PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – They know. No one knows it more than the Pirates they aren’t scoring runs. They want fans to know they’re putting in the work and it’s going to change.
Bucs manager Don Kelly said before the Tuesday night game with the Reds they are trying everything to fix the hitting issues. From the stuff that is more global to individual targeted work. What Kelly promised is this team is not going through the motions. They are working hard at every drill.
To that point, the struggles haven’t been one issue and it’s unique for every player.
“They all have different things -- some guys struggle with high fastball and velo, some guys with sink, and they're working on those different shapes,” Kelly said Tuesday afternoon. “Some guys with off-speed stuff that they need to get better at. There are individual plans with each guy when they get into the cage and on the field that they're working on to try and get better and match shapes to what we're gonna see that night from the pitcher that's coming in.”
If only it were one or two or three players, it’s pretty much been the whole lineup except for Alexander Canario this month. Many of the players are pressing to make it better, which might be causing more issues. Kelly is aware of what they haven’t done. The first time in team history they have scored less than five runs for 24 straight games. Just 10-games into his managerial career, Kelly said they aren’t getting caught up in it, rather, they are caught up in what they can do every at bat to improve.
Kelly said first-year Pirates, and first-year MLB, hitting coach Matt Hague is putting a lot of pressure on himself to turn this around. He’s trying to stay grounded. The Bucs manager said the advantage with Hague and his experience is that he understands the grind of a season. He’s a positive person and trying to keep the players upbeat. Hague wants the players to know they are working on a plan to make them better.
Even with all of the coaching, it’s ultimately up to the players. Kelly said they are putting in long days to make it right.
“They all want to be the guy that comes through with the big base hit,” Kelly said. “Somebody's going to soon and we're gonna put up some runs and it's gonna be a lot of fun.”