Pirates Skipper Clint Hurdle has a few aces up his sleeve still...

The ups and downs of the past year are starting to take their toll on Pirates fans everywhere, an emotional roller coaster that started like April and has continued during this Jekyll and Hyde season for the Bucs in 2012.  The Pirates are sitting at 21-24, 4.0 games out in the dilapidated N.L. Central – a division that is starting to resemble a train wreck in progress.  The bad news?  This team is hitting at a rate that will ultimately place them alongside some of the notoriously-bad 1960′s teams in terms of every offensive category.  The team has seen it’s three main free agent pickups – SS Clint Barmes, C Rod Barajas, and OF Nate McLouth – all flail away time after time, and has already cut bait with McLouth – one of the most fan-friendly signings the team has ever made.  McLouth is a player who genuinely wanted to be in Pittsburgh, and is now probably out of baseball for good after looking like he forgot how to play the game – Nick Esasky-style.  Barmes continues to be awful, adding terrible defense to a .176 batting average that is bolstered by 2-out hits from the 8-hole in the lineup – in other words, worthless hits.  Barajas has seen his production spike lately and is handling one of the top pitching staffs in the National League, adding some value to his signing.  The team as a whole has played a bad brand of baseball, highlighted by some of the worst base-running ever seen.

The good news?  There is some good news, I promise.  Let’s take a deep breath, enjoy the Memorial Day weekend, and bullet-point the items that should put a smile on even the biggest Pirates skeptics face.

1.  The N.L. Central is up for grabs – The St. Louis Cardinals were the obvious favorite after their mad dash to a World Series title last fall, but they have had a rash of injuries, costing them 1B Lance Berkman and SP Chris Carpenter, leaving them with two of their biggest stars on the sideline.  The man holding it all together currently is OF Carlos Beltran, an injury waiting to happen.  The Cardinals recently were overtaken in the division by the Cincinnati Reds, who are in first place with a 25-20 record.  The rest of the division has surprising Houston in third place at 22-23, but once the trade deadline approaches you can be sure that GM Jeff Luhnow will be playing the spare parts game with SP Wandy Rodriguez, 1B Carlos Lee, and anyone else the Astros can get solid value for.  The Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs are well into bad seasons in both cities, in fifth and sixth place in the division and getting further buries by the day.  This leaves the Pirates as a legit contender for this horrible division.  With six of the next nine games against the division-leading Redlegs, the Pirates have a chance to really build some momentum and place themselves in prime position to be in the division race by mid-June.

2.  Andrew McCutchen is a serious contender for N.L. MVP – Perhaps nobody expected the 25-year old centerfielder to be this good this fast.  McCutchen is a five-tool player who is right up there with the Matt Kemps and David Wrights of the National League in terms of their 2012 campaigns thus far.  Should the Pirates make a mid-season run and stay in the race for a playoff spot down to the wire, McCutchen could be very much in the race for the National League Most Valuable Player award.  The last Pirate to win the MVP was Barry Bonds in 1992.  Currently hitting .335 with 7 HR and 24 RBI to go along with 10 stolen bases and fantastic defensive that could win him his first Golden Glove, McCutchen is a bona-fide superstar and is in the Pirates fold through 2018 at minimum after signing a six-year extension back in March.

