2013 Positional Preview: Second Base

Ever since he overtook Akinori Iwamura as the starting second baseman in 2010, there has been no question on who will be penciled in at the number 4 position on the Pirates opening day roster.  A fan favorite.  The Real Deal.  The Pittsburgh Kid.  Neil Walker.  Over the past three seasons, Walker has emerged as one of the best second baseman in the National League, both offensively and defensively.  In 2012, Walker put up a WAR of 2.5, a career best, with a line of .280/.342/.426 and an OPS of .768.  He also hit a career high 14 home runs, but saw his RBI production drop a little from 83 in 2011 to 69 in 2012.  He was limited to 129 games in 2012, and his numbers were brought down after battling injuries throughout August and September, where he hit a combined .235/.280/.357 with 3 HR's, 14 RBI and an OPS of .637.

Walker's injuries in August and most of September gave an opportunity for Brock Holt to get everyday playing time at the major league level.  After hitting .432 with a 1.013 OPS in 95 at bats in AAA, Holt was called up to help the major league team and found himself as the starting second baseman for the majority of September.  In total at the major league level, Holt had a line of .292/.329/.354 with an OPS of .682.  Holt has always dealt with a lack of power, and his calling card has always been a high average and a high on base percentage.  Regardless, none of those will be present in 2013 for the Pirates as Holt was traded to the Red Sox in the Joel Hanrahan deal over the offseason.

Now for 2013:

Starter: Neil Walker
Walker should be the Pirates starting second baseman for at least a few more years.  If his back holds up, Walker should have another solid season in 2013, with an average around .280-.290 with approximately 15 home runs.  He will do this while playing great defense at second and being a clubhouse leader that can really ignite the fire in his teammates.  With Walker, it is a pretty safe bet on what you're going to get production-wise, but the Pirates will still hope that Walker becomes the .300, 20 home run hitter that he has the outside chance of being.

Bench Options: John McDonald, Brandon Inge, Josh Harrison
The only player on this list that is guaranteed to be on the opening day roster is John McDonald, who was recently acquired from the Diamondbacks for a player to be named later or cash.  The 38 year old McDonald is not an offensive threat in any way, with a career OPS of .608, but he is considered one of the best defensive middle infielders in the game, at least as a bench option.  He plays mostly shortstop, but has also played second in his career.  Brandon Inge will have a roster spot, but at this point it remains to be seen if he will start on the DL or not after being hit by a pitch recently.  Inge used to be an average to slightly above average power hitter, but that attribute is long gone.  All he can really bring now is some veteran leadership and some versatility in the infield.  But, he has only appeared in six games at second, but all six came in 2012.  Josh Harrison could start the year on the 25 man roster if Inge starts on the DL, but should find himself in AAA when Inge returns.  Harrison has the most offensive upside of these players and can play decent defense at second, third, and short.  Personally, I would rather see Harrison than Inge, but that seems unlikely.

Minor League Players We Could See This Year: Ivan De Jesus Jr., Jordy Mercer, Chase D'arnaud
I could see either De Jesus Jr. or Mercer taking over every second base duties if Neil Walker goes down with an extended injury.  De Jesus was acquired in the Hanrahan deal from Boston, and is a similar player to Brock Holt.  He puts up a good average and gets on base at a good rate, but doesn't hit for much power.  He is now labeled a second baseman after a lengthy leg injury in 2009, but still has the ability to play shortstop, and has displayed good defensive instincts in the past.  Mercer is mainly a shortstop, but plays average defense at second.  His bat plays well at both second and short, with above average power for a middle infielder.  D'arnaud was viewed as one of the top prospects in the system prior to 2010, but has struggled offensively since then, especially when he got a chance at the major league level in 2011 (.528 OPS in 143 AB's).

The only real question facing the Pirates' second base situation is: How long will Neil Walker be in Pittsburgh?  A possible extension for Walker has been a hot topic since Jose Tabata received his extension back in 2011.  Walker definitely seems willing to spend his entire career in Pittsburgh, but not much progress has been made on an extension over the past year.  This could be because the front office is waiting to see if Walker's 2012 back injury lingers into 2013.  If it has no effect on his play, then we could an extension for Walker in the near future that could keep the Pittsburgh Kid in a buccos uniform for a long time.

Any questions or comments can be sent to me on twitter @mikemaw45 or in the comment section below.

