I thought 21 would be a good number of players to put on this list in honor of the most valuable player in Pirates history, Roberto Clemente. This list will be done in countdown style, with the most valuable player coming last on the list. Enjoy!
21.) Garrett Jones
WAR: 1.9
High WAR: 1.6 in 2012
Jones played 437 games for the Pirates across three years under Clint Hurdle mainly in a platoon situation, providing a power bat against righties. Overall he hit 58 home runs from 2011-2013, and had his best season in 2012 when he batted .274 with 27 home runs. He was never quite able to duplicate the success of his rookie season in 2009, but Jones offered a solid left handed bat for the Pirates during his tenure.
20.) Jeff Locke
WAR: 0.4
High WAR: 1.1 in 2013
It wasn't too long ago that a player with Locke's stats would have been seen as the ace of the Pirates pitching staff. Although Locke has definitely seen his share of struggles, he has in reality been a solid starting pitcher for the Pirates. He's been a mainstay in the rotation since the start of 2013, putting up an ERA of 3.88 over 427 innings. That includes two extremely strong half seasons, including the 2013 season when he was an All-Star, showing the he has the ability to be a very strong major league pitcher. However, we all know that he can get lit up at times when he isn't locating his pitches, but overall since 2011 he has pitched 478 innings over 86 games (84 starts), and has had two sub-4 ERA seasons as a major league starter. His WAR number is brought down because of a combined -0.6 WAR in 2011/2012, but at the end of the day, Jeff Locke has actually been surprisingly valuable to the Pirates.
WAR: 2.3
High WAR: 0.9+ in 2015
Believe it or not, Hughes has been with the Pirates during every season of the Hurdle era, pitching in 228 games over five seasons. During those five seasons, he has put up three strong years compared to two average to below average years. He is an extreme ground ball pitcher, with a 61.2% ground ball rate over that timespan, and has definitely benefitted from the Pirates use of defensive shifts. Hughes has a 2.08 ERA combined over 2014 and 2015, and he adds a lot of value by looking pretty damn intimidating on the mound.
WAR: 3.5
High WAR: 2.5 in 2011
It seems to me that the performance of Jeff Karstens in the Pirates rotation was somewhat overlooked, but he was the best starting pitcher the Pirates had in Hurdle's first season. That year, he posted a 3.38 ERA and a 2.5 WAR, a number that is pretty solid for a starting pitcher. He only pitched in 49 games, including 41 starts, under Clint Hurdle, but he displayed great command in his 253 innings with a 1.71 BB/9 rate. He was an underrated and dependable starter for Clint Hurdle over his first two years as the Pirates manager.
WAR: 2.1
High WAR: 2.1+ in 2015
Cervelli had a tough job of following Russell Martin as the Pirates starting catcher, but he has thrived in the starting role. In his first 93 games as a Bucco, Cervelli has posted a .307 average and an .808 OPS while providing solid defensive value behind the plate. He has worked extremely well with the pitching staff, and is the huge energy guy that every team needs. If Cervelli wasn't in only his first season with the Pirates, he would be much higher on this list.
WAR: 3.5
High WAR: 3.5+ in 2015
Kang and Cervelli can be interchangeable in these spots, but Kang had a significantly higher WAR and has played many different roles, so he got the advantage in the rankings. Kang put up huge numbers in the KBO, but was the first player to make the transition from the Korean league into the MLB. There were a lot of questions on how Kang's performance would translate to the MLB, but do you know who wasn't worried about those questions? Jung Ho Kang. He has responded by putting up a line of .285/.356/.444 in his first 100 games, with 10 home runs and an OPS+ of 121. He's done this while filling in and playing strong defense at third base and shortstop, wining NL Rookie of the Month in July and being a Rookie of the Year candidate. He is truly paving the way for other KBO players to have the chance to play this great game of baseball that brings cultures together across the world.
WAR: 4.9
High WAR: 2.8 in 2014
There was a time in Mercer's career where nobody really knew if he was on the major league team or not. I'm referring to his rookie season when he was on the major league team, but he played so scarcely that it was easy to forget he was on the team. However, he got the chance to be the starter for half the season in 2013, and he took full advantage of it by batting .285 with a .772 OPS that season, good for a 117 OPS+. The Pirates have stuck with him as the starting shortstop since then despite very poor starts to the last two seasons offensively. Nowadays, most of Mercer's value comes from his vastly improved defense, which grades out as well above average.
14.) Jason Grilli
WAR: 2.3High WAR: 0.9 in 2011/2013
Grilli spent parts of four seasons with the Pirates, including about a season and a half as the team's closer. Grilli earned an All-Star nod in that role in 2013, a year where he posted a 1.97 FIP. From 2011-2013, Grilli was a dominant late inning reliever, striking out 12.4 batters per nine innings while giving the Pirates great value in their first real playoff run in 2013. Overall, he had 47 saves for the Pirates before being traded for Ernesto Frieri after struggling in 2014.