3.  The Schedule will play to the Pirates favor the rest of the way – Many of the stumbling blocks series are out of the way already, including road trips to Philadelphia and Atlanta, two trips that helped sink the 2011 Bucs.  The Pirates already have their initial west-coast trip in the tank, which is a big deal as the weather gets hot and the season wears on.  The Cardinals and Reds still have west coast swings to worry about.  The Pirates play the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros a combined 27 more times this season, which accounts for almost 1/4 of their total remaining schedule.  They also play 24 games against the Cardinals and Reds, the two teams they will be chasing all summer long.  Neither team is a powerhouse, and both are dealing with injuries and performance issues from payers they expected to be major contributors.  The Cardinals have lost 1B Lance Berkman for at least 10 weeks.  The Reds are experiencing problems with their starting pitching beyond Mat Latos and Johnny Cueto.  SP Mike Leake and SP Homer Bailey have been mediocre at best and the Reds will probably be looking for starting pitching help at the deadline.  The Cardinals, as mentioned before, are getting great seasons thus far from Rafael Furcal and Carlos Beltran, two players who annually end up on the DL.  It remains to be seen if the loss of Berkman continues to leave a void in their lineup or if rookie 1B Matt Adams can show the power the Redbirds will need to offset Berkman.  OF Matt Holliday is heating up, so that may give the Cardinals another bat with Beltran, who has been off the charts this season – .292/14 HR/38 RBI through 47 games played.  The rest of the Bucs schedule will include Inter league matchups with Detroit at home (3-games), Kansas City at home (3-games), at Baltimore (3-games) against the surprising Orioles, at Cleveland (3-games) against the first place Tribe, and a home series (3-games) against the horrible Minnesota Twins, who are already 11.0 games back in the A.L. Central.  Baltimore, Detroit, and Cleveland pose serious challenges for the Bucs, while the Royals and Twins should be winnable series played in PNC Park.  A four-game series at Philadelphia looms in late June, with the possibility that both 2b Chase Utley and 1B Ryan Howard could be back in the lineup by that point.  Let’s not forget about those pesky Milwaukee Brewers – the team that has given the Pirates the most trouble over the past five years.  We have yet to see the Brew Crew, which means we will see ALOT of them and their depleted lineup in the coming months.  The Pirates kick off June with a 3-game set in Milwaukee, then play another 3-game set at Miller Park right after the All-Star Break.  What that means is the Pirates will get the Brewers in two HOME series in the “dog days of summer” that could be make or break for both clubs.  By that point, the Brewers may be in seller mode and looking to rebound in 2013.  The Pirates will see the struggling San Diego Padres for six games in August, wrapped around pivotal series against the Diamondbacks and Dodgers at home.  This is a schedule that sets up for the Pirates to at least maintain a .500 record through August, and hopefully GM Neil Huntigton will make some moves early enough this season to help the offense.  Last season, the acquisitions made came way too late and it cost the Bucs the two biggest series of the season (@ ATL and @PHL) that began the burial of the 2011 Buccos.  “Real Deal Neil” should be manning the phone lines by mid-July if the Pirates are within 5.0 games of the top in the N.L. Central race.

4.  Help is on the way from Indianapolis – With the sudden drop of Nate McLouth, the Pirates are now thin in the outfield.  They seem reluctant to give rookie OF Gorkys Hernandez a long stint in the lineup to see where he is developmentally, so if the continued struggles of OF Jose Tabata extend through June, the call should go out for help from down the farm.  Hopefully, the help will come in the shape of OF Starling Marte, who besides a minor injury has shown that he is ready for the big leagues.  He is currently hitting .316 with 16 extra-base hits and 12 stolen bases at Indy.  The other option is to bring Opening Day OF Alex Presley back into the major leagues, as he has ripped apart AAA pitching since his demotion.  Second baseman/shortstop Jordy Mercer is looking like he is ready to make the jump as well, hitting .295 with 2 HR and 20 RBI in just 166 at-bats at Indy.  With the struggles of Clint Barmes, the Pirates may turn to their internal insurance policy at shortstop and Mercer is that guy.  A surprise at AAA has been the play of veteran OF Brandon Boggs, who is leading the team with a .335 BA and could be a useful fourth outfielder for the Bucs.  On the pitching end, the Pirates have RP Duke Welker on the high-speed path to Pittsburgh.  The hard-throwing right-handed pitcher dominated AA and will try to do the same at AAA.  If he excels at Indianapolis, the Pirates have an ace up their sleeve for another quality bullpen arm – a commodity that is integral to any contending team in a pennant race.

