Pittsburgh Pirates show well in MLB Network Top 10 lists

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Sep 8, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop

Jordy Mercer

(10) mishandles the ball for an error during the eighth inning of a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Pirates defeated the Phillies 6-4. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

Jordy Mercer exited 2014 as the unquestioned everyday starter at SS for the Pittsburgh Pirates and may enter 2015 as part of a platoon when it’s all said and done.  The arrival of Jeong-ho Kang took everyone by surprise, but the biggest surprise of all may be that Mercer appears in The Shredder’s top 10 list at no. 6.  From MLB.com:

Keeping in mind that SS, above all other positions on the diamond, carries such weight defensively, Mercer does belong on this list.  Offensively, maybe not.  The first few months of 2014 were a disaster for Jordy, hitting .167 in April and .225 in May before starting to heat up and become the Mercer we expected to see after a breakout 2013.   Mercer’s end of year stats were not impressive, but his fielding sure was.  A .982 fielding percentage is solid, as is his 11 errors, especially when looking at who occupied the space to his right for a good chunk of the year.  Kang will push Mercer this year, and maybe that will be the best thing for him.  One of the better story lines in spring training this year will be these two going at it, and I for one will be paying attention.

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As of this writing, there are still two top 10 lists to come out.  Third Base and Catcher are all that’s remaining for us to debate.  I think we can all safely agree that Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart will not make that list.  But will Josh Harrison?  We’ll look into that with it’s own post when that happens but for now, what do you think?  Do you think the shredder got these right or wrong?  Any Pirates missing?  Let us know in the comments or on Twitter or Facebook.

One thing is certain: the days of seeing a token Pirate in the all star game or “honorable mentions” in lists like these are over.