13.) Joel Hanrahan
WAR: 3.7
High WAR: 2.5 in 2011
Despite playing only two years under Hurdle, Hanrahan made only 35 fewer appearances than Grilli did in a Pirates uniform, and was even more dominant. The Hammer was an All-Star in both those seasons, posting a 2.24 ERA and 76 saves as the team's closer. He struggled with his command in 2012 and was eventually traded in that offseason to the Red Sox, but he had a 2.5 WAR as a closer in 2011, including a 203 ERA+ (100 is average). Luckily, the Pirates received another very valuable player in the Hanrahan trade that will appear on this list.
WAR: 2.5
High WAR: 1.9 in 2011
Say what you want about Morton, but he has thrown more innings for the Pirates than any other pitcher during the Clint Hurdle era by a relatively wide margin. He has made 116 starts since 2011, posting a 3.84 ERA, including a 3.26 ERA in 20 starts in 2013. When he's on his game, he throws a plus sinker and an above average curveball that give him the makings of a mid-rotation starter. His stats over the last five seasons would suggest that he's not too far off that mid-rotation starter mold.
WAR: 7.6
High WAR: 5.3 in 2014
Before 2014, Harrison was a bench player that brought value by playing at least average defense at multiple positions. He had always hit very well in the minors, but the opportunity wasn't there for him to start in the majors making it seem as though he would be a career utility guy. That changed in 2014 when he finally began to receive regular starts, and he worked himself into the starting lineup as the season continued. He finished batting .315 and finished ninth in the NL MVP voting after posting a 5.3 WAR for the season. He's another guy that has somewhat surprisingly been around since 2011, playing 447 games over that timespan and providing value wherever he could for the team. He's not ranked higher on this list because he's technically only had one good year, although it was a pretty special season.
WAR: 6.2
High WAR: 2.5 in 2014
Like Hughes and Harrison, Watson debuted with the team in 2011 and has been with them every year since then. Unlike Hughes and Harrison, Watson provided solid value in every year of his career with a 2.57 ERA spanning 311 games with an ERA+ of 143. He was most dominant in his 2014 All-Star season when he posted a 222 ERA+ in a league-leading 78 appearances. In his career, he has a 1.03 WHIP and hitters have a combined .598 OPS against him, including a .555 OPS against lefties.
9.) Mark Melancon
WAR: 6.4
High WAR: 2.4 in 2014
Out of all the relievers that have pitched for the Pirates since 2011, Melancon has been the best. He's been a two time All-Star in 2013 and 2015 and has posted an absurd 223 ERA+ in 201 games with the team. He's recorded the most saves of any Pirates closer over the Hurdle era at 86, which ranks him fifth all-time in Pirates history. He's had a 5.81 K/BB ratio as a member of the Pirates, an 0.94 WHIP, and the near assurance that any time he comes in for the save, he's going to get the save (please forget last night).
8.) Pedro Alvarez
WAR: 4.6
High WAR: 3.3 in 2013
If there's been a more polarizing Pirate over the Hurdle era, I haven't seen him. Most fans have supported Alvarez throughout his career because of his potential to be one of the best hitters in the league during any given month. We've seen that over the past month, as he's posted a .347/.382/.681 batting line with a 1.062 OPS and seven home runs in 76 plate appearances. That has brought him up to a .785 OPS on the year, making this second best offensive season in terms of that stat. There are players that are behind Alvarez on this list that have higher WARs, but the fact is that outside of Andrew McCutchen nobody has carried the team like Pedro Alvarez has done for extended periods of time throughout his career. He's played six years in the major leagues and has posted only one below average hitting season, which was his second year when many players struggle with the league adjusting to them. While Pedro never fully lived up to his potential, he has provided game changing power to the team that no other player has done, and I guarantee most pitchers are not comfortable with him at the plate. He's led the team in home runs with 107 over the Hurdle era, led the NL in home runs in 2013, has played in 605 games, and was a Silver Slugger and All-Star in 2013. A lot of people, including the Pirates management, wanted to see Pedro traded this season, but give the man credit when its due.
7.) Gerrit Cole
WAR: 5.7High WAR: 3.2+ in 2015
The Pirates have not had a true, bona fide ace since the early 1990's, but it looks like they finally have one in 2011 number one overall pick Gerrit Cole. Although some recent struggles have probably taken him out of the Cy Young race, he was looking like one of the best pitchers in the MLB this year, earning his first All-Star appearance and still being tied for the league lead in Wins. The Pirates can't really ask for much more than his 3.13 ERA in his first 65 career starts, and just like he did in his rookie year in 2013, the Pirates will turn to him to lead the pitching staff in the final six weeks of the season heading into the playoffs.
6.) Francisco Liriano
WAR: 7.1
High WAR: 3.0 in 2013
Liriano has probably put up the best numbers of any Pirates starter during the Hurdle era, with a 3.25 ERA in 78 starts over the last three seasons. Before Gerrit Cole this season, Liriano was the ace that the Pirates were looking for to match up with the top starters for other playoff teams and for the most part, Liriano has done that job. He came over as somewhat of a reclamation project, and has turned into a true number two starter for the Pirates that has the ability to pitch like a number one starter on any day. I believe that when his command is working well and he's at his best, Liriano has three plus pitches in his fastball, slider, and changeup that make him a better pitcher than Gerrit Cole at his best. He has struck out 9.5 batters per nine innings for the Pirates with a 7.2 H/9 rate, and finished 9th in the Cy Young voting in 2013.
5.) A.J. Burnett
WAR: 6.3
High WAR: 2.3+ in 2015
Burnett's impact and value on the team can't fully be measured by statistics, even though his stats are very good. It was a big deal when the Pirates acquired the then struggling Burnett from the Yankees for two low level prospects prior to the 2012 season, with the team hoping he could regain the stuff that made him worth a five year, $82.5 million with the Yankees prior to the 2009 season. He's surely surpassed all expectations that anyone could have had for him for the Pirates, with a 3.32 ERA in 82 starts and plenty of strikeouts, including 209 in 2013. In what he has repeatedly said to be his last season, he earned his first All-Star bid after starting the season with a 2.11 ERA in 18 starts during the first half. Most importantly, he helped to revitalize the Pittsburgh Pirates fan base and brought energy and leadership to a team that badly needed that from a player. When he received a video tribute when he wasn't even on the team anymore last season, that showed how important he was to the team.
4.) Neil Walker
WAR: 13.9
High WAR: 3.9 in 2013
While the Pittsburgh Kid has never been an All-Star or an MVP caliber player, he's surely been valuable to the Pirates. Despite battling injuries, Walker has put up the third highest WAR and has been one of two position players that has been a starter throughout the Hurdle era. He's been an above average major league hitter in each of the five years under Hurdle according to his OPS+ numbers, playing in 666 games as one of the top offensive second baseman in the majors over that time span. He won the Silver Slugger in 2014 and has been a fan favorite in Pittsburgh since 2010 when he officially became the team's starting second baseman.
3.) Russell Martin
WAR: 9.7
High WAR: 5.5 in 2014
If you read my "Least Valuable Players" list, you would know that Martin is following the least valuable player at catcher during the Hurdle era. He worked extremely well with the pitching staff, provided a massive upgrade defensively behind the plate, and did a solid job with his bat. He caught 39.5% of runners compared to 6% by Rod Barajas the year before Martin came to the team, and posted a .402 OBP in 2014. He finished in the top 25 in MVP voting in both his years with the team, and was a big reason in the development of some of the pitchers that he caught in his two years with the team.
2.) Starling Marte
WAR: 14.9
High WAR: 5.4 in 2013
This seems like it may be a little high for Marte, but this is already his fourth year in the majors and he has put up the second highest WAR of any player during the Hurdle era. He's been an above average major league hitter in each of his four years, including a 2013 season when he put up at least ten doubles, triples, home runs, and stolen bases. He's the best defender on the team and one of the best defensive left fielders in the majors, with great speed, range, and a canon for an arm. With the ability to play Gold Glove caliber defense along with the bat to hit first, second, third, or fifth in any major league lineup, he is an extremely valuable asset.
WAR: 31.2
High WAR: 8.1 in 2013
Who else could it be? McCutchen has helped bring the Pittsburgh Pirates back to the national stage as one of the most exciting players in the league during Hurdle's tenure. He's had three consecutive top 3 MVP finalist seasons, including winning the NL MVP in 2013, and has been an All-Star in each of the last five seasons. He's also won three straight silver sluggers, played in a team high 731 games, had an OBP of .394, and has posted four straight seasons with a WAR of at least 5.7 heading into 2015. But enough about his awards and stats. Cutch has helped to make baseball fun again in Pittsburgh. He has helped bring excitement to a fan base that hadn't had much for two decades. He has been one of the best players in the majors since his debut, and is an excellent face of the franchise for one of the most historic teams in major league history. He's already one of the best players in Pirates history, and the team, city, and fans couldn't ask for a better representative for the city of Pittsburgh.
Any questions, comments, or suggestions can be sent to me on twitter @MicMaw, or in the comment section below.
Whew!! As I read from #20 to #5, I panicked that you were going to miss the second most valuable player in the Hurdle era. While I disagree with your #4 ranking, I am glad NFW made the top of your list!
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