Argh, Matey! I need to throw myself in the trash after that horrible intro. Anyway, the Pirates were close to finally ending their streak of 20 straight seasons below .500 - this is going back to the Doug Drabek days. Not Kyle, Doug. Alas, they fell apart in the second half faster than your skin after you turn 50. They are in better shape than they were 8 years ago or so and with pitching reinforcements on the way. So with that, let's take a look at the Pittsburgh Pirates...
Starting Lineup
LF Starling Marte
2B Neil Walker
CF Andrew McCutchen
1B Garrett Jones
3B Pedro Alvarez
C Russell Martin
RF Whoever the hell gets this job
SS Clint Barmes
Let's break this apart. Marte is not your prototypical leadoff type: he's got a bit more pop and is not the 30-40 SB type. By default, he gets the job. Walker and McCutchen are the best, most consistent hitters on this team. No worries with them. Jones mashes righties and he'll platoon somewhat with Gaby Sanchez. Alvarez is extremely streaky: he can hit .100 for a month, then hit .350 with 10 home runs in another. He finally put it together somewhat last year - hopefully he can hold. Martin solidifies the lineup. Barmes is just a placeholder. RF, in my best guess, is going to be a platoon. Alex Presley or Travis Snider will platoon with Jerry Sands or Jose Tabata. If Pittsburgh is smart, they trade one of them for pitching and the other is the 5th OF. Inconsistent labels this lineup well - there are worse, but there are better.
Starting Rotation
SP AJ Burnett
SP Wandy Rodriguez
SP James McDonald
SP Francisco Liriano (Kyle McPherson)
SP Jeff Karstens
Burnett was solid after moving back to the NL. He and Rodriguez are a solid veteran 1-2 punch, but not exactly Strasburg and Gonzalez. McDonald was fantastic in the first half and awful in the second. He's got the stuff but needs to put it together. I don't buy Liriano at all. Karstens has been a solid pitcher out of the 5 spot. I'm interested to see what Kyle McPherson can do - he's pitched to solid ERAs and K rates in the minors. He does not have the Jameson Tallion or Gerrit Cole notoriety but he can pitch. Give him a shot.
Bullpen
CL Jason Grilli
SU Mark Melancon
SU Tony Watson
SU Jared Hughes
SU Justin Wilson
SU Chris Leroux
The no-name bullpen of effectiveness. I have Grilli as a sleeper closer. Melancon's gotta return to form to be effective. Watson and Hughes were very effective middle relievers. I would also expect Andy Oliver to get a long look for a bullpen spot. At least Manager Clint Hurdle has some options to work with.
I really want to see Pittsburgh succeed. I do. I cannot put this team above 75-78 wins and 4th place right now. The pitching has to come through to succeed. Let's see how a Rodgriuez/McDonald/McPherson/Cole/Tallion rotation does in 2014.
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