Austin Meadows' big-league career is barely a series old, and he's already applying bona fide pressure on the rest of the Pirates' outfield.
Good. That's as it should be.
The kid's always had talent. Just couldn't stay in the lineup. And now that he's here, even if it's just a 5-for-11 start with a home run, a couple RBIs and a steal, that absolutely should be enough for Clint Hurdle to pen his name on the card tonight in Cincinnati and regularly enough to see if he's for real.
But know this, too: Meadows isn't about to bump any single individual from an everyday role.
Gregory Polanco's batting .224 and, as such, would appear to be a candidate for such a bumping. There's way more to the equation, though, and Hurdle and the Pirates will be smart to see it: Polanco's also got a .335 on-base percentage thanks to a team-high 25 walks, and he's also got a team-high eight home runs. Overall, his .797 OPS ranks 10th among all Major League Baseball right fielders.
No modern manager benches that player because of a batting average.
And if it's batting average that anyone exclusively craves, Polanco's got at least one extra-base hit in seven of his past nine games, over which he's gone 10 for 35 -- a healthy .286 -- with two home runs, five doubles and four RBIs. The only thing different between Polanco and Meadows in that same span is that Polanco isn't the shiny new toy.
Still, I'll repeat: Meadows needs to play. So where?
The answer, I'm hoping, will be anywhere. For anyone.
Starling Marte's off to a terrific if underappreciated start at .308/.366/.503 with six home runs and 10 steals, and get this: He's only twice had back-to-back hitless games all season. That said, he's due for a cooling-off correction. Even if that's slight, even if it looks like he simply needs a breather, there's now another center fielder in the fold.
Corey Dickerson's been almost as good at .307/.343/.494 with five home runs and a team-high 29 RBIs, and his being a newcomer has made him feel all the more valuable. That said, he was even better at the midpoint last season for the Rays, batting .312/.355/.548 with 17 (!) home runs, only to plunge to a post-break .241/.282./.408. So if he starts to struggle, there's now another outfield option beyond Adam Frazier, Jose Osuna and Sean Rodriguez.
The at-bats are there for Meadows.
But even before his arrival, the Pirates ranked third in the National League for home runs by outfielders and No. 1 in the majors for OPS by outfielders.
Buzz Lightyear will get his turn under the tree.
• There's nothing Josh Harrison loves more than playing in his native Cincinnati, as he was telling me the other day at PNC Park.
"It never gets old," he said. "You're there in front of your family and friends, you hear them shouting for you ... it just brings out the Little Leaguer in you, you know?"
He's tremendous.
• Losing three in a row to the Padres might have been overdue, given that the Pirates had gone a crazy 17-5 against sub-.500 teams before that. But that's got to stop. The Reds have stabilized since firing Bryan Price last month -- not that their miserable pitching staff was his fault -- in going 8-5 over their past 13. Doesn't matter. With two series each coming against the Cardinals and Cubs, as well as the first-place Diamondbacks and the billion-dollar Dodgers, the wins on the table have to be taken.
• Does anyone realize the Pirates currently have the 10th-best record in the majors but the fourth-best in the Central, albeit by just a half-game?
• Some drama-free OTAs would make for a fine kickoff, right?
There will be a bunch of variables in play as the Steelers formally open offseason workouts this morning at the Rooney Sports Complex. Chief among them, I think, will be any signs suggesting how they might deploy their safeties closer to the line of scrimmage. That could be fascinating, actually.
But yeah, in the intangible sense, it sure would be a welcome departure if they all somehow made it through the day without making any unnecessary headlines. Depending on who shows for this early phase -- and a reminder here that it's legitimately voluntary until later in the month -- the captains and other team leaders can say all the right stuff, do the drills to the best of their ability and set the standard, if you will, for what's to come.
No, I'm not among the many who cite the drama as the primary cause of the Steelers falling short last season. That happened for the very boring reason that the Jaguars were able to manhandle their defensive front seven. But I am of the mind that it's part of the problem.
Never too soon to start on the solution.
• Le'Veon Bell won't be there. That doesn't qualify as drama because he doesn't have a signed contract. Remind a friend.
• If any sport should benefit from more public support for players seeking more money, it's football. The careers are the least certain and come with the least length. According to the NFL Players Association, the latter is only 3.3 years. And they're getting dramatically shorter, as a decade ago, that figure was 4.9.
• The shortest NFL career by position?
It's often repeated that it's running back. It isn't. It's wide receiver at just 2.6 years.
The longest is the offensive line at 3.8 years.
Don't say you never learn anything here.
• Come on, it's at least a little fun watching hockey's generational goal-scorer going full-bore to finally make the Final, isn't it?
My thoughts on an unreal Alexander Ovechkin this spring:
• The Lightning will take Game 7 of the Eastern final and the Stanley Cup. I believed they were the team to beat heading into the season, and that was before Steve Yzerman loaded up at the deadline. Anything can happen, obviously, especially with a one-and-done in the East and a rested opponent waiting in the West. But the talent's on Tampa's side.
• The Derick Brassard trade, and all related events, are taking on the feel of some collective comeuppance for all Jim Rutherford's many masterful moves that preceded it.
That's not to dismiss Brassard. The guy had a groin injury and wasn't himself in the playoffs. He'll be fine next season. But that trade was about this season, this Cup, and that's why seeing this seemingly daily barrage of reminders about it -- seriously, Ryan Reaves scores the Final-clinching goal? -- might sting all the more.
It shouldn't. Rutherford was really smart, but he also benefited from some big-time luck along the way, lest we forget Trevor Daley and Jamie Oleksiak showing up for a song. That luck was bound to boomerang to a degree, and it did: His primary target got hurt.
Life and hockey go on.