Four of the Pirates' infielders assumed their positions four hours before first pitch Wednesday; Josh Bell at first base, Jose Osuna across the diamond, and Pablo Reyes at shortstop with Kevin Kramer standing a few feet next to second base.
Joey Cora, the team's infielders and third base coach, moved from player to player, delivering individualized instruction, some of which was utilized during a 2-1 win over the Royals to secure a series sweep at PNC Park later that night. This wasn't some impromptu coaching session, either. Every game day, hours before the gates open at whichever ballpark, infielders gather to field ground balls and perform structured drills, even with the season drawing to a close.
This particular practice allowed Osuna, Reyes and Kramer, all of whom spent much of this season in Triple-A, to receive major league instruction at positions they could possibly play for the Pirates — now 77-74 and winners in 11 of their last 14 — next season. And these sessions have only grown in importance, as the club's infield defense has again been one of its prominent weaknesses.
"I think it’s very clear that our corners can get better defensively," Neal Huntington told reporters Sunday in Milwaukee. "Josh Bell has worked hard to get better, but we still have room for improvement. Colin Moran, I think would be the first one to admit to you, the speed of the game was a bit faster than he anticipated, and he’ll have a good offseason and improve there.... We know that we need to get better defensively in the infield, and our guys are working on that. Whether the internal personnel’s there, we’ll take a look to see what’s available externally, but our infield defense is definitely an area where we can get better. Our guys know that and are going to work hard to do that.
With a promising young pitching staff and an ailing Gregory Polanco, the Pirates' strength entering next spring will likely be run prevention, much like it's been for the second half of this season. Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams and Joe Musgrove will be back. So will Chris Archer, who struck out eight over seven innings Wednesday to earn his second win with the Pirates.
Their bullpen has also emerged as one of the best in the National League and isn't expected to lose any of its talented arms this offseason. However, the defense has been detrimental. As a team, they rank 22nd in the majors in defensive efficiency, a statistic that measures how likely a defense converts a ball in play into an out, and haven't ranked within the top 20 since 2014.
Their greatest weakness, Huntington said, has been at the corners. Bell, 26, ranked fourth among NL first basemen in defensive runs saved last season, according to FanGraphs, but he's tied for last in the majors this season, costing the Pirates nine runs. His ultimate zone rating, which puts a run value to defense by determining the runs a player saves with his glove, ranks 30th.
Bell was an everyday outfielder until he began playing first base during the Arizona Fall League in 2014 and began working with Kevin Young, a former first baseman hired by the club as a special assistant. That work yielded progress as a rookie in 2017, followed by regression this season, particularly with his throwing arm.
Moran's strong, accurate throwing arm was compared to former Gold Glove winner Vinnie Castilla by Clint Hurdle, but the 25-year-old third baseman's issue has been actually getting to ground balls. Moran, acquired as part of the Gerrit Cole trade, has shown limited range at the position, which has contributed to his negative-7 defensive runs saved — the worst mark among qualified third basemen in the majors.
"Get quicker," Moran said of his plan this offseason. "That’s pretty much the only thing. Get better first-step quickness. It’s just strength training and speed. Kind of a mix of both."
After Jordy Mercer and Josh Harrison cost the Pirates 12 runs this season, a steep decline from 2017, the club is likely to turn to a young middle infield that also has significant questions defensively. Mercer is a free agent this offseason, while Harrison can be bought out of his club option for $1 million. Huntington told reporters Frazier has shown "he’s ready to take the everyday opportunity at second base" and that was powerfully illustrated with this instinctual double-play turn on a hit-and-run to end the fourth inning:
Huntington also expressed optimism that Kevin Newman is capable of being the starting shortstop after spending less than two months in the majors this season, though Newman committed another error Wednesday, his second in 42 chances since being recalled. Only 90 of Frazier's 178 big league starts have been at second base, where he's saved three runs in parts of three seasons, but the 26-year-old has shown progress there since returning from Triple-A on July 25.
"It means a lot for him to say that," Frazier said when asked of Huntington's vote of confidence. "Try to go out there and back that up. Feel good. I’m getting a lot of reps there, obviously. Trying to take it and run with it. Each day is a new day, and each day is a day I can get better at second base. Try to do that and finish strong before the offseason."
Kevin Kramer could also be an option, though he's struck out 11 times in his past 14 at-bats and is more likely to serve as a backup if he makes the opening day roster. He, Reyes and Osuna are all being asked to sharpen under Cora's guidance at multiple positions to prepare for possible bench roles.
Cora declined to be interviewed for this story when broached with the subject of those pregame fielding drills. The Pirates rank 26th in the majors in both errors (97) and fielding percentage (.982), despite their outfield ranking third in outs above average, Statcast's range-based metric of fielding skill that accounts for the number of plays made and degree of difficulty.
