I’m really more prepared than I was the last couple of seasons.”

This will be the sixth year in which Lambo has spent time at the Double-A level. That’s a surprising number. What’s even more surprising is that he’s only 24 years old. He’s a few weeks younger than Curry, and he’s about a year younger than Santos. He first made the jump to the level at the age of 19, and has remained ever since. Lambo was one of the top prospects in the game heading into the 2009 season, and was the top prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers system. The Dodgers ended up trading him and James McDonald in 2010 for Octavio Dotel. He hasn’t exactly torn up the Eastern League in his time with Altoona, hitting for a .782 OPS in 2011, and a .781 OPS in 2012. He made the jump to Indianapolis in 2011, but it came with poor results. For most of Spring it looked like he might have a shot at moving up to Triple-A, but the late cuts prevented that from happening.

“You gotta work hard and stay focused, and everything is going to come into play,” Lambo said about returning to Double-A again. “You’ve got one goal, and it’s not to make the Indianapolis squad. It’s to help Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh at PNC Park. That’s my goal. I believe I can do that, and so now it’s time to show them I can. Coming into Spring, physically and mentally where I’m at, I think they’re really excited to see the kind of season that I’m capable of and that they’re ready to see. The ultimate goal is to help the big club win.”

The Brock Holt Path

When I was talking with Matt Curry about returning to Altoona and whether that was disappointing after his 2012 season, he brought up a good point: Brock Holt. In 2011, Holt hit for a .288 average and a .743 OPS with Altoona. He returned to the level in 2012, mostly because he was blocked in Indianapolis in the same way that Curry is blocked now. In 2012 he hit for a .322/.389/.432 line with Altoona. He moved up to Indianapolis, where the hitting continued with a .432 average and a 1.013 OPS in 95 at-bats. The season ended with Holt in the majors, hitting for a .292 average and a .682 OPS in 65 at-bats. Curry noted that, even though he’s back in Altoona, he could still take the same path.

“I’m still one call away from the big leagues,” Curry said. “I’m not going to try and let it affect me. I’ve just got to go in there and keep swinging the bat.”

Curry’s situation is similar to Holt’s heading into the 2012 season. Aside from being blocked in the same way, Curry also had numbers that could use some improvement. He hit for a .285/.352/.480 line with Altoona. Those are good numbers, but not the numbers you want to see from a power hitting first baseman in Double-A. An .832 OPS and a .285 average would be good in the majors, but players don’t usually carry the same Double-A numbers to the majors. That doesn’t mean Curry is going to come back and see the improvements that Holt saw. It just means he’s in the same situation, looking for improvements that will make it impossible for the Pirates to keep him in Altoona.

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by Tim Williams / Piratesprospects.com

Clint Robinson Claimed by the Blue Jays

Per the Toronto Blue Jays’ Twitter account, first baseman Clint Robinson was claimed off waivers today.

It seems like Toronto always claims Pirates players on waivers. I’m not sure yet how this will impact Matt Curry, who was bumped to Double-A due to Robinson, Matt Hague, and Jared Goedert playing the corner infield spots. At any rate, I don’t like the loss of Robinson. There were a few moves I would have made before designating him for assignment. Putting Charlie Morton on the 60-day disabled list was one. Designating Jeanmar Gomez for assignment and giving a bullpen spot to Bryan Morris was another. But it seemed like Morton would have been the easy call. I’d trade a few weeks of Morton on the active roster for Robinson remaining in the system.

UPDATE 3:52 PM: I just spoke with Larry Broadway. He said they don’t know yet if Curry will move up, and that “there’s a mix of five guys who could take that spot”. He did say Curry was an option.

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by Tom Bragg / Piratesprospects.com

Pittsburgh Pirates 2013 Season Preview: The Infield

With Opening Day less than a week away and Spring Training coming to a close in Florida, it seems like an appropriate time to take a look at what the Pirates will put on the field next Monday when the Cubs visit PNC Park.

