Pittsburgh Pirates: First Quarter Grades

Since struggling to a 12-19 start, the Pittsburgh Pirates have won eight of their last ten games, and are now one game below .500 on the season. That number is important to the Pirates, who are looking to break a string of 15-consecutive losing seasons.

A lot has gone right for the Pirates so far this year—as people might expect, given that their record is a few games better than anticipated—but several players have also underperformed. I have assigned each player a grade for the season’s first quarter, determining who exceed expectations, who matched them, and who still has a long way to go.

Ryan Doumit, C. Prior to fracturing his thumb Tuesday against the Cardinals, Doumit had been one of the Pirates’ most effective hitters, leading all position players with a .350 batting average. He is evolving into a solid middle-of-the-order hitter, batting clean-up during most games, and has vastly improved his fielding and throwing. He will be sorely missed over the next month. First Quarter Grade: A

Ronny Paulino, C. Paulino has had a rough year at the plate after losing his job to Doumit. He will be forced to shoulder increased responsibility in the next few weeks, and early signs are that he is up to the task—Paulino drove in the winning run Tuesday night, and was in the middle of two big rallies in today’s game against St. Louis. Without this recent play, his grade would be much lower. First Quarter Grade: C+

Adam LaRoche, 1B. As always, LaRoche got off to a slow start. He has started to hit a little, but his average remains below the Mendoza line, and he has killed far too many Pirate rallies so far this year. LaRoche has been the weak link in an otherwise overachieving offense. First Quarter Grade: F

Freddy Sanchez, 2B. Like LaRoche, Sanchez got off to a slow start. Unlike LaRoche, Sanchez has done an effective job of turning his slow start around. Since manager John Russell moved Sanchez to the leadoff spot, the Pirates are 7-2. Sanchez has emerged as a catalyst in his new role, getting on base and giving center fielder Nate McLouth someone to drive in. First Quarter Grade: B

Chris Gomez, SS. Gomez has been the best fill-in for the injured Jack Wilson. He has exceeded expectations as a hitter, batting .288, but has been too error-prone and does not have the range to play the position. First Quarter Grade: B-

Jose Bautista, 3B. Aside from a brief stretch a week ago, Bautista has struggled. As Doug Mientkiewicz quickly adapts to the position, look for Bautista to get less and less playing time if he can’t snap out of this slump. First Quarter Grade: D

Jason Bay, LF. Bay has been solid, if unspectacular, and is heating up as of late. He is showing signs of being the middle-of-the-order presence he was two years ago. One concern is his situational hitting: Bay has eight home runs, but only 17 RBI. First Quarter Grade: B

Nate McLouth, CF. The star of the team so far. McLouth has been spectacular, opening the season with a 19-game hitting streak and never looking back. McLouth has already hit 11 home runs and has 33 RBI. First Quarter Grade: A+

Xavier Nady, RF. If not for McLouth, Nady’s hot start would be the one garnering all the attention. While he has cooled off slightly of late, Nady still leads the team with 34 RBI. First Quarter Grade: A

Doug Mientkiewicz, UTIL. Mientkiewicz has been no better than Bautista at the plate, although he showed some signs of life today, going three for three against the Cardinals, raising his batting average 40 points to .237. However, he has shown that his brilliance in the field is not confined to first base, learning the third base position quickly and making two superb diving catches today against St. Louis. First Quarter Grade: C

Luis Rivas, UTIL. Rivas, who has split time with Gomez, has struggled both at the plate and in the field, batting .226 and making four errors. First Quarter Grade: D

Brian Bixler, UTIL. Thought to be the second baseman of the future, Bixler has repeatedly shown his inexperience, starting with a baserunning mistake that cost the Pirates their home opener against the Cubs. He could use more time in AAA, and will probably get sent back when Jack Wilson gets healthy. First Quarter Grade: F

Nyjer Morgan, OF. Morgan, who was supposed to compete with McLouth for the center field job, has had difficulty establishing any rhythm due to the outstanding play of the Pittsburgh outfielders. He has started a couple important rallies with bunt singles, but was correctly sent down to the minors to get more at bats after the Pirates traded for backup outfielder Jason Michaels. First Quarter Grade: C-

Ian Snell, SP. While he has had flashes of brilliance (the ten-strikeout game against the Marlins, for example), Snell has been a shell of the pitcher who emerged as the Pirates’ ace last year. The offense bailed him out today, but he needs to get his act together soon if the Pirates are to win this year. First Quarter Grade: D

Tom Gorzelanny, SP. He has started to pull it together, stringing together three solid starts after a rough April, but he is still walking too many people. First Quarter Grade: C

Zach Duke, SP. The Pirates’ most consistent starter so far, which isn’t saying much. But Duke has kept his team competitive, and his 4.04 ERA is the lowest among the Pirates’ original starting rotation. First Quarter Grade: B

Phil Dumatrait, SP. Dumatrait has been solid, both as a long reliever, and in his three starts since the Pirates released Matt Morris. His performance as a starter has been much better than expected. First Quarter Grade: B+

Paul Maholm, SP. Like Snell, the inconsistent Maholm has failed to meet expectations following a spectacular end to last season. After dominating the Marlins and Phillies in successive starts in late April, he has struggled while the rest of the team (minus the aforementioned Snell) has been playing well. First Quarter Grade: C-

Matt Capps, CL. Capps has been great. He has given up only two runs in 17 innings pitched since opening day—neither of which had a significant impact on the game—and has not blown a save all year. First Quarter Grade: A

John Grabow, RP. Grabow has been as good as Capps, allowing only three earned runs all year. He has emerged as a stabilizing force in the bullpen. First Quarter Grade: A

Tyler Yates, RP. Acquired from the Braves for next-to-nothing, Yates’ velocity has been a blessing for the Pirates. He is far and away the most reliable right-handed set-up man. The only drawback is that, so far, he has walked almost one batter per inning. First Quarter Grade: A-

Damaso Marte, RP. His 4.58 ERA is higher than usual, but a 1.07 WHIP and 24:5 K:BB are better indicators of his performance, as he has given up all his runs in only four of 20 games this year. Marte has only allowed one run in his last 12 innings pitched. First Quarter Grade: B+

Franquelis Osoria, RP. Osoria originally was asked to pitch key innings due to his effective sinker, but has struggled in that role and has now become the Pirates’ main long-reliever. First Quarter Grade: C-

John Van Benschoten, SP. Van Benschoten has struggled since being called up after Morris was released. He was recently sent back down to AAA in favor of Marino Salas. First Quarter Grade: D

John Russell, Manager. Russell has had a superb start to the season. Many past Pirate teams would have essentially conceded the season after a 12-19 start, but this club has fought night in and night out as they have clawed their way back to .500. In addition, this entire hot streak began after pitching coach Jeff Andrews met with the starting rotation. First Quarter Grade: A

Neal Huntington, GM. Huntington has done a very solid job so far this year. He kept the current team together over the winter, which has proved to be the right decision, and sits at the head of the first administration to really give McLouth a chance. The acquisitions of Yates and Michaels look to be smart, cheap moves. The only noticeable error so far was the failure to acquire a solid backup shortstop—none of the trio of Gomez, Rivas, and Bixler has proven adequate at fielding the position. First Quarter Grade: A-

There you have it. The offense and bullpen have exceeded expectations, but not necessarily to a degree which they cannot maintain. The onus from here on out rests on the starting rotation: If they can pull it together, the Pirates might be able to eclipse .500. If not, they are looking at 16 straight years of losing.