Dan Gamache was selected by the Pirates in the 2011 amateur draft out of Auburn, where he played third base. Gamache hit very well in his first two years of college, with an OPS of 1.146 in his first year and 1.024 in his second year. His production declined in his third year of college, but he still hit for a decent OPS of .878, leading to his selection in the sixth round of the draft.
In college, Gamache didn't hit for a lot of power, which assisted in the Pirates' decision to move him over to second base as a pro, where his offense was more suitable for the position. He struggled in the field in his 26 games for the Pirates in the rookie level Gulf Coast League and State College (Short Season) last year, where he committed nine errors. Six of these errors came at third, with the other three coming at second. However, Gamache is said to be a strong defender with good range and a good arm, so these struggles shouldn't continue down the road. So far with Low-A West Virginia in 2012, he has played six games at second and six games as the DH, and has yet to play third.
As for his hitting, Gamache has yet to impress with his bat. In his limited time in the minors, he has hit for .262 average and .695 OPS in a total of 126 at bats, all in the lower levels of the minors. For a hitter that had success for three years in college, you would expect better production. To this point in 2012, he has improved slightly with a .268 average and .744 OPS. It is still very early in his career, so there is definitely a chance that his offensive numbers will rise in the future.
Gamache is still young at 21 years old, and has good defensive ability and is talented enough to hit, at least at the lower levels. He will probably stay at second base for the most part down the road, but with fellow prospect Jodaneli Carvajal playing primarily second base, Gamache will probably see at lot of time as the DH. At the plate, he could hit for a decent average, but unless he adds power to his game, he will probably end up as an organizational player in the upper levels of the minors.
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