The idea is to do one of these each day. I’ll break down the outfield, starting rotation, bullpen, bench and infield (today’s installment) individually. These are by no means meant to be a definitive prediction of what I think these players will do this season, I just wanted to get some capsules together as a sort of jumping off point. As the new guy I’m still learning more about the major league team every day after focusing on West Virginia for the site last season, so please bear with me. I’ll be more than happy to discuss the team in the comments and on Twitter (@TomBraggSports).

This is just going to be a look at the projected starters. The infield is set barring something strange happening in the next week, and I’ll get into the bench players in a few days. I’m including the catcher with the infield, so let’s just dive in there.


Catcher — Russell Martin

Russell Martin joined Pittsburgh last November, signing a two-year deal that will pay him $6.5 million this season and $8.5 million in 2014. The 30-year old spent most of his seven-year Major League career with the Dodgers before serving as the Yankees’ replacement for Jorge Posada the last two seasons.

Martin appeared in 133 games for the Yankees last year and hit a career-high 21 home runs, but also had career-worsts with a .211 batting average and 95 strikeouts. His resume includes three All-Star Game selections (2007, 2008 and 2011) and Golden Glove/Silver Slugger awards in 2007. His WAR numbers peaked that season (5.4) and have declined each year since then (2011 being the exception when he went from 1.8 in 2010 to 2.4 the follow year), bottoming out with a career-low 1.5 WAR last season.

Despite that, Martin’s history of playing for good teams and in big games should not be easily discounted. He has been a part of four Division winning teams (two in L.A., two in New York) and has helped manage quality pitching staffs for most of his career. A veteran catcher that can hit with a track record of managing quality pitchers is a good thing to have, especially for a team like the Pirates with a group of talented young arms that could possibly make their way to the majors in the coming years.

Martin’s best years are almost certainly behind him, but he gives the Pittsburgh something it has desperately needed since the Jason Kendall left town (and my high school classmate J.R. House’s body broke down) — stability behind the plate.


Third base — Pedro Alvarez

Pedro Alvarez is back for his fourth season in the big leagues and will man third base for the Pirates in 2013. A lot is expected of Alvarez, who turned 26 in February, at the plate this season after posting 30 home runs with .784 OPS last season.

He does come with a downside — his 27 errors were tied with Chicago’s Starlin Castro for most in the National League, his 180 strikeouts were second worst in the NL and he has not been much of a threat against left-handers. That said, he can hit the fastball a LONG way and anything close to his 30 home runs from a year ago make the negatives sting much less.


Shortstop — Clint Barmes

Most of the time when a club has to fill its shortstop position with someone who is not a top-level talent it has to settle. Do you want to produce at the plate or in the field? With Clint Barmes, Pittsburgh chose to settle for defense.

Barmes hit for power, struck out and walked at career-low rates in his first season with the Pirates, and certainly some of that can be attributed to spending the bulk of his career in hitter-friendly stadiums in Colorado and Houston. Barmes was not brought in for his bat though.

His Fielding Runs Above Average, a defensive metric you might be familiar with from Baseball Prospectus, was second among National League shortstops in 2012. He played in 142 games last year (even appearing at first base once) and committed 16 errors in a career-high 1,161 innings played. Paired with Neil Walker, Barmes gives Pittsburgh a solid defensive duo up the middle.


First base — Garrett Jones/Gaby Sanchez

Garrett Jones is a big guy (6-foot-5, 240 pounds) that hits for power — exactly what you want from your first baseman at the plate. The trouble is he struggles badly with left-handed pitchers. His 27 home runs were a career-best. His offensive numbers improved greatly last season, thanks in part to manager Clint Hurdle’s habit of keeping him out of the batter’s box against lefties.

The Pirates will platoon at the position, with Jones in the lineup against right-handed pitchers and Gaby Sanchez handling first against lefties.