5.  SP Jeff Karstens is almost ready to come back – Karstens has been a very reliable major-league starter and with the Pirates starting staff looking good, there is no rush on his timetable to return.  However, when he does return it should mark the end of Kevin Correia in the rotation – a significant upgrade.  A rotation of McDonald/Burnett/Bedard/Morton/Karstens is a formidable group, and the emergence of Brad Lincoln as a quality reliever/fill-in starter has given the Pirates even more options for the stretch run.  Jeff Karstens return will be a shot-in-the-arm for the club and combined with the now dominant McDonald, the Pirates young pitchers can combine with their veterans to create a staff that rivals any in the National League Central.

6.  Potential Trade Targets will be plenty – Last year when the Bucs brought in 1B Derrek Lee, he immediately showed what new blood can do to a struggling club.  Before his injury, he was giving the Bucs exactly what they needed – a big bat in the middle of the lineup.  This season, names such as Twins 1B Justin Morneau, Astros 1b Carlos Lee, Padres OF Carlos Quentin, Dodgers 1b James Loney, injured Arizona SS Stephen Drew, Twins OF Denard Span, Rockies SS Marco Scutaro, Padres SS Jason Bartlett, and even Red Sox OF Cody Ross could be had in deals.  The Pirates have the young pitching that teams crave (although Jameson Taillon, Gerrit Cole, Luis Heredia are not up for discussion).  Any of the players mentioned above would bring pieces the Buccos need to acquire if they are in this for real in 2012.  Expect to start hearing the rumors floating out there in late-June as management evaluates the Pirates chances of making the postseason.

7.  SP James McDonald has become a sure-fire ACE - When the Bucs acquired McDonald from the Dodgers for journeyman reliever Octavio Dotel, nobody could have projected how quickly he would become the ace of the Pirates pitching staff.  But two years later, he is just that – and the national media is beginning to take notice.  Since the 2011 All-Star Break, McDonald is up there with names like Verlander, Halladay, Lee, and King Felix as the best starters in baseball.  He is the “stopper” the Bucs have lacked for some many years, and is quietly putting together a Cy Young quality season.  If the Pirates offense can get some run support for him, a 20-win campaign is not out of the question.  Pirates fans should be packing PNC Park to see James McDonald pitch this season, as he is emerging the same way that Doug Drabek emerged in 1990.

8.  Clint Hurdle will NOT let this team fail - The Pirates Manager is loyal, almost to a fault.  However, he will pull the plug on hitting coach Gregg Ritchie if the offense continues to slumber.  The other Hurdle man on the roster, Clint Barmes, is already on a tight rope and if he does not get his hitting in line with his career marks, expect the Pirates to pull that plug sooner than later.  Hurdle has been publicly frustrated with Barmes horrific strike out rate and recently was caught by the ROOT Sports cameras as he chastised the shortstop for a bad defensive play.  Barmes is on borrowed time in Pittsburgh.  Expect either Josh Harrison to take over the spot or a call to Indianapolis for Jordy Mercer fairly soon.

OK Pirates fans, after tonight we sit 22-24 and have a chance to sweep the Chicago Cubs tomorrow afternoon, leading into the biggest series of the young season – a 3-game series at PNC Park against the first place Reds.  If the Pirates get hot and – knock on wood – sweep Cincinnati, they could be looking at a second place standing and a 1.0 game deficit in the division.  A follow-up series in Cincy June 5-7 could be the series that propels the Pirates over .500 and into first place if all falls right.

Hey, I know this is all very optimistic information.  But this is “Chicken Soup for the 2012 Pirates Fan’s Soul” and I think we all need to think positively and get out to the ballpark to support this team.  The Pirates have a very interesting few months ahead of them, and when the smoke clears, there is a very real chance they could be zeroing in on one of those TWO Wild Card sports in the National League.

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Pirates SS Clint Barmes has been a major disappointment in 2012; courtesy Pirates.com

The second week of May is no longer the “beginning” of the baseball season, nor can 100 plate appearances be considered a “small sample size”.  No matter what baseball excuses people come up with to justify the woeful performance of Pirates starting shortstop Clint Barmes, the proof is in the pudding.

