The Pittsburgh Pirates are tied for first!

Written by : Andrew Callender

Ok so it’s only the very beginning of Spring Training, but yes the Pirates are not only tied for first in the Grapefruit league, but also all of Major League Baseball. The sad part is this might be the only time we hear this… or is it?


The Pirates have the best centerfielder in the Majors according to MLB TV in Andrew McCutchen. In his first full season in the bags his stats were a little under what was expected from him, but his defense was just getting better and better as the year went on. With a fielding percentage of .987 and only 5 errors. With his contract due up soon the Pirates are going to be forced to open their wallets or loose one of the best young players in the league.

The Buccos also have home town boy Neil Walker. He is becoming one of the top second basemen in baseball. After hitting over .300 for the better part of his season he ended up with a .296 average with 12 home runs. With a full season under his belt he is only going to get better.

If they can get Pedro Alvarez to stop striking out for games at a time they could have a very dynamic offense. Jose Tabata ,like Walker, is one of the leagues up and coming consistent hitters. Tabata finished the season with a .299 average after being above .300 for most of the year.

Now like every other year the pitching is what could bring the Pirates down. James McDonald might be one of the most promising young pitchers the Buccos have had since Maholm and Duke, now of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The rest of the staff is questionable at best. The bullpen should once again be a force. The only issue is by the time the bullpen gets their work in the games are usually out of hand, and not in a good way.

This year has the potential to be the year they finally get out of the loosing season category and in to wild card talk. It’d be great if we could say division talk, but that may be asking just a bit too much.