Sanchez is two years removed from an All-Star appearance with the Marlins but found himself playing in the minors at one point last season before being shipped to Pittsburgh. He does not provide as much pop as Jones, but Sanchez hits well against lefties and helps give Hurdle options.


Second base — Neil Walker

Neil Walker continued to be an above-average offensive player and he has settled in as a legitimate second baseman with his defense improving every year. He hit .280 with a .768 OPS and accounted for 14 home runs last year. He’s not especially powerful, but he is certainly consistent.

At 27, Walker is entering the prime of his career and barring injury (such as the back issues the slowed him late last season) there is plenty of reason to be optimistic about the native yinzer’s future.

Except, perhaps, his contract situation. Walker is slated to make $3.3 million this season but is not under contract beyond 2013. I’m certainly not a front-office type person, but it seems to me like the Pirates would be doing themselves a favor by locking Walker into a long-term deal to stay in Pittsburgh.

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by Tom Bragg / Piratesprospects.com

Pittsburgh Pirates 2013 Season Preview: The Starting Rotation

The Pirates starting rotation shaped up to be a battle for one spot, but Jeff Karstens started having shoulder problems. Karstens appears likely on his way to a spot on the disabled list to start the season, which opened up another place in the rotation.

A.J. Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez and James McDonald have all been penciled in in the top three spots for a while now, and word came in the middle of the week that Jonathan Sanchez would be Pittsburgh’s No. 4 with Jeff Locke in as the fifth starter. With Francisco Liriano, Charlie Morton and Karstens available to step in after missing the start of the season with injuries, depth does not appear to be problem.


A.J. Burnett

Burnett is scheduled to be the Opening Day starter for the Pirates coming off a pretty good first season in Pittsburgh . His 3.51 ERA was his lowest since 2007 when he was with Toronto, and he had his first 200-inning season since 2009.

He’s 36, so a return to his production during his time with the Blue Jays is a bit far fetched but if Burnett sets the pace for the rest of the staff with numbers comparable to what he did last season it would go a long way toward the pitching staff doing its part to put the club in position to contend in the National League Central. On the flip-side of that, however, is the fact that Burnett is 36. If he regresses back into the pitcher he was his last two seasons with the Yankees, a lot will be asked of those back of the rotation guys to get the quality innings the team will need. The Pirates are only on the hook for slightly less than half of Burnett’s $16,500,000 salary (the Yankees will pay $8.5 M) and while the team waits on Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon to mature into big league roles, Burnett seems like a good guy to have around.


Wandy Rodriguez

Rodriguez has been a workhorse with no less than 190 innings pitched in each of the last four seasons. Much like Burnett, if he can stay healthy and keep that pace in 2013 it will go a long way toward helping the Pirates chances of contending. Clint Hurdle mentioned how squeezing innings out of his top two starters can help put the Pirates in positions to win games.

“The guys that crunch numbers within the game, it all goes back to using your bullpen when you want to, and not when you have to. You’ve got to get innings out of your starting pitching,” he said. “If you look at the teams that play late, get innings out of their starting rotation. It’s not the quality start. That’s not what you’re looking for. You’re looking for guys with seven ups and downs and give you a chance to win and keep you in a ball game. And throw 100 pitches on any given night and can go above that. They’re horses, and those two guys have done it.”

Rodriguez has proven himself to be that kind of pitcher. He was the anchor in the starting rotation for some terrible Houston teams. He fired a gem for the Dominican Republic against Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic, allowing just two hits and no runs in six innings of work to help get a 2-0 win. Starts of that caliber are the kind Hurdle will hope for to help give the bullpen a break.

Rodriguez’s strikeout numbers have dropped each year since posting a career-high 193 punchouts in 2009. He carries a career ERA slightly above 4 (4.03, to be exact) but hasn’t had an ERA that high in a single season since 2007.