This is a player who has achieved the 600+ plate appearance mark once in his 10-year major league career.  Barmes has always been injury-prone, so his average season is normally in the 400-500 plate appearance range.  So far in 2012, he has looked healthy, but his lack of ability to put the bat on the ball has become a major problem for a team that is struggling to score runs.  While nobody expected that Clint Barmes would come to Pittsburgh and immediately turn into Honus Wagner, I’m pretty sure the organization was hoping for something in the neighborhood of Jack Wilson – or even Ronny Cedeno.

Barmes is hitting .152 with a brutal 25 K’s in those 98 plate appearances, which is bad enough until you consider that he has walked exactly one time and is sporting an on-base percentage of .188.  Between Barmes, Rod Barajas, and the pitchers spot, the Bucs are basically playing with a six-man lineup card every night.  Barajas received a slight momentary reprieve from Pirates fans after his walk-off homer on Tuesday beat Washington, but he has been equally miserable.  The Pirates have consistently gotten solid pitching (Team ERA of 3.40 as of 5/11), and some of their bats are showing signs of life.  With 1/5 of the season in the tank and sitting 14-17, the Pirates are 6.0 games out of first place in the N.L. Central.  The St. Louis Cardinals are 20-11 and by far the best team in the division thus far, but have played a soft schedule and should come back down to Earth by mid-season.  If the Bucs can get to .500 and hang there through the All Star Break, they will have as good a chance as anyone to catch the Redbirds – and possibly be in line to make some “buyers” moves at the trade deadline for the second year in a row.  In order to do that, the bats need to wake up very soon to give this pitching staff some run support – and that means any starting position player hitting below the Mendoza Line needs to go.  The Pirates can give Barmes until the end of May to get it going, but if his record-setting offensive futility continues there will be no choice but to make a permanent move at shortstop.

So what are the options for the Pirates if they need to bench Barmes?  First off, Clint Barmes isn’t going anywhere roster-wise.  Worst case scenario for him is that he becomes a $5 million dollar utility player.  Barmes has played a good bit of second base, third base, and even outfield in his big league career.  He has value to the Pirates simply due to positional flexibility, and although we have seen him play some really bad defense in 2012, traditionally he has been a serviceable fielder with a lifetime fielding percentage of .974.  The Pirates currently have Josh Harrison and Yamaico Navarro as their utility players, neither playing exceptionally well in limited action.  Both have limited experience at SS at the major league level.  Harrison has played four games there this season, starting in three of them, and he played one game at SS for AAA Indianapolis in 2011.  Navarro has a bit more time there, playing in 15 games for Boston in 2010 and scattering another seven appearances between Kansas City last season and Pittsburgh this year.  Either one of the two would be learning on the job defensively, and if you base your comparison entirely off of major league offensive output, Harrison would get the nod.  Last season, “The Jay-Hay Kid” became a fan favorite of Pirates fans with his all-out hustle and athleticism and put up solid numbers in 204 plate appearances (.272 BA with 16 RBI).  If he were to get regular at-bats, it is not unimaginable to expect a respectable batting average and for him to add another 15-20 stolen bases to the Pirates totals.  If nothing more, Harrison starting at shortstop would bring a needed burst of enthusiasm to the bottom of the lineup – a welcome sight after six weeks of watching Clint Barmes and his stoic approach (not to mention his creepy grin).

Josh Harrison; courtesy zimbio.com

The Pirates seem to like Navarro’s potential to be a legitimate major league utility player, possibly based on his minor league profile.  At only 24-years old, Navarro has played in 75 games at the AAA level, posting a .267/.343/.454 line with 10 homeruns in just 309 at-bats.  That potential has not manifested at the major league level in his very short career.  Although still relatively young for a player with nine professional seasons under his belt, Navarro doesn’t seem to have the skills to max out as any more than a bench player in the majors.

There are no other shortstop options on the Pirates big league roster.  Neither Casey McGehee nor Neil Walker has any professional experience playing shortstop.

