PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – He didn’t mention any names, but Pirates GM Ben Cherington said June is the time where you will see players moving within the minor leagues and from the minor leagues to the majors.
“There is a player development plan for every player in the minor leagues,” Cherington said during his show on The Pirates Radio Network and 93.7 The Fan Sunday. “That means that every single player is actively working towards something or combination of things. We want to check all boxes-worth ethic, professionalism. We go through a check list. The player development group will meet and discuss that.”
Each situation is unique, each can be impacted by other players, not just the minor league guys going up, but the Major League team pushing back down. Cherington did not mention, nor was asked, about any specific player.
Ke’Bryan results
He set a career-high with four RBI on Friday and has seven runs batted in over his last four games, Ke’Bryan Hayes has raised his average 20 points over the last five games.
“Just happy for him, we know we talk about this,” Cherington said on 93.7 The Fan and The Pirates Radio Network. “There can be a lagging thing between work and outcomes. You can be working on the right things, focused on the right things and outcomes don’t always follow immediately.”
“Underneath the hood, Ke’Bryan has a lot of the necessary qualities to be a really good hitter-hits the ball really hard, makes contact, generally makes good swing decisions. He’s trying to put himself in a position to impact the ball more, to get to more productivity with the hard contact.”
“(It’s a) Combination of what he is swinging at, where is the barrel, where is he making contact. He’s been working so hard at that. It can be frustrating. Just really happy he’s starting to see some outcomes that hopefully he can feel good about it. That the hard work is paying off.”
“He’s such a difference-maker defensively, we really believe there is a good offensive player in there. He’s working hard on that.”
New SS
Cherington said the trade of reliever Robert Stephenson to Tampa Bay was dealing from a position of strength while helping solidify their depth at shortstop. Alika Williams is 24, 6’1”, 180 pounds and the 37th overall pick by the Rays in the 2020 draft out of Arizona State. The Bucs GM said he scouted the right-handed hitter a lot for that draft and Williams also was high school teammates with Bucs AAA OF Cal Mitchell and Cape Cod teammates with AAA 3B Jared Triolo.
“Trying to add and solidify our middle infield mix ever since (Oneil) Cruz went down,” Cherington explained with Greg Brown. “We want to continue to try and find depth, especially on the defensive side. It was an opportunity to add someone we like. We think can help us in the long-term, but also in the short-term can be a solid defensive option for us.”
Cherington said Williams had played in AAA before, but was playing in AA because he was blocked by a Tampa Bay prospect. He will play shortstop predominantly after hitting .237 with 11 doubles, five home runs and 23 RBI in AA for the Rays.
Ortiz pulled?
The Cardinals went back to their starter after a one-hour rain delay on Saturday, but the Pirates did not with Luis Ortiz. Cherington fully supported that decision.
“We know how important he is to us long-term,” Cherington explained on The Pirates Radio Network and 93.7 The Fan. “He’s a young guy who we think can be a part of our pitching staff for a long time. Once he got past about 40-45 minutes, it was taking on too much risk to put him back out there. He’s too important for us to do that.”
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Underwood return
Not at the MLB level, but veteran right-handed pitcher Duane Underwood cleared waivers and has reported to AAA. Cherington said he believes Underwood can still be an effective pitcher in the majors but needs to work on his slider and use his cutter more. He will get that opportunity to get on a regular schedule with Indianapolis. Cherington added he could be back ‘very soon’.