State of the Pittsburgh Pirates I: Jekyll and Hyde

As the 2017 Pittsburgh Pirates regular season is roughly 1/5 completed, there have already been a lot of surprises.

Coming into the season, even with the loss of Jung-Ho Kang, fans still saw the Pirates offense as a strongpoint for the club. Just the opposite has transpired, however. A combination of Starling Marte’s bombshell PED suspension, as well as big guns Andrew McCutchen and Gregory Polanco firing