Cora, whose decision-making as third base coach has cost the Pirates on a few occasions this season, is under contract through next season and received praise from Hurdle for his work with the team's infielders, despite the manager previously acknowledging that their defense has fallen short of expectations and must improve moving forward.
"Joey’s done a very professional job with our guys," Hurdle said. "We were out there again [Wednesday afternoon], individual work, one-on-one work. We’re seeing dividends. That’s another way it’s also rewarding."
1. Archer finding a solution.
This was the Royals' 100th loss of the season, and their offense is among the worst in the American League. Still, this outing was a necessary accomplishment for Archer. He had not pitched through the seventh inning since May 12, when he allowed six runs in a loss to the Orioles, and even required 57 pitches to get through his first three innings here Wednesday night.
When asked if that statistic was meaningful at all, Archer spoke in detail of his desire to begin pitching deeper into games:
The 29-year-old struck out eight with one walk and allowed six hits, three of which were for extra bases. It appeared he was in for another short outing when Adalberto Mondesi hit a 421-foot solo homer off him in the third inning. Archer, though, needed only 36 pitches over the final four innings and even showed how effective his changeup can be when pitching a third time through the order.
Afterwards, Hurdle beamed after a reporter questioned whether or not the Pirates are seeing signs that Archer can still be a frontline starter:
"I think it’s going to be a little different Chris Archer," Hurdle said. "He’s still got the plus fastball, he’s still got the slider, but ... the arsenal is going to get moved around a little bit, a couple more tools in the toolbox. ... The day we traded for him the excitement level was high; it’s the same today."
Archer credited Francisco Cervelli with improvement in inducing weak contact in later innings, which is potentially the most notable sign of progress he made against the Royals. He's shown swing-and-miss stuff since arriving at the deadline and did again Wednesday, including 15 swinging strikes. But lack of execution has prevented him from having quick innings, pumping up his pitch count and leading to hard-hit balls like Mondesi's.
2. Offense doing just enough, showing promise for 2019.
The Pirates have won five consecutive games by a combined six runs, two on walk-off hits by their third- and fourth-string catchers. This win, though, was another important step for an offense in need of a rebound in 2019. Their best hitters need a strong finish, which seems to be taking place.
Bell has now reached base safely in 11 straight games after going 2-for-4 with a double to the corner in the first, and is batting .348 in 14 games this month. Corey Dickerson, meanwhile, doubled twice and scored in the second inning, raising his season slash line to .294/.324/.458. He's now reached safely in seven of his last 10 games, batting .375 with six doubles and five RBIs in that span.
This after he didn't have an RBI for nearly a month. He still hasn't homered since returning from the disabled list Aug. 4 in Denver, but it's important for him to enter the offseason on a good note. After all, he had a difficult second half for the Rays a year ago, though he says that was the product of fatigue, the result of not being able to workout properly the previous offseason.
Frazier also hit a go-ahead solo homer in the fifth, Starling Marte delivered two hits and Moran drove in Dickerson with a second-inning sacrifice fly. While the Pirates' rotation owns the third-lowest ERA in the NL this month, their offense has scored only 66 runs in 16 games. They've won 10 of those.
"First of all, our pitching staff, the rotation and the bullpen, is so deep," Archer said of the outlook for 2019. "We’re going to be able to compete from that alone. The excitement the young position players are bringing is really nice. Josh Bell’s bat is really coming around. Starling Marte is Starling Marte. He’s capable of competing for the MVP, in my opinion, every year. Corey’s doing his thing. It’s really fun to watch, it’s fun to be a part of. I don’t want to turn the page too quick because we still have some work to do in 2018, but I think from what we’ve learned this season, next year is going to be a really positive one for us."
3. Frazier provides pop from atop order.
The Pirates have found their leadoff hitter for opening day in Cincinnati. Remember, this offense was wildly inconsistent before Hurdle finally found a leadoff hitter back in July. That's when he moved Corey Dickerson into that role, sparking the left fielder's incredible month and the team's unprecedented resurgence.
Dickerson maintained that spot upon returning from the disabled list, but Hurdle had to make a change after he batted .222 with a .468 OPS in August. Marte failed to produce much in his stead, leading Hurdle to finally turn to Frazier, who's again showed he's a potential long-term solution atop the order.
Frazier's batted 45 for 162 with four home runs and 20 RBIs in 40 starts from the leadoff spot this season. He was the club's most-used leadoff batter in 2017, providing a .260 average and .704 OPS in 63 games. In addition to being able to steal the occasional base, Frazier has shown the ability to provide some power from that spot, as he showed again with his solo home run Wednesday:
"He’s done some good hunting in situations," Hurdle said. "He’s becoming more experienced, gaining more experience on when to go ahead and maybe ambush some pitches. Two-strike approach still comes into play."