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SARASOTA, Fla. -- Coming into camp, there was a four-man competition for two spots on the opening day roster. With Adam Frazier at second, Erik Gonzalez was thrust into a battle with Kevin Newman, Cole Tucker and Wilmer Difo for the starting shortstop and middle-infield bench roles.
Gonzalez walked and bounced into a run-scoring double play in the Pirates’ 10-9 loss to the Orioles at Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota, Fla. on Thursday night. But, now less than a week before the season opener at Wrigley Field, Gonzalez already looks like a player that’s done enough to earn that spot.
“I’m seeing the ball well, playing very well. Right now, my focus is to continue to build the consistency, continue to make those adjustments,” Gonzalez said through team interpreter Mike Gonzalez. “Working hard even on the things I’ve been working on since last year. Just continue to master my craft when it comes to that point.”
Pirates skipper Derek Shelton has remained mum on naming opening day starters, but Newman and Frazier are hitting .727 and .563, respectively, and should reasonably have locked down the starting posts. But Gonzalez has also made the most of this challenge. The 28-year-old put together a Grapefruit League season in which he entered Thursday batting .400/.455/.533 with 12 runs scored.
“Competition brings out the best in people, and we are definitely seeing that,” Shelton said. “I would rather be on that side of the coin than the other side of the coin, where we were choosing [from among] two guys who were struggling. [Newman and Gonzalez] have done a really nice job, so it's gonna make for a very challenging decision.”
If the likely outcome happens, Gonzalez should also have played his way into that third and, likely, final spot.
Tucker was optioned to minor league camp Wednesday, and Difo, who has had a solid spring of his own, hasn’t measured up to Gonzalez. Shelton said that it doesn’t matter who starts Game 1 as opposed to Game 5 of the regular season. But some validation for a player like Gonzalez, who’s struggled to get consistent at-bats and playing time throughout his career can be very beneficial.
“There’ll be conversations with both guys and I couldn't be more proud of how they've come in, done their work both offensively and defensively,” Shelton said. “The private conversation, in terms of what they've done and how they do it, will probably be the most important thing.”
According to Gonzalez, the competition hasn’t really been a driving factor. Going into his third year with Pittsburgh, he just wanted to contribute for a club that took a chance and traded for him two offseasons ago. At the same time, he’s neither intimidated nor is he riding the wave created by Newman and Frazier’s impossibly terrific springs.
“I value a lot the principle and the value of the meaning behind a team,” Gonzalez said. “At the end of the day, I want all my teammates to do well, and I’m here to compete, I’m here to do my best, I’m here to work hard every day -- and not only work hard, but to celebrate and be a good teammate to my teammates.”
Gonzalez played his way into the lineup last August, batting .282 with 11 extra-base hits and 15 RBIs. But he couldn’t capitalize on those chances and slumped through September with a .184 batting average and .466 OPS. He chalked that up to the natural highs and lows, and, in a full season he’d be able to work out the kinks.
Within the past few months, adjustments have been made. Gonzalez says there was no specific mechanical change that allowed him to turn things around this spring. But the former hitting coach Shelton -- while refusing to get into detail -- insists that there are things Gonzalez is doing differently with his swing. But whatever that change may be, his spring has measured up well to extremely stiff competition, and it’s earned him a lot of consideration.
“I don’t know if a straight platoon is something we can do, but I think both guys will get reps there,” Shelton said. “We're gonna get reps for everybody, depending on how guys are doing. Getting them into a groove could be important, but I think our bench players will get reps.”
Within this middle-infield competition, Gonzalez has developed confidence in the 2021 club, starting with his group. Frazier, a common foe in the minors, was the first to welcome him to the club and treat him like a friend. Gonzalez has also been impressed with the character of young Liover Peguero, his double-play partner for the first time Thursday night against the Orioles.
“I know that there's a lot of external voices that are doubting us, and are speaking against us. But, I'm a huge believer of the guys that we have here,” Gonzalez said. “There is so much more hunger inside this clubhouse than what I've experienced in the past. ... Every time I come into the clubhouse, I feel like I'm walking into a group that has my back, and they know I have theirs.”
Among the infield group, the name that brought the biggest smile to Gonzalez’s face was Ke’Bryan Hayes. Gonzalez said that he and the franchise cornerstone are constantly joking and laughing with one another, often in friendly competition over who has the better hands or range. Playing next to Hayes on the diamond also has its perks.
