SARASOTA, Fla. -- Who could conceivably know enough about the Pirates' already-anointed starting third baseman who's got 16 whole games of big-league experience to his name?
Here's guessing it's no one. And with reason.
I finally got a look at Colin Moran, one of the Gerrit Cole acquisitions, Friday afternoon in the 10-8 loss to the Orioles at Ed Smith Stadium, and it was a quality first impression: 3 for 4 with an RBI double. One of the singles was a bleeder up the middle, but the double was lofted to the base of the center-field fence. He didn't play in the field as the day's DH, but the bat played plenty.
But again, no one knows anything.
It's wholly understandable why the Pirates have lined him up to roll every day: Jung Ho Kang's done. David Freese is 34, and giving him the job would make the front office's plan -- which currently seems to range anywhere between an all-out rebuild and, you know, winning that sixth World Series -- all the more convoluted. And Moran, at the pivotal age of 25, isn't exactly a prospect in the strictest sense.
Also, hey, they gave up their No. 1 pitcher in a salary dump, so any visible return would be welcome on a lot of levels.
So he's got to play. I get it.
Here's the concern: Moran's Class AAA line of .308/.373/.543 with 19 home runs looks terrific, but it came with Fresno of the Pacific Coast League, and anyone in the sport will attest that PCL hitting numbers, particularly power numbers, are inflated because of altitude and other factors. Actual mathematical formulas exist for translating PCL numbers to the real world.
Here's another concern within that: Moran shows a long, long swing that bears an uncanny resemblance to that of Adam LaRoche. An American League scout had pointed out that similarity to me before the game, and it was unmistakable upon watching him. The bat was taking basically a guided tour of the stadium with each cut. The scout noted that, in another Grapefruit League game this spring, Moran was late on 90-mph fastballs.
Take all of that for what it's worth. It's springtime.
However, take this seriously: If Moran were to have an April or May in the manner of, oh, LaRoche, that'll be quite the cross to bear for a lineup that's going to need all cylinders going all summer.
• A better idea, if all else was equal: Start Josh Harrison at third, and stick Adam Frazier at second.
Wait. Just wait. Hear me out.
J-Hay's an outstanding defender at second, not as strong at third per his advanced metrics, but he's still better there than anyone on the roster. And Frazier, who's now shut out of left field with the acquisition of Corey Dickerson, isn't an outstanding defender anywhere on the diamond, but his best position has, in fact, been second.
That's the defense. But the defense should be second priority.
Frazier can flat-out hit.
I'm certainly not saying that because he went 3 for 3 Friday with a bases-clearing triple and a double, the former coming in the first inning on a ferocious hop over the outstretched glove of Baltimore first baseman Mark Trumbo:
I'm not even saying it because Frazier, through 187 games in Pittsburgh over the past two seasons, is slashing .283/.347/.402 and, at age 26, is basically just as old as Moran, though with more experience and more reason to believe.
No, I'm saying it because Jim Leyland raves about Frazier. Just loves watching him hit, from the patient approach to the tight swing to the pop that many see as still coming into the equation. The old skipper, still active in baseball circles, thinks Frazier could become an impact player in the bigs before long.
Good enough for me!
After the game Friday, I asked Frazier about having to battle for his at-bats with Dickerson's arrival, and the clubhouse's least-chatty individual didn't disappoint:
OK, so he's no Martin Luther King as an orator. But he can hit. And while the Pirates legitimately needed another left fielder, they might already have their infield issues solved without Moran.
• I've got a full, separate column on Tyler Glasnow's fun Friday.
• Starling Marte, after an RBI double, a steal, a fine running catch on a sinking liner and a nearly spectacular robbery of Manny Machado's home run: "I just missed it. Just missed. Maybe I can't play anymore."
A huge grin followed.
• Jacob Stallings looks so much like his dad that I half-expect him to go 0 for his first 18 at the plate.
Sorry. Too easy.
But no really, check this out ...
• A lot's changed at so many of these great old spring ballparks like Ed Smith Stadium, which also has included the Reds and White Sox among its occupants, not to mention nearly annual facelifts.
But the best change, by far, is the addition of the safety netting. Especially down here. The first row of fan seating is so much closer in most spring ballparks than in the bigs, and I can't even count the number of terrifying incidents -- screaming liners, splintered bats -- I've witnessed, let alone how many actually occur. To boot, there are so many very young and very old fans at these games and, since the games are meaningless, there's an easier tendency to look away.
This is so much safer, so much smarter.
• Finally from down here, if you'll excuse me ... A-hem!
I've been pounding this point for years, that this front office's No. 1 shortcoming has been a debilitating inability to draft and develop talent, and the above ESPN article by David Schoenfield pounds it further with hard data: The Pirates are the absolute worst in Major League Baseball in this regard in the 10 years since Neal Huntington, Kyle Stark, Greg Smith and Joe DelliCarri have been drafting.
I can't recommend the full article fiercely enough, but these are the three money paragraphs:
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According to TheBaseballGauge.com, the Pirates produced the least amount of talent in the majors in 2017: Just 12.3 WAR came from players originally signed or drafted by the Pirates. The Cubs led the majors with 58.1 WAR. That disparity explains the 17-win difference between the Cubs and Pirates a lot more than Bob Nutting’s unwillingness to increase the club’s payroll. It’s a minor miracle the Pirates won 75 games with such little homegrown talent.
What happened? After the Pirates drafted Neil Walker in the first round in 2004 and Andrew McCutchen in 2005, they had eight picks in the top 10 of the draft from 2006 to 2013, but those players have combined for just 23.0 career WAR. Only Jameson Taillon remains in the organization after the Cole trade.
Huntington became general manager at the end of 2007 and has presided over 10 drafts. He and his lieutenants simply haven’t drafted well.
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Oh, my.
For those who don't know, Walker and McCutchen were drafted by Dave Littlefield and Ed Creech.
This is why I've gone out of my way to stress that Nutting is culpable for what's gone wrong, but it's so much less about payroll than what most seem to accept. It's about a lack of accountability. Nutting himself has stated -- and in forceful tones -- that the organization's top baseball priority should always be to develop internal talent. And yet again, it's exposed as the No. 1 shortcoming.
Four more years for everyone!