Three Pirates standing out in roster battles taken in Bradenton, Fla. (Pirates)

JOSH LAVALLEE / PIRATES

Greg Allen.

BRADENTON, Fla. -- It’s hard to believe, but spring training is already half over for the Pirates.

With Friday’s 2-1 walk-off winner against the Twins at LECOM Park, eight games are in the books with 10 to play, and with the entire three-day shortened camp also completed.

Considering that a good chunk of this roster joined the team either late last year or in the offseason and that they couldn’t be in contact with the team or coaches during the lockout, first impressions could be what earns a job or opening day start.

These three players are making the most out of that opportunity at first look.

GREG ALLEN

The amount of times the Pirates talk about opportunity can get repetitive, but it was something Allen barely got last year with the Yankees. After hitting .326 with a .907 OPS for their Class AAA affiliate, he did get a brief call up to the majors, where he again hit well with a .270/.417/.432 slash line over 15 games.

However, he was a victim to the Yankees’ roster crunch and was exposed to waivers, despite not really getting his fair shot. The Pirates grabbed him to compete with a growing group of outfielders on the 40 man roster, with the possibility of earning a spot on the opening day roster and perhaps the lineup.

“The very first team meeting we had, Shelty [Derek Shelton] conveyed that there was going to be some opportunity and competition,” Allen said. “Not in a negative way or a way that's going to work against the team, but in a positive way. Guys understand that there's opportunity to be had and at this point, it's trying to put your best foot forward, but also trying to make those around you better. I think it's that type of camaraderie and competition that's going to make things better.”

He’s made the most of that opportunity so far this spring. In 11 trips to the plate, he has reached base safely seven times, including a pair of homers with a stolen base to boot.

“He continues to make a good impression,” Shelton said about the 29-year-old outfielder. “He’s had good at-bats. He’s done a nice job on the bases. Came into camp in really good shape. Overall, really good impression.”

Given the slow start of other potential outfielders — Michael Chavis and Anthony Alford  and all of the outfield prospects besides Cal Mitchell and Caanan Smith-Njigba being optioned to minor-league camp, Allen is putting himself in a good position to get another, longer look in the majors.

“You try not to look too far down the road,” Allen said. “I'm trying to take it day-by-day and understand just how quick the spring is in general. Very, very condensed due to the circumstances coming in, knowing that there may not be a whole lot of time or at-bats and just trying to make the most of it. If you can do that, (and) continue to get better, stick with your process and the routines and habits that you've built to this point and then you're just kind of hoping for the best.”

DILLON PETERS

This offseason, Mitch Keller lit up radar guns and social media with his work at Tread Athletics, a baseball performance facility in North Carolina.

Peters also went to Tread this winter, and while he isn’t lighting up radar guns like Keller, the lefty’s low-90s fastball can get hitters out.

“Even though the velo's not there, the location is there,” Shelton said.

The changeup was a point of emphasis for Peters this winter, focusing on how grip, data and intent make it move and play in different areas of the zone.

“It’s gotten better every year since I started throwing it in the big leagues,” Peters said. “I know what the good ones look like and the bad ones look like, metrically. I’m going to keep trying to repeat those metrics. When those are repeated and in good spots, it’s probably going to produce pretty good results.”

After a shaky first inning in his spring debut, Peters settled in and showed the above-average changeup that Shelton often praises and a breaking pitch that plays well off it. On Friday, he tossed three scoreless frames with three strikeouts and only three base-runners allowed. 

With rosters almost surely expanding to 28 in April, the Pirates can get creative with how they want to handle their starting rotation, using everything from piggybacks to openers to six-man rotations. Peters could fit in a lot of those different roles.

After making six shorter, but overall positive starts towards the end of last season, Peters was on the major-league radar for this season. The odds of him having a job look good.

JERAD EICKHOFF

The one non-rostered player on this list, Eickhoff came into this camp at a bit of an advantage because he was at Pirate City for minor-league camp and the major-league coaching staff got to know him a little better. 

And while not overpowering so far, he is someone who could benefit from expanded major-league rosters and the need for more innings eaters (especially if both extra spots can be pitchers). 

And while it’s far too short a spring to put much stock into stats, only allowing three base runners over 4 ⅓ innings is a good sign, especially considering he has faced some of the toughest competition of any Pirates pitcher thus far.

“We know he throws strikes,” Shelton said after his first appearance. “He came right after people.”

Innings will be needed, and Eickhoff, once a promising pitching prospect, could have something left in him to help fill that gap. At 31, his ceiling is pretty low, but out of the non-roster guys he’s someone who could edge out a player who is already tendered.

MORE FROM THE GAME

• The Oneil Cruz outfield experiment has begun again.

After a few days of drills behind the scenes, Cruz made his first appearance in left field Friday. He got the news from his manager last year, Miguel Pérez.

“I was all for it. I was like, ‘Let’s go,’ ” Cruz said through team interpreter Mike Gonzalez. “Anywhere they put me, I’m ready to play."

In the field, he made a couple catches while another pop fly fell in the triangle, partially because he did not take an ideal route to the ball. Considering his inexperience at the position and the windy conditions, it was more than forgivable for someone learning how to play on the grass.

“Overall, he did a nice job out there with his first time being out there,” Shelton said.

• At the plate, Cruz reached base on an error that was hit 113.4 mph, one of the hardest-hit balls by anyone this spring. The error stayed in the infield, but he was able to beat a bang-bang play at first, with his sprint speed clocked at 30.2 ft./sec. 

No surprise, that's elite too. Even in an 0-for-3 game, he has a way of making things interesting.

Hunter Owen played the hero again in the ninth inning. After preventing a loss on Wednesday with a game-tying homer in the ninth, he hit a two-out walk-off Friday.

“I’m happy for Hunter Owen,” Shelton said. “That’s two homers in the last two games that he’s played. Took a good swing and I think you’re happy for the kid that he took a good swing.”

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