We’re only 10 days out from the official start of the 2023 MLB season. Despite the projections not playing too kindly on the Bucco’s part, there’s still a lot of excitement in what’s considered a ‘fun’ team going into the season.
- Starters: Mitch Keller, Rich Hill, Roansy Contreras, JT Brubaker, and Vince Velasquez
This was the expected opening day rotation going into Spring Training. Keller is getting the nod for his first opening day start. Johan Oviedo and Luis Ortiz were two youngsters who could’ve potentially challenged for a spot in the rotation if they greatly impressed, but after less than impressive results it seems they’ll be starting their seasons in Triple-A. Expect to see both of them later on in the season though.
- Bullpen: David Bednar, Duane Underwood Jr., Wil Crowe, Chase De Jong, Colin Holderman, Robert Stephenson, Dauri Moreta, and Daniel Zamora
A lot of the bullpen remains unchanged from last season. The loss of veteran Jarlin Garcia left a lefty sized hole in the Pirates pen. Non-roster invite Daniel Zamora seems like the best fit to replace Garcia, having been apart of three MLB seasons himself (on top of having a killer stache). Young lefty Jose Hernandez could also get consideration to fill Garcia’s role, with him already being on the active roster. Hernandez’s numbers haven’t looked great this spring though, giving up 6 runs in just over 7 innings.
- Catchers: Austin Hedges and Kevin Plawecki
A lot of people would probably like to see the electric prospect Endy Rodriguez get a shot here after posting over a .400 BA (at this point) in spring, but it’s more likely he’ll join the team mid-season with the Pirates already assigning him to Triple-A to start the season. The final spot will be in close contention though with Tyler Heineman also getting some thought alongside Plawecki. It comes down to Plawecki being better offensively and Heineman being better defensively. With Hedges already being a poor hitting plus defensive catcher, it seems likely Plawecki aka Plaw Dawg gets the spot (It also helps he caught Rich Hill on the Red Sox last year).
- Infield: Ji-Man Choi, Carlos Santana, Ke’Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz, and Rodolfo Castro
Most of the infield was a lock coming into the season. Choi and Santana are expected to share time at first and DH as well. The one spot that was up for contention was second base with Castro, Ji Hwan Bae, Tucupita Marcano, and new addition Mark Mathias all being considered for the job. None of them really stepped up this spring to solidify the roll, but with Castro seeing the most game time, it seems likely they’re preparing to have him slide in on opening day.
- Outfield: Bryan Reynolds, Andrew McCutchen, and Jack Suwinski
It appears Reynolds is going to see a lot of time in left field this season after getting a lot of reps there in spring and likewise for Suwinski in center. Manager Derek Shelton says they still want to play B-Rey his fair share in center and that they’re just giving Suwinski reps so he can be more comfortable with the position for the future possibly. It’s possible McCutchen misses out on opening day now too after picking up an elbow injury, if that’s the case a spot for Miguel Andujar may open up.
- Bench: Connor Joe, Travis Swaggerty, and Ji Hwan Bae
Though Bae may miss out on the second base job, he could still see a decent amount of playing time in various roles being a capable center fielder as well. Travis Swaggerty is the big story here as he appears to lock down the fourth outfield spot after putting up crazy numbers of .379/.419/.690 with 3 HRs and 10 RBIs this spring. Canaan Smith-Njigba also put up a strong contest but was nowhere near the production of Swaggerty. I think Drew Maggi also deserves a shout of consideration here as the 33-year-old career minor leaguer put up numbers similar to Swaggerty, .391/.440/.870 with 3 HRs and 8 RBIs, but not getting the same consideration because of his age most likely.
One thing is for certain, even if they don’t break .500, this rebuilding Pirates roster will be entertaining to watch on the field this year and be a big stepping stone year for the organization.