BRADENTON, Fla. -- "People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring." -- Rogers Hornsby
Pirates spring training is only days away. Players will begin to report Feb. 10, and the first practice is Feb. 12. After an offseason of great overhaul in the front office and coaching staff, Ben Cherington and Derek Shelton's Pirates team are finally about to take the field.
But there are still plenty of questions that need answered before those 26 players run onto Tropicana Field for the opener on Mar. 26. Is everyone healthy? Who is ready to take that next step? What position battles are there? These questions, and more, will need to be answered between that first workout and opening day six weeks from then.
These are the top most pressing Pirates questions as players start reporting to Bradenton.
10. Who is backing up Jacob Stallings?
Stallings is one of the game's best defensive catchers and was so liked and respected by the pitchers that he became the personal catcher to about half the staff last year. He will go into 2020 the starter, and his battery partner will almost certainly be of a similar mold as him.
“I think it’s fair to say that we put a have put an emphasis on a group that is going to help our pitching staff, perform at the highest level possible," Cherington said of the team's catchers during PiratesFest.
At the moment, the competition for the back-up job appears to be between Luke Maile and John Ryan Murphy. Both are light-hitters but very good defenders.
Maile seemingly has the edge going into Bradenton. For one, he is already on the 40-man roster. Second, he worked with Cherington and Shelton in Toronto.
“The familiarity with your manager, with Derek and with Ben, goes a long way,” Maile said during PiratesFest. “Any time you can have that in this game, I think it’s only going to help you.”
9. Is anyone else coming?
Free agency has extended into February and spring training the past few years, and while this year's batch of players without a team is not as noteworthy as 2019's, there are still a couple good veterans available.
The Pirates still have some holes on the roster and have available funds after the Starling Marte trade. The question Cherington needs to answer is if those resources could be better allocated elsewhere in the organization or for a future season.
“I am hopeful that we’ll add to the group in some way before we get to Bradenton,” Cherington said shortly after trading Marte on Jan. 27.
Since then, the Pirates have added a handful of minor-league free agents, including left-handers Robbie Erlin and Derek Holland, and signed utlityman J.T. Riddle to a major-league contract. Is that going to be it? The Pirate have been connected to outfielders Kevin Pillar and Cameron Maybin recently. Could one of them be coming on a minor-league or major-league deal? If it's the latter, it would require a corresponding roster move since the 40-man is currently full.
8. Who is the closer?
The Pirates are going to need someone new to close down the ninth inning this season. While Keone Kela has the most experience in the role and is very likely the front runner, Derek Shelton did not commit to him being the closer during PiratesFest.
“Kela’s gonna pitch at the back end of games,” Shelton said. “To specifically say right now he’s going to be our closer, I’m not gonna say that. I think he’s going to pitch very meaningful innings at the back end of the game. I’m excited to watch him. I mean, it’s a big arm with really good stuff. I’ve had multiple good conversations with him this offseason.”
If it's not Kela, who else could it be? Again, from Shelton:
“There’s multiple people who can be in that mix, who are going to be pitching at the back end of the game in big innings for us. I’ve expressed that to those guys and told them that, and then as we get to spring training and work further, we’ll be able to make that decision.”
The most likely competition are Kyle Crick and Richard Rodriguez, both of whom are under team control for years to come while Kela is a free agent at the end of the season.
7. Who is the fifth starter?
Chris Archer, Joe Musgrove, Mitch Keller and Trevor Williams all look like locks for the rotation, but the fifth spot is up for grabs. At the moment, the competition appears to be between Steven Brault, Chad Kuhl and Holland.
Holland, an 11-year vet, has the deepest resume and was a solid starter in 2018, but he is coming off a disastrous 2019 where he went 2-5 with a 6.08 ERA, splitting time as a starter and reliever.
Brault, 27, is no stranger to spring training competitions, seemingly fighting for a spot in the rotation or on the opening day roster every year. Injuries to the staff gave him his first extended stint in the rotation last year, and he looked good until a couple ugly outings at the end of the year, which threw off his season stats.
Kuhl's candidacy is hinging on how he looks after coming back from Tommy John surgery. The 27-year-old said during PiratesFest he has made some tweaks to his delivery to try to take better care of his arm.
“I think you will notice the changes just from watching me throw,” Kuhl said.
Kuhl's role with the team is unknown at this point, even to him.
“I am preparing as a starter, but I haven’t discussed my role in any way shape or form with anybody,” Kuhl said.
It is worth considering both Brault and Kuhl have a minor-league option remaining, so they could theoretically be fighting for a major-league job, too. Holland needs to make the opening day roster or he can opt-out of his deal. Any of these pitchers could also do long relief in the bullpen.
6. Which players can make the jump to the majors this season?
With every team conscious of player service time, hardly any rookies make opening day rosters anymore. Still, spring training is a great opportunity for those young players on the fringe to make a good impression ahead of the regular season.