It does not seem likely that either Rodriguez or Burnett are going to have Cy Young-type seasons at the top of the Pirates rotation (and if that’s where your expectations are, well, good luck with that), but with the team poised to break out after consecutive seasons of hard lessons learned then the value of what they bring to the club cannot be understated. Both guys are veterans that can provide stability and even do some teaching with a deep but ultimately inexperienced pitching staff.


James McDonald

McDonald, one could argue, is the biggest question mark in the rotation. During the first half of 2012 he was one of the Pirates best pitchers, but in the second half he was wildly inconsistent and was bumped out of the rotation and into the bullpen.

McDonald’s 4.21 ERA last season matched a career-worst he set the previous season, but on the whole his walks were down and his strikeouts were up.

Tim went into detail about the J-Mac dilemma back in February:

Prior to his implosion, McDonald had a 2.37 ERA in 110 innings, with a 100:31 K/BB ratio. In the first half of the season he looked like an ace. It was like someone flipped a switch at the All-Star break and turned him into a 4-A starter for the second half.

If we go back a bit further, McDonald had a 4.21 ERA in 171 innings in 2011, with a 142:78 K/BB ratio. He had a 4.21 ERA in 171 innings in 2012, although his xFIP was worse in 2011 (4.46 vs 4.21). He saw slight improvements in his strikeouts, walks, and home runs. His BABIP in 2012 was lucky (.269 vs .302 in 2011) and his LOB in 2012 dropped to around the league average of 70.8%.

Looking only at the second half of McDonald’s 2012 season, and assuming that’s what we can expect going forward, is the wrong approach. Saying that McDonald shouldn’t be guaranteed a rotation spot because of that second half ignores the larger sample of results. It’s the same reason you shouldn’t say McDonald could be an ace this year because of his first half. He was two different pitchers, each for half a season, and neither version defines him going forward.

What we can expect going forward is probably closer to the overall results. The last two years he had a 4.21 ERA in 171 innings both times. Last year his advanced metrics lined up exactly with that 4.21 ERA. So if you’re putting expectations on McDonald for the 2013 season, that’s probably a good place to start. He probably won’t have a hot and cold season like he did in 2012 to get there. He also could end up better or worse than those numbers, but the 4.21 range is the most likely scenario.

There’s not much I can add here, so let’s move on.


Jonathan Sanchez

The Pirates were put in a tough spot when Karstens’ shoulder opened up a spot in the Opening Day rotation. Pittsburgh added Jonathan Sanchez to the roster earlier this week to fill the No. 4 spot.

He’s coming off what, to put it bluntly, was a terrible year. He started 2012 with Kansas City before being moved to Colordado. His combined ERA of 8.07 in 15 appearances (he threw just 64.2 innings last season) jumps out as a red flag. Sanchez turned 30 last November, and while he seems like a prime target to be replaced when the injured starters start to come back, the hope should be that he can approach his form from 2010 when he won 13 games with a 3.02 ERA and a 9.5 K/9 ratio. Digging yourself a hole early in the season with poor pitching is something every team wants to avoid. With depth not a long term problem for the Pirates’ staff, anything good they can get out of Sanchez early in the season is a positive.


Jeff Locke

Of the Pirates’ projected starting pitchers, Locke is the baby of the group. He’s 25 and came to Pittsburgh as part of the Nate McLouth deal with Atlanta (along with Morton). He only has 51 big league innings on his resume and has show consistency in camp. Locke struck out three in six innings with no runs allowed and no walks in Pittsburgh’s final Grapefruit League game against the Yankees on Thursday.

The argument could be made that Kyle McPherson had a better camp than Locke, but for the time being, Locke is the No. 5 starter. Stay tuned.

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by Quinn Roberts / MLB.com

Indians Trade Jeroloman to Bucs for Cash

The Indians traded catcher Brian Jeroloman to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday for cash considerations.

In 16 games for the Indians during Spring Training, Jeroloman hit .136 with one double and one RBI.

Bouncing around the Minors since 2006, Jeroloman was drafted by the Blue Jays in the sixth round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft.