Should the Pirates fire Hitting Coach Gregg Ritchie?

Sitting at 19-22 after today's 4-3 loss in Detroit, the Pirates are in the unique situation of being three games under .500, yet still within striking distance of the division leading Cardinals.  This past weekend once again showed that the Pirates are not yet ready for prime-time.  A three-game series in Detroit, a team packed with talent but playing well below their pedigree, should have given the Pirates an opportunity to pounce on their first inter league series of the 2012 season.  Granted, they ran into the Verlander Express on Friday night - but a one-hitter?  Verlander came within two outs of being the first pitcher to no-hit the Pirates in over four decades. 


You would have thought this team would be licking their chops for the rest of the weekend, games against rookie starter Drew Smyly and the struggling Max Scherzer.  While they managed to take game two of the series on the back of a two homer game by Andrew McCutchen, the Pirates totaled an amazing 41 strikeouts in the three game series.  A dozen K's on Friday, then another dozen K's on Saturday, followed by an astounding 17 K's today.  Mind boggling numbers by major league baseball standards, where the average starting pitcher averages less than a K/IP.

This Pirates team has once again relied on its starting pitching to keep their heads above water.  The Pirates starting lineup today included six starters hitting .220 or under.  Included in that hot mess were Pedro Alvarez, who is once again being set-up for failure by being called on to hit against tough left-handed relievers.  Alvarez has a hole in his swing that is so easy to see, it makes you wonder what is actually going through the minds of the Pirates coaches. 

The Pirates collectively have only two regular starters hitting above .250, McCutchen - who is one of the best hitters in baseball - and Neil Walker, who is just getting his bat going after a slow start.  Jose Tabata?  .221.  Rod Barajas?  .216.  Clint Barmes?  .165!  Even worse, two other veterans brought in to shoe up the Pirates hitting - Nate McLouth and Casey McGehee - are both hitting under .200.

The accountability for this team-wide failure has to go on the coaching staff.  Manager Clint Hurdle was lauded for his direction as the hitting coach for Texas prior to coming to Pittsburgh, and while he doesn't exactly have Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, and Michael Young on his current club, his 38 years of professional baseball experience should give him some ability to right the ship.  The other man at the helm of the Pirates hitting woes is Hitting Coach Gregg Ritchie.  Ritchie was the Pirates minor-league hitting instructor for seven seasons prior to being added to Hurdle's staff on November 24, 2010 and has done little to justify his position since that time.  His major league job with the Pirates is his first after a 20+ year minor league career.

 Perhaps it is time to accept the mistake that was made by hiring him into this position and move on to a more qualified candidate.  The Pirates could even make a run at former Angels hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, the recently scapegoated and now unemployed 10 year veteran of major league batting instruction.  Other candidates could include former Pirates OF Andy Van Slyke, who showed interest in returning to coach in Pittsburgh after his run with the Detroit Tigers coaching staff ended in 2010, or bench coach Jeff Bannister - a finalist for the Pirates managerial opening before Hurdle got the nod.

The list of candidates is endless, and the Clint Hurdle/Neil Huntington contingent has plenty of connections in the baseball world.  Finding a hitting coach who was actually a GOOD major league hitter may be the first step to turning around a season that could end up as one of the worst statistically in baseball history.  If the Pirates hang around .500 through the end of May, the organization will have to make a change.  If not, then we all will know just how they feel about the 2012 season.