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BRADENTON, Fla. -- Among the Pirates’ prospects that have been pushed into the proverbial deep end in big-league camp, the middle infield crop might offer the most promise.
Nick Gonzales played in his 12th Grapefruit League game during Friday’s 4-2 loss to the Tigers at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla. The 2020 first-rounder bounced to short in his lone at-bat and has hits in three of his 13 appearances this spring (.231 average.)
Although the entire group has been reassigned, Gonzales, Liover Peguero, Oneil Cruz and Ji-Hwan Bae continue to get at-bats in spring games. It’s a unique opportunity for Derek Shelton and the major league coaching staff to build relationships with players that they probably won’t manage again for some time.
“I think the one thing we can see from the beginning of spring until now is that they're getting better. … That’s the most important thing,” Shelton said, crediting farm director John Baker and the staff working with minor leaguers at Pirate City. “It’s important for them to be established in our culture, because these guys are part of our future.”
Gonzales’ first Grapefruit League game was also his first as a professional. He’s still adjusting to different pitchers and gaining comfort with velocity unlike any he’s ever faced. But watching the other big leaguers gave him a road map toward making those adjustments possible.
“Seeing how the big leaguers go about their business was huge for me, kind of implementing that into how I go about my work and what I do in the cage,” the 21-year-old said.
Of course, almost everything is new to Gonzales at this level. Gonzales didn’t know what to expect going into his first big league camp. But he went through enough at the alternate site that he wouldn’t be completely overwhelmed when he arrived. That logical progression was instilled in Altoona by Brian Esposito, the Class AAA Indianapolis manager and overseer of alternate site in 2020.
“It's only going to allow them to take what they're learning right now and apply it to their season,” Esposito told DK Pittsburgh Sports.
At the alternate site, the club stressed learning concepts more than individualized coaching at tinkering. Instances where a player might notice their own flaws yield the most efficient return.
“It's the experiences that they walk away with on their own that allow them to think about [ their own adjustments],” Esposito said. “'How am I going to get myself better?' ... That's the maturity of a ballplayer right there ... it's not just learning from your mistakes, but how exactly I'm going to make adjustments to get better.”
After lighting up his final, pandemic-shortened college season at New Mexico State and spending the rest of his summer in practices, the NCAA’s leading hitter had other things on his mind.
“I just kind of wanted to go out there and compete again. I missed that,” he admitted. “I'd rather just get thrown out there, whether it's a big league pitcher or whoever it is, make my adjustments and go from there.”
There’s a stark difference in personality between the almost-stoic Gonzales and the congenial, social butterfly Peguero. But they’ve been alongside each other for the journey since Peguero was acquired in the Starling Marte trade last season. The 21-year-old had two run-scoring hits in Thursday night’s loss to the Orioles to improve to .333 in the Grapefruit League. And he’s already optimistic about the rapport and progress within the group.
“Nick and [Ji-Hwan] Bae, they are literally like my brothers. I love those guys,” Peguero said. “They’ve been working really hard. Even myself, I’ve been working really hard with them. I feel like this is something special in my life, being around those guys.”
Together, with Bae and Oneil Cruz, they’re among an incredibly deep group that’s building off one another and preparing for the day they might all be back on the same team.
Cruz has been around a little longer than the other three, who collectively have not played a regular season game above A ball. But the 6-foot-7 Cruz is batting .080 with just two hits in 25 at-bats this spring, and his future as a middle infielder is questionable. Bae reached on an error Friday and is batting .235 this spring.
Despite what talent may be on the horizon, there’s really no hurry to get this group to the majors. The current middle infield has proven this spring that it’s also one of, if not, the most productive groups on the roster.
Adam Frazier and Kevin Newman have maintained impossible spring paces. Frazier doubled in three at-bats to drop his average to .559. Newman also suffered a precipitous drop to .708 after recording a double and drawing a walk. Erik Gonzalez, likely the bench and utility infielder to start the regular season, is also batting .333.
