Pittsburgh Pirates Week in Review: Hot vs. Not

Apr 24, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen (22) scores on an RBI double by second baseman Neil Walker (not pictured) during the eighth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

NOT

1. Andrew McCutchen is having a rough start to the season. Management and McCutchen himself have said that he is battling an injury, but that he will continue to battle through it over the course of the season as opposed to dealing with it. Whether this is the right choice or not can be debated. What can’t is the obvious affect this injury is having on the 2013 NL MVP. Over the past week, Cutch is batting a weak .143 with just three hits in 21 at-bats. Just one of those was an extra-base hit, and he had seven strikeouts to four walks. On the season, Cutch is batting .186 and slugging a mere .322 heading into Monday night’s action. He’s had some poor April numbers in the past, but none this bad. Needless to say, if the Pittsburgh Pirates hope to have any chance to go far in October this year, McCutchen needs to produce.

This past week, A.J. Burnett and Francisco Liriano each had two great starts, while Mark Melancon had another uncharacteristic blow-up in the ninth. Neil Walker carried the offense in the sweep of the Diamondbacks, while Andrew Lambo and Andrew McCutchen contributed next to nothing over the five-game winning streak. Baseball is a game of streaks, so expect some of these players to rebound while others will surprise and get hot. I expect another exciting week for the Pittsburgh Pirates coming up.

Next: Pittsburgh Pirates spring cleaning: Rum Bunter Rumblings