While some players are expected to make their debuts at some point in 2020- like third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes and starter J.T. Brubaker- and there are others who could potentially make their debut depending on how they perform in triple-A, like relief pitcher Blake Cederlind or outfielder Jared Oliva, there are other players who are in flux and may have fluid roles in 2020.
One of those pitchers is Cody Ponce, who came to the Pirates in the Jordan Lyles trade last July. While he succeeded as a reliever last year, the previous Pirates regime used him as a starter at the end of 2019.
“I am going out there as a starter as of right now,” Ponce said during PiratesFest. “Whatever we need. If you need me in the backend of the bullpen, I’ll do that. If you need me as a starter, I’ll do that as well."
Will Craig, another offseason addition to the 40-man roster, is also trying to prove he is flexible. The first baseman dropped 25 pounds this winter so he could play right field better.
“I want them to see that just because they read the reports on me last year -- I’m not the same guy. I know physically I’m not,” Craig said during PiratesFest. “Any negative report, I want them to throw that in the trash and just get a whole new report on me.”
5. Is Gregory Polanco healthy?
Same question, different year.
Polanco is again the wild card in the Pirates' lineup. If healthy, he is a legitimate power threat that can provide Josh Bell some protection in the lineup.
All of his rehab updates have been encouraging, with Cherington going as far as to say he's “at 100% right now from a basic health perspective.” Then again, we heard plenty of good things last year, too. At the end of 2019, both he and the team admitted he was rushed back, and his season ended prematurely because they did not take their time.
Being 100% healthy and at full participation does not mean he is 100% back. The Pirates will still monitor his playing time to make sure he is not rushed.
“That’s something we want to try and ramp up thoughtfully,” Cherington said.
4. Who is playing center field?
Trading Marte not only created a hole in the lineup, but in the field. The Pirates have been rock solid in center field for over a decade, whether it was Marte or Andrew McCutchen. Whomever assumes the responsibilities in center will have big shoes to fill.
As previously mentioned, the Pirates could still add a free agent like Pillar, Maybin or Billy Hamilton. But if they do not make a signing or trade, their options appear to be Bryan Reynolds or Guillermo Heredia, and perhaps Jason Martin or J.T. Riddle.
Reynolds is prepared to play any outfield position, including his native center.
“Honestly, I’m just as comfortable in center. Maybe even a little more,” Reynolds said during PiratesFest. “I just feel like it’s a truer read out there. [I] played there growing up, I played there in college and obviously in the minors and some last year. So really anywhere out there, I’m perfectly comfortable.”
3. Who are the leaders?
The 2019 Pirates faced plenty of adversity last year. In times like that, team leaders need to step up, but with a team full of young players, that didn't happen.
“I think we lacked a little bit of leadership in the clubhouse, amongst all the players,” Musgrove said. “No one was really willing to step up and take that role.”
Musgrove has said he is ready to be one of those team leaders, and he also used Reynolds and Kevin Newman as examples of players he would like to see take more of a leadership role this year. However, a couple people saying they're leaders is not going to fix the problem.
“I think it’s going to take a culmination of everybody pulling their own weight, and everyone holding each other accountable. Speaking when things need to be said,” Musgrove said. “It’s hard to look at it as one guy needs to be the leader.”
2. What will new coaches bring?
The Pirates drastically overhauled their coaching this winter, returning only three members of the 2019 staff: hitting coach Rick Eckstein, third base coach Joey Cora and Justin Meccage, who is moving from assistant pitching coach to bullpen coach.
Many of the new coaches were hired in direct response to weaknesses on last year's team. First base coach Tarrik Brock will work on base running. Veteran coach Glenn Sherlock will work with the catchers and infield positioning for shifts. Pitching coach Oscar Marin is more analytically inclined than his predecessor.
There are also other changes coming in how the coaches are going to communicate with players, like fewer team meetings and more individual meetings.
“In years prior, it’s been team meetings all the time. Not necessarily specific to you,” Bell said during PiratesFest. “But it’s a lot easier to chime in, to focus in and to have a shorter meeting if it’s one-on-one and spread it out over the course of Spring Training. That’s my vision for it. I think the guys are going to really enjoy that as well.”
1. What's the culture like?
Above all else, the Pirates need to create a better environment than the one they had in September of last year.
Shelton and Cherington have talked at great lengths about establishing a player-centric culture. One that encourages learning and getting better. It's going to be more easy-going than in the past, with the coaches and players focusing on communicating and understanding each other more.
"You’re going in, you’re getting your work done, take care of what you need to do and get better that way,” Adam Frazier said during PiratesFest. “You’re going to be held accountable for your own self and not just be there to be there. We’re pretty excited about that."
Shelton feels the same way.
“We’re going to be specific on how we’re doing it, what we’re doing and going about it. It’s going to be different, because of the fact that that’s how I am,” Shelton said on how he wants to do things in Pittsburgh. “I’m probably a little looser. That’s the [way] I want it to be. I want it to be a fun environment.”
On Deck:
Saturday: Projecting the Pirates opening day lineup
Sunday: Projecting the Pirates opening day pitching staff