2012 Roster Possibilities: Shortstop

    A lot of people have different opinions on what the Pirates’ shortstop situation.  There was controversy before the season, during the season, and now.  The Pirates went into the off-season following the 2010 season looking for a shortstop upgrade after a very inconsistent campaign by Ronny Cedeno.  The team drafted shortstop Josh Rodriguez as the first pick in the Rule 5 draft, but he only had 12 at bats before he was gone.  Fans were disappointed when the team missed opportunities to acquire players like J.J. Hardy and Jason Bartlett, and instead stuck with Cedeno.  Bartlett’s season did not meet expectations, but Hardy played far above expectations.  He hit 30 HR’s, something that would have been great for the Pirates this year.  However, it is far from guaranteed that he would have had the same success with the Pirates.  Cedeno, on the other hand, saw a slight drop off in offensive production, but he played above average defense all year, and stayed consistent for the most part.  He is probably a little worse than a league average shortstop, but that is acceptable for a 90 loss team.  
    When Cedeno went down with an injury in early July, rookie Chase D’arnaud took over as the everyday shortstop.  He played terribly, but if someone would’ve said that D’arnaud would be in the majors this year after his performance in AA during the 2010 season, they would have been laughed at.  But because of his play for the Pirates this year, he should start 2012 in AAA.  He wasn’t major league ready in 2011, so he will have to work on many aspects of his game.  In the minors, he was a decent fielder, but that changed when he reached the majors.  He saw his career minor league fielding percentage at short of .957 drop to .936 in the majors.  He also hit very poorly, with a .217 average and .528 OPS.  Clearly, he wasn’t ready to be in a Pirates uniform.  Brandon Wood and Pedro Ciriaco both contributed at shortstop, but Wood will most likely be non-tendered and Ciriaco is at best a utility player.
    In the current free agent market, there are multiple options that the Pirates could look at.  I found ten names that the front office may consider, and I have put that into five different groups, including players that : have slightly better production than Cedeno, have contract options but are slight upgrades, are big offensive upgrades, aren’t going to happen, and the Jack Wilson group.

Slightly Better Production Than Cedeno
This group consists of Clint Barmes, Edgar Renteria, and Jamey Carrol.  All three of these players have the ability to be an offensive upgrade to Cedeno, but they haven’t had great numbers.  Each player had an OPS higher than Cedeno, with Barmes and Carrol hovering around .700 in 2011, while Renteria had similar production to Cedeno.  The Pirates will only consider players that are they consider definite upgrades to Cedeno and that are affordable, so that pretty much puts Renteria out of the picture.  Barmes would give the Pirates a power upgrade with similar defense, and Carrol would give the team a guy that knows how to get on base.  Barmes is a decent option and probably the most likely in this group because the Dodgers may want to keep Carrol, at least as a bench option.
Players With Contract Options
This group consists of Yuniesky Betancourt and Rafael Furcal.  Betancourt has a $6 M option, and Furcal has a $12 M option, both being club options.  It is hard to imagine either the Brewers or the Cardinals exercising these options, but I believe the Brewers may try to sign Betancourt at a lower price.  That leaves Furcal, and he would not be a good sign for the Pirates.  His offensive numbers aren’t much better than Cedeno’s, and his defense is much worse.  It does not seem likely that either of these players will end up in a Pirates uniform.
Big Offensive Upgrades
Alex Gonzalez and Marco Scutaro make up this group.  Gonzalez would provide a big power boost at the shortstop position, along with decent defense.  Scutaro had a very good offensive year in 2011, hitting .299 with an .781 OPS, which are both above his career averages.  At 35, it is unlikely he would reproduce these numbers.  That could be leverage for the Pirates, but unfortunately the Red Sox have a $6 M club option on him, and unless they are able to sign Jose Reyes, they will most likely exercise that option.  Gonzalez would be a nice player to have, but the market for above average shortstops is usually competitive.
Not Happening
This group is Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins.  Reyes had an amazing year, and Rollins has already expressed interest in resigning with the Phillies, so don’t get your hopes up.  Reyes will either resign with the Mets or go to a big market team, so the Pirates really have no chance at either of these players.
Jack Wilson Group
This group is made up of only Jack Wilson, and I only included it because I couldn’t resist.  I don’t believe there is any chance we will see Wilson in a Pirates uniform again, but it’s still a nice thought.  He is terrible offensively and similar to Cedeno defensively, and the Pirates have too many internal options to consider Wilson for a bench spot.  Sorry, but Jack Wilson’s days with the Pirates will continue to be no more.

There could be many teams looking for a shortstop, so that may make any free agent signing difficult.  The most likely options for the Pirates to consider are Barmes, Carrol, Gonzalez, and Scutaro.  I believe the best option out of this group would be Alex Gonzalez because he could provide a big power boost, along with good defense at short.  He would definitely be affordable, so the Pirates should go after him and make a competitive offer.

Even if the Pirates don’t find an external option at short, they still have Cedeno to start.  He is a decent option with good defense, and that would be a good fit for a pitch-to-contact pitching staff.  Pedro Ciriaco is out of options, so there is a good chance he will be on the team next year, probably as a bench player.  They also have Chase D’arnaud, Jordy Mercer, and Brock Holt as options, and all three should start in AAA.  It would be nice to see Mercer up sometime, as he has power and is a good shortstop defensively.  Mercer could be a player similar to Alex Gonzalez, so it would be nice if the Pirates could sign him to mentor Mercer.

There have been many calls for the Pirates to replace Cedeno at shortstop, and they will have another chance this offseason.  There are multiple free agents, but Alex Gonzalez would be the best option.  If the Pirates don’t exercise Cedeno’s $3 M option, they will definitely make a competitive offer to a free agent, most likely as one to two year deal.  They have internal options, but no one seems ready to take over as a full time starter, so a player like Gonzalez would be a big help for the team.