The next group to look at are the Pirates minor league options.  Down at AAA-Indianapolis, the current starting shortstop is 25-year old prospect Jordy Mercer.  In 2011, Mercer shuffled between Indianapolis and AA-Altoona, posting a combined line of .255/.317/.440 with 19 homers and 69 RBI in 132 games.  Known for having a potent throwing arm, Mercer has had issues fielding the ball this season at Indy with six errors in just 25 games.  He is hitting at a .287 clip with two homers and nine doubles, and would seem to be next in line for a call-up to Pittsburgh if the Pirates dispatched a Raven to Winterfell (Indianapolis) for a middle infielder.  Mercer is intriguing to Pirates fans, who have been hearing his name as a prospect since the team drafted him in the third round of the 2008 MLB Draft.  The time is rapidly approaching for the Pirates to find out what they have in Mercer, who is probably ticketed for a September call-up if he doesn’t get to Pittsburgh sooner.

A familiar name to fans who watched him scuffle to a .217/.242/.287 line in his first extended major league action last season, Chase d’Arnaud has been battling injuries this season and has only been able to play in five games for Indianapolis.  Another speedy player in an organization that is not short on basestealers, d”Arnaud was woefully outmatched in the majors in 2011.  After getting off to a memorable start with a triple in his first game as a Pirate, d’Arnaud saw a good amount of action at shortstop and third base and didn’t play particularly well at either spot.  Mainly in the major leagues in 2011 due to injuries, the plan for d’Arnaud in 2012 has been to get a full season of AAA play under his belt.  While he isn’t as offensively challenged as Pirates family tree predecessor Brian Bixler, Chase d’Arnaud would bring plenty of strikeouts with him to the Steel City – something this team simply can not have any more of if they want to be competitive.   While d’Arnaud may be a long-term option for the major league roster, he needs to pile up some AAA at-bats before he tries the big time again.

INF Chase d'Arnaud made his MLB debut for the Pirates in 2011; courtesy rotoprofessor.com

The Pirates have a few other middle infielders at AAA including Brian Friday, an all glove/no hit natural shortstop who has played 2B/3B/SS throughout his pro career but has hit .236 in 670 AAA plate appearances, and Anderson Hernandez, a journeyman utility player who last played in the majors in 2010.  Hernandez was a non-roster invite to Spring Training this year and was kept around to provide depth at Indianapolis.  He is not an option for anything other than minor league filler at this point in his career, and is struggling heartily at AAA thus far.  The fact that Anderson Hernandez is even playing in the Pirates minor-league system shows how bad the depth is for middle infielders, organization-wide.

A little deeper look down the rabbit hole takes us to AA-Altoona, where 23-year old SS Brock Holt is making a push for promotion.  Depending on what happens in Pittsburgh, the domino effect could have Holt playing everyday at AAA very soon.  His defense has not been stellar at shortstop, so a move to second base is most likely in his future.  Current Curve second baseman Elevys Gonzalez is an exciting young player who absolutely tore apart pitching in the Class A Florida State League last summer.  Thus far he has struggled at Altoona, but the 22-year old has a future with the Pirates sometime in 2013-2014.

With so few potential options in their own system, the Pirates may have to look elsewhere to find a shortstop.

The only experienced player currently not with an organization is 35-year old Edgar Renteria  The former World Series hero and five-time All Star played with Cincinnati in 2011 but didn’t hook on with a club this year.  In February, he stated that he was considering retirement but has not filed papers to make that official.  Although he last played regularly with San Fransisco in 2009, he appeared in 96 games for the Redlegs last season and showed that he can still move.  Obviously, he isn’t a full-time option and would actually have to agree to come to Pittsburgh. If a team would have offered him a major league deal this spring, the veteran would probably be on a roster somewhere.  Renteria knows a few things about winning baseball games, and maybe he would take a liking to mentoring the young Pirates, or at the very least – feel bad for them.  Yeah, this is a long shot idea – but if the Bucs signed Edgar Renteria and slotted him in as the shortstop tomorrow – would you argue?

