Positional Previews - 2b/ss
Yes...its finally time to continue around the infield with my Pirate positional previews for the 2005 season. Last time, I
previewed catcher and first base. Since then, of course, the Bucs have pretty much upset the apple cart at catcher. But that's the price you pay for previewing the 2005 season in October 2004!
Anyway, this time I'll briefly discuss 2b and ss. Don't forget my handy dandy grading scale:
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Parker - major or primary contributor on a championship quality team
Bibby - solid performer on a championship quality team
Reynolds - bit player on a championship quality team
Distefano - it would be difficult to win a championship with this performance from an everyday player
Hermanson - it would be impossible to win a championship with this level of performance from an everyday player
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Second Base - Reynolds
2004 - The Pirates entered 2004 with a huge question mark at second base. Jose Castillo, Bobby Hill, Freddy Sanchez, and Rob Mackowiak were in the mix. The early favorite, Sanchez, never got out of the blocks due to injury. Eventually, Castillo emerged as the regular and became a mild surprise, while Hill and Mackowiak filled important roles as reserves.
2005 - Castillo showed enough, especially defensively, that the Pirates rightfully will enter training camp assuming he will be the everyday second baseman. This is probably the one position that the Pirates are least likely to look to fill from outside the organization for 2005. The Pirates actually have more depth at this position than any other. In addition to the players already mentioned, Ty Wigginton can also play at second base if needed. Regardless, it will be considered a major disappointment if Castillo can't hold on to the job in 2005.
Long term outlook - Castillo remains the best long term answer at second base, with Sanchez landing at third base. Defensively, he is the best in the organization, and that goes a long way when you are trying to build with young pitchers. If Castillo can improve his terrible plate discipline (23 walks against 92 k's) and continue to flash some modest power (8 hr), second base could become a tem strength.
Darkhorse long term scenario - Jack Wilson prices himself out of Pittsburgh. Casillo takes over at shortstop, and Sanchez takes over at second.
Shortstop - Bibby
2004 - If not for the emergence of Oliver Perez, Jack Wilson would have been the biggest story of the '04 season. It's no exagerration to say that Wilson was the best shortstop in the NL. Wilson is a rare player who can claim that he was the best both defensively and offensively at his position in the league.
2005 - Barring injury, flood, or major earthquake, you can expect to see Wilson play another 150+ games at shortstop. The only question is, which Jack Wilson will we see? That's impossible to answer. If Wilson reverts to pre-2004 form, his '04 season will stand out as one of the true fluke seasons of all time. Wilson had a significant uptick in his power numbers, as evidenced by his 64 extra base hits. Unfortunately, his plate discipline remains miserable, possible indicating that he will have a difficult time maintaining his gains in bating average. In any event, the Pirates and Wilson find themselves in a unique situation this off-season as they try to negotiate a multi-year extension. My guess is that Wilson will end up in arbitration again in the hopes that he can repeat his '04 performance and cash in next season.
Long term scenario - If the Pirates are unable to sign Wilson to a multi-year extension during this off-season, then it is unlikely that Wilson will be around for more than another season. Why? If Wilson reverts to his pre-2004 form, the Pirates will not want to commit to Wilson beyond his arbitration years. However, if Wilson shows that 2004 was not a fluke, then he likely prices himself out of a Pirate uniform.
*Rev. 12/26/04 - I just realized I neglected to put my grade on each position. I've added them above.
Predicting the future
Imagine the following, not as unlikely as you might think, scenario:
Spring training, 2005-
JR House is having a tremendous spring.
Cota is, well, Cota.
Santiago is having a mediocre but not disastrous spring.
What should Littlefield do?
In this case, the "right" thing to do is to bring House and Cota north, let them compete for playing time, and send Santiago on his way. But that won't happen. Since Littlefield dealt a decent arm to get Santiago, he is under pressure not only to bring him north, but also to give him significant playing time.
Here's a case where Littlefield has painted himself into a corner. There is virtually no way that Santiago does not make this team. Littlefield knows that the media will jump all over him for repeating the Chris Young debacle.
Signing Santiago is a tacit admission that the Pirates do not think JR House is going to be a major league catcher. To be honest about it, I can't disagree with this assessment since I've only seen House play 1 minor league game. But based on House's performance last season, he earned the right to have his 2005 assignment determined on the field.
Reaching for the stars?
1. Signing Jose Mesa to be your closer, relegating your promising corps of relief arms to another year of situational duty
2. Acquiring Matt Lawton in his contract year
3. Trading a pitching prospect (Nunez) for a geriatric backup catcher (Santiago), thus stallng the advancement of a promising catching prospect (House).
Are these the moves of a team trying to rebuild toward a championship, or are these the moves of a team desperate to reach (and therefore peak) .500 as soon as possible? I'll let you decide on the evidence.
The GM has changed (Bonifay to Littlefield), but the methods are the same. At least Littlefield is better at finding short term solutions. That's the difference between 60 wins and 75 wins.
The market value of pitching
After seeing the Benson, Wells, P.Martinez, and other contracts being given to pitchers this off-season, I'm starting to think we should have gotten more for Leo Nunez than Benito Santiago. Maybe that's just me.
I'm also starting to think that Fogg at $3 mill per season is a bargain.
Memories...
I just remembered that the war in Iraq was suposed to be paying for itself by now, through oil revenues? Is that happening yet? Is anyone in the media holding anyone accountable for anything? I suppose if it turned out the president was taking steroids, then there would be some outrage.
Pirates acquire Rookie of the Year...from 1987
According to the
Kansas City Star, the Pirates have completed a trade with Kansas City to acquire Benito Santiago for minor league pitcher Leo Nunez.
I think Santiago could fill a valuable role on the Pirates. However, I have 2 problems with this deal if it does go through.
First, veteran catchers who can play 60-90 games a year and hit .250 with minimal power are a dime a dozen. Why give up a pitching prospect to acquire this single season, part-time solution?
Second, this pretty much seals the deal that the Pirates are expecting Cota to be "the man" next season. This is a huge mistake I think.
Still, this is better than the rumors about Charles Johnson.