Ke’Bryan Hayes, who is the reason there’s really only two spots in the future for these guys instead of three, is also near-immortal this spring, batting .442 with a 1.222 OPS. In addition to learning the culture and getting better acclimated with the major league processes, the young middle infielders are seeing what it looks like almost everything is going right.
“Every time they’re at the plate I go up against the fence and I watch,” Gonzales said. “They’re ripping the cover off the ball. I take things from that. Seeing how they go about their business in the cage before the games and everything and see what works for them, try it out and see if it works for me, as well.”
It’s difficult for a player, especially a young one, to corral this wide swath of information and properly use it on the field. Oftentimes this spring, Gonzales has had to rely on some quick thinking, getting short notice before he’s due to bat. His shining moment this spring came Wednesday, when he ambushed Atlanta lefty A.J. Minter and hit a first-pitch fastball off the left-field boardwalk at LECOM Park.
“I wasn’t really slated to play,” Gonzales said. “I watched some of the video on the iPad. I was like, ‘OK, he’s 96-98, cutter, changeup ... if he’s throwing that hard, he’s probably going to throw me a fastball first pitch right off the bench.’ I was fortunate enough to square it up.”
Heading into minor-league camp, Gonzales’ focus is on maintaining his short, simple stroke at the plate while continuing to see harder-throwing, big-league level pitchers. The natural shortstop also worked on his defense with former Pirates infielder Jack Wilson this offseason and that work was ramped up under Jamey Carroll at Pirate City.
Gonzlaes’ future is likely at second, where he can be a double play partner to Peguero, his soon-to-be roommate at minors camp.
“He’s a great guy and I love having him around, learning from him, the stuff he does really well,” Gonzales said. “He does bring the energy. Every practice, he’s the same way – even if it’s 8 a.m. or 2 p.m., he’s the same guy. That’s what’s huge for me. I love seeing that. It helps me a ton. It’s just been a blast.”
MORE FROM THIS GAME
• Colin Moran homered against Detroit lefty Matthew Boyd. The two-run shot accounted for all the runs the Pirates scored in the contest. Moran is batting .235 with six RBIs, and the homer was his second of the spring. Lefty-swinging Dustin Fowler also delivered a hit against the tough southpaw, Boyd.
• Tyler Anderson wasn’t as sharp as his previous outing against the Tigers but he found similar results. After Robbie Grossman started the game with a mammoth homer over the bleachers in left, Anderson settled in and did not allow another run to score over four innings of work. The left-hander worked in traffic for most of the afternoon, allowing three hits and two walks. Anderson has a 5.00 ERA through 18 innings this season. Shelton said that building up their pitchers’ innings is probably the last item on the club’s spring checklist. So Anderson also threw two additional innings at the back fields after coming out of the game.
• Unlike Anderson, Trevor Cahill’s struggles did not enable him to find the same success that he had his last time out. The 33-year-old was charged with three runs on as many hits and walks over 1.2 innings. He was rolled in the fifth after issuing walks to his first two batters and giving up the lead on a base hit -- which could nearly have been a triple play -- and sacrifice fly. Then he was bailed out an unusual 8-5-4-5-5-4 double play involving Hayes and Gonzales after giving up an RBI single to Castro. He also got some extra work in at the back fields after coming out of the game.
• Duane Underwood Jr. pitched two scoreless innings in his second appearance of the spring. Underwood worked around a pair of hits and recorded three strikeouts. Tyler Bashlor struck out a pair but allowed a run on three hits in his spring debut. He was sitting in the mid-90’s with his fastball in his first game back after recovering from lower-back tightness.
• Following Friday's game MLB Network insider Jon Heyman reported that veteran Todd Frazier exercised his opt out and will become a free agent. Frazier hit three homers and amassed a .966 OPS this spring.
• On Saturday, the Pirates will host the Red Sox, beginning at 1 p.m. at LECOM Park. Chad Kuhl is expected to start against Boston right-hander Matt Andriese. Wil Crowe, Chasen Shreve, David Bednar, Geoff Hartlieb and Clay Holmes are also in line to pitch for the Pirates.