Trade options are tough to navigate at this point, since everyone still fancies themselves a contender in mid-May.  A player who is definitely available is San Diego Padres SS Jason Bartlett.  Bartlett was shopped around in the offseason, and with the Padres in a full-fledged youth movement, rumors are swirling that he could be released by the Friars, who are going to be stuck with his $5.5 million contract on their payroll regardless.  San Diego may be happy to eat most of his contract, which comes with a vesting option for 2013 that kicks in after 432 plate appearances.  Bartlett was an exceptional player in Tampa Bay just a few years ago – making an All Star game in 2009 – and just hasn’t been able to make the transition to Petco Park.  The Padres stadium has claimed more than its fair share of big league hitters, and Bartlett is struggling very badly this year while not laying on the beach.  This is a player who was a key cog in the amazing Tampa Bay Rays turnaround in 2008, when they went from perennial doormat to American League pennant winners in one season.  On this Pirates team, any experience in that type of environment could do nothing but help a club that just seems to be clueless on how to turn the corner.  Bartlett is far from a Gold Glove shortstop, but for the right price he could be had and would be an upgrade over any option on the Pirates roster.  At 32-years old, he has plenty left in his tank and just needs to get out of San Diego.  An offer of a C-Level minor league pitcher could be enough to get Bartlett and convince the Padres to eat most of his deal.  This is a case of a team taking ANYTHING they can get for a player.  If not, expect to see Jason Bartlett on the waiver wire within a month.

Padres SS Jason Bartlett is on his way out of San Diego; courtesy espn.com

There’s an old friend who may be available to the Bucs.  Jack Wilson was the Pirates shortstop from 2001-2009, before being traded away to Seattle against his will in the infamous deal that introduced us all to the magical world of Ronny Cedeno and Jeff Clement.  Since then, Wilson has spent three seasons as a part-time backup infielder for the Mariners and then for the Braves in 2011.  He was resigned by Atlanta in the offseason as an insurance policy to rookie SS Tyler Pastornicky, who has since cemented his status as the full-time starter for the Braves.  Wilson is now a seldom-used backup at second base, short, and third base.  With Pastornicky, “Mr. Biceps” Dan Uggla, and future Hall of Famer Larry Chipper Jones all in place for 2012, and Martin Prado available to play any position besides catcher, Wilson is simply taking up space on the Atlanta roster.  As a player who has earned the respect of everyone in baseball with his hard-nosed play and great community contributions, it is no secret that Wlson would love to finish up his career with the Pirates.  Atlanta expects to be in a tight division race all season in the N.L. East, and will be shuffling players back and forth to AAA-Gwinnett as often as fresh horses are available.  Now that they know they have their long-term shortstop in place, Wilson could be available.  “Jumpin’ Jack Flash has seen his hitting ability diminish along with his playing time in past years, but he can still throw the leather around.  What better way to jump-start a fledgling team than to bring back a player who contributed so much to the franchise and genuinely LOVED Pittsburgh?  What a story that would be, and how much fun would it be to see Jack Wilson and his familiar #2 back with the Pirates.  I’m sure Nate McLouth – a teammate of Wilson on the Bucs from 2005-2009 – would happily hand over #2 if Wilson came back home.  This may be the inner-fan in me talking, but baseball loves these kind of stories.  A player who wanted nothing more than to play his entire career with the Pirates finally gets his wish.  The Braves would be looking for a little bit of pop off their bench or maybe a low-level project player in return.  I would offer them 3B Jake Fox or OF Brandon Boggs from Indianapolis, opening up a AAA slot for one of the quickly-rising hitters from Altoona.  It’s a deal that could be done tomorrow, and at the very least it would take our minds off of the horrific offense we have been subjected to for the past six weeks.