“I love playing with that guy. It feels comfortable to play next to him, especially during game time,” he said. “I feel like I could alleviate more of my right side because I know that he's got that right side handled, and I could focus more on my left side of the field.”
There are less than a week of spring training games for all of this to be sorted out. But these last days in Florida could simply confirm what’s already shaken out to this point.
MORE FROM THIS GAME
• While the club insists it’s not going to be putting definitive labels on members of the bullpen, defacto “closer” Richard Rodriguez saw his ERA climb to 6.35 this spring. He surrendered a long, three-run shot to the first batter he faced, Ryan Mountcastle, in relief of starter Sean Poppen in the second inning. Mountcastle barreled up the previous pitch as well but was a little too quick and pulled it foul with home run distance. Rodriguez also pitched around Adley Rutschman’s two-out single in the third. Thursday night’s outing was the third in which Rodriguez has surrendered a run on at least two hits.
• Peguero and fellow middle infield prospect Oneil Cruz made their presence felt Thursday. Peguero collected a pair of RBI hits, including a second-inning double and a single in the third. The 20-year-old had a delayed start to his spring due to visa issues and entered Thursday night’s contest with a hit in six at-bats.
““It was kind of hard at the beginning. You’ve just got to be patient,” he said. “It was really hard for me because I was so excited to be here and not waste any time.”
Peguero, who idolized Ozzie Smith and his on-field acrobatics as a kid growing up in the Dominican Republic, has also felt the effects of the middle infield competition in camp. As a convivial, precocious shortstop, Peguero has made the most of the opportunity to learn from both the big leaguers and fellow prospects.
“I’m the type of guy that’s always asking and trying to learn positive stuff. [The veterans are] always around me, letting me know what can help me,” Peguero said. “I feel like this is something special in my life, being around those guys, [the prospects]. … That is something I really like about us. We try to get each other’s backs.”
Cruz stroked a lead-off double to center and scored on the Gonzalez double play in the ninth inning. It was his first hit since March 1, and he has two total knocks in 24 at-bats.
• Poppen was charged with five of the six runs scored in the second inning, with the biggest blow coming on Trey Mancini’s two-out, two-run single to left. Poppen also walked two and struck out four, while his spring ERA, which had been 4.50 heading into the contest, ballooned to 8.38 after his 1.2-inning appearance. Michael Feliz gave up a three-run homer to Austin Hays in the fourth. He has a 6.75 ERA over 5.1 innings in six appearances this spring. Chris Stratton, Luis Oviedo and Yerry De Los Santos each pitched a scoreless inning, and Edgar Santana gave up a run on two hits in one inning.
• Phillip Evans improved to .393 this spring after recording four singles and scoring three times with an RBI in five at-bats. Evans is the first Pirate to record four hits in a spring training game since Adam Frazier in 2017. Playing an unfamiliar position in right field, Evans made two impressive plays in the fifth inning. Evans made a sliding grab on Rutschman’s sinking liner and then he ran down Cedric Mullins' fly ball to the warning track and crashed into the wall as he made the catch at the top of the fence.
• In his return from lower-back tightness, Todd Frazier was tested on the bases. He doubled, scored from second and beat out an infield single in his final at-bat. Frazier also walked and is batting .259 with five extra-base hits this spring.
• Tony Wolters had two hits against lefty starter Keegan Akin, including a two-run knock in the third. He also played second base in the last defensive inning in the eighth. Brian Goodwin doubled and scored a run in a two-hit game. Anthony Alford also collected two hits and scored a run.
• Although the Pirates have given no indication that they’re ready to lay out their opening day rotation, their opening day opponent, the Cubs, have announced their first three starters. Kyle Hendricks gets the start in the opener Thursday with Jake Arrieta scheduled to pitch Saturday and Zach Davies going Sunday.
• The Orioles aren’t on the schedule for the regular season, and it’s probably better off if the Pirates don’t have to face Mountcastle or Hays. Hays delivered a three-run homer and a triple, and made perfect throws to the plate to get Gonzalez in the first and Tony Wolters, a potential go-ahead run, in the third. Mountcastle was on base for Hays’ homer in the fourth. That duo is 13-for-28 with three doubles, a triple, four homers and 16 RBIs against the Pirates this spring.
• The Pirates host the Tigers on Friday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. in LECOM Park with a repeat of last Saturday’s matchup scheduled. Lefty Tyler Anderson is again scheduled to go against Detroit southpaw Matthew Boyd. Trevor Cahill, Duane Underwood Jr., Kyle Crick and Sam Howard are also scheduled to pitch.