The Pirates (0-1) opening day game against the Mets could not have gone more differently than you could predict from a Paul Skenes start. The Pirates lost 11-7 as Skenes failed to even make it out of the first inning. Here are three things to note after that weird mess of a game.
The Defense is Worse than Advertised
This may be a long season of bone-headed plays coming from this outfield. The big play of note was Oneil Cruz misreading a fly ball, broke in and adjusted too late as the ball sailed over his head for a bases-clearing triple by Brett Baty. However, there are no real good outfielders who started this game. Bryan Reynolds and Ryan O’Hearn have been below average in recent years manning the corners, and Mangum probably isn’t good enough to warrant starting him every day. This all stems from the decision to plant your flag with Cruz as your future center fielder despite him never playing a professional inning there before. Unfortunately for the Pirates they are reaping what they sowed in their player centric culture and that questionable defense we were concerned about reared its ugly head right away in literally the first inning.
Ben Cherington is Incapable of Normal Roster Construction
I have many questions. Why is Cruz in center field to begin with? Why is Jared Triolo an every day shortstop? Why do we have so many players who arguably should be playing DH? I understand the financial limitations that come with running the Pirates and can sympathize greatly with the struggle. However, Cherington has been making mind boggling roster choices ever since he stepped into the job (anyone remember the Hoy Park outfield experiment?). You cannot even have the conversation of moving Cruz, Reynolds, or O’Hearn to DH because of Marcell Ozuna, there is a real logjam here. The Pirates will lose games because he cannot simply roster players to play their natural positions, and while we never want to overreact to one game early in the season this has become a trend among his teams while in Pittsburgh.
At Least We Have Offense?
There’s a lot to be upset about from today, but man does it feel good to see Brandon Lowe coming in and immediately slugging two homers. Ryan O’Hearn joining in on the fun is also great to see, as well as getting a great day at the plate from Henry Davis. Last years’ Pirates would not have put up seven runs today against a pitcher like Freddy Peralta. The most encouraging sign to me is just how hard the Pirates hit the ball and with the frequency that they did it. They registered 12 hard hit baseballs today and the results showed. The success of the Pirates will ultimately come down to how much the offensive fire power can counteract the defensive woes they are going to experience throughout the year. One thing I can guarantee about this team is that unlike last year, these Buccos will not be boring.
Leave a Reply