The rest of the potentially available shortstops are players such as veteran Yuniesky Betancourt of the Kansas City Royals.  The Royals are buried deep in the standings of the A.L. Central and haven’t used Betancourt as anything more than a backup to starting second baseman Chris Getz and starting shortstop Alcides Escobar.  He is a solid little player that is on a one-year deal in his eighth major league season.  The Royals are slowing bringing up all of their prospects as the season moves forward, and Betancourt will see less at-bats until eventually being waived at some point.  He has played only one season in the National League (2011 with Milwaukee) and showed that he has some decent pop in his bat (13 HR and 68 RBI), along with being an excellent contact hitter (just 3 K’s in 50 at-bats in 2012).  More or less a platoon-type player at this point, at the very least he could offset either Harrison or Navarro and give them days off based on match-up comparisons.  INF Adam Kennedy is buried on the Los Angeles Dodgers depth chart, and has been a productive major league hitter as recently as 2009 with Oakland.  He can play all four infield positions, but is a natural shortstop.  At 36-years old, his best days are behind him but he did play in 114 games for Seattle last season and played outstanding defense.  He is a veteran player who would be an upgrade over Clint Barmes.  His availability would be based on the numbers game, the Dodgers have five middle infielders on their roster and are committed to Mark Ellis, Dee Gordon, and Jerry Hairston as their go-to guys.  Offer a PSPTBNL (Pretty Shitty Player to Be Named Later) and enjoy five months of Adam Kennedy in the black and gold.  Word is that he is a HUGE Boyz 2 Men fan, so maybe that would be enough to convince him to eat the cost of his time share in the Valley.

How cool would it be to see this sight at shortstop for the Bucs in 2012?

Unfortunately for Pirates fans, we may be stuck with Clint Barmes.  Besides his $10.5 million contract, he is in Pittsburgh mainly because Manager Clint Hurdle likes him.  Barmes was a big part of the Colorado Rockies team that eventually reached the World Series in 2007.  Although Barmes was hurt that year, those Rockies teams that Hurdle managed are special to the Pirates skipper and he may let Barmes hit solid rock bottom before having a teary-eyed, closed door, heart to heart love chat to pull the plug.  Meanwhile, the Pirates will continue to fall further away from .500 and even further behind the rest of the N.L. Central.  You all know that I believe Michael McKenry should be the starting catcher (he has Rockies ties, what’s the holdup Clint?) – if you were unaware of my man-crush on “The Fort” make sure you check out the FortTracker weekly column I post here at Rumbunter.  The Barmes/Barajas winter spend-a-thon has been a colossal failure, and now is the time to make the moves needed to keep this team in the hunt.

Yes, most of this article is pure speculation with little factual evidence to back up my options (and sorry to those who don’t watch “Game of Thrones” as some of the finer points may have left you wondering if I have been dipping into Dock Ellis’ personal stash), but the point is – there ARE options.  We are too early in the 2012 season to just assume that this is it, and coast to another 90-loss shitbox of a campaign.  The Pirates waited too long last summer to pull the trigger on the Ryan Ludwick and Derrek Lee moves, and it cost them.  I say the time is now to start shuffling the deck and take a chance on the 2012 Pittsburgh Pirates as contenders.

It all starts at shortstop.

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Former Pirate Ryan Doumit is off to a slow start with Minnesota

Now that we are a solid two weeks into the season, let’s take a gander at how some of our ex-Buccos are performing in their new baseball homes.

C/OF Ryan Doumit signed a one-year $3 million contract with the Minnesota Twins to be the primary back-up to catcher Joe Mauer and fill-in at 1B and RF.  After a 4-8 start to the season, the Twins are toiling 5.0 games back in the A.L. Central and Doumit has played in eight games, five at catcher and three in right field.  He is carrying a .219/.242/.219 line with no extra-base hits and one RBI, striking out eight times in 32 at-bats.  The Twins are being careful about how they handle Doumit, as he is the only back-up on the roster for the injury-prone Mauer.  Speedy outfielders Denard Span and Ben Revere create a significant defensive advantage in the cavernous Target Field outfield, and former first baseman Justin Morneau is the primary DH due to doctor concerns over his ability to play the field.  This greatly limits at-bats for Doumit, who has never had more than 431 plate appearances in any of his seven major league seasons.

Former Pirates SS Ronny Cedeno is also being used sparingly in his first season with the New York Mets (one-year, $1.25m).  Cedeno has seen time at second base, shortstop, and also at third base in the absence of David Wright last week.  He has hit .250/.438/.333 in 12 at-bats and has been used primarily as a defensive replacement.  With SS Ruben Tejada and 2B Daniel Murphy getting most of the playing time in the middle of the diamond, Cedeno may have to tap into the super-utility role to get more than 300 at-bats in 2012.  The Mets have been been a pleasant surprise thus far, at 7-5 and in second place behind the Washington Nationals in what shapes up to be a competitive N.L. East.

1B Lyle Overbay is hitting .222/.300/.500 in 18 at-bats for the Arizona Diamondbacks.  As the backup to 1B Paul Goldschmidt, Overbay could see playing time against tough right-handers and could contribute solid power numbers in Chase Field.  Overbay – who stroked 52 doubles with Milwaukee in 2004 – is a perfect fit for the wide open right-centerfield gap in the D-Backs stadium.  He hit just .227 in 352 at-bats with the Bucs prior to being released in 2011.

Ronny Cedeno is in his first season with the New York Mets

OF Matt Diaz was signed to a two-year $4.25 million contract by the Pirates prior to 2011 and expected to provide some pop off the bench after 20 homers in just under 600 at-bats for the Atlanta Braves in 2009-2010.  He failed to hit any longballs for the Bucs, and was traded back to Atlanta on August 31 last season.  Back in his comfort zone with the Braves, Diaz already has one homerun and has drove in four runs as the forth outfielder.  He is carrying a .278/.364/.500 line thus far in nine games.

OF Ryan Ludwick was one of the Pirates big trade deadline acquisitions last season, toiling to the finish line for the Bucs.  Signed to a one-year $2.5 million deal with Cincinnati this winter, Ludwick has paid dividends for the Reds, leading them in RBI with nine through 10 games in 2012.  He has for the time being earned the starting left field job over Chris Heisey and seems to have regained the power stroke he had with St. Louis during his 2007-2010 run with the Cardinals.  Ludwick gave the Pirates a .232 average in 112 expensive at-bats after being acquired from the San Diego Padres last July 31.

Although he is now three years removed from his time in Pittsburgh, it is interesting to note that 1B Adam LaRoche – a notorious slow starter – has been a key cog in the 10-3 start for the surprising Washington Nationals in 2012.  Through 13 games as the starting first baseman, LaRoche is hitting .314 and has drove in a team-leading 13 RBI in 51 at-bats.  While his Pirates career never materialized as the team expected, LaRoche is a hard guy to cheer against.  Seeing him get off to such a great start makes us all wonder what he could have accomplished had he put together a full season in Pittsburgh.

SP Paul Maholm spent his first seven major league seasons with the Pirates, accumulating 53 wins for some horrendous teams.  Signed by the Chicago Cubs to a one-year $4.25 million contract in the offseason, Maholm has not had a great start to his Wrigley career.  In two starts for the Cubs, he has a 13.50 ERA and has been tagged for the loss in both games.  Maholm has started against the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals thus far, two of the better hitting teams in the National League, so it may just be a case of bad timing for the southpaw.  Playing for the rebuilding Cubs and on a one-year deal, Maholm could be a prime trade deadline candidate for pitching hungry contenders.  Similar to LaRoche, Bucs fans may find it hard to root against Maholm, who dedicated significant time to charity programs and seemed to thoroughly enjoy his time in Pittsburgh.  Is there any doubt he will save his best game of the season for the first time he faces off against the Bucs?

Although certifiably nuts, RP Jose Veras gave the Pirates a solid season out of the bullpen in 2011.  Traded to the Brewers for Casey McGehee this past December, Veras has inherited the setup role to closer John Axford with Milwaukee.  In five games thus far, he has a 2.08 ERA and has averaged a strike out per inning.  The Brewers are off to a slow start after their best season in the National League in 2011, but a Veras/Axford back of the bullpen could have some dominant moments this summer.

There are numerous ex-Pirates scattered throughout the minor leagues after spending spring training with their new clubs.  Players such as INF Brandon Wood (Colorado), INF Steve Pearce (Yankees by way of the Twins), SS Pedro Ciriaco (Boston), C Jason Jaramillo (Milwaukee by way of the Cubs), and OF Xavier Paul (Washington) are all starting their 2012 seasons at AAA.  Former OF John Bowker has found a home with the Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional Baseball League after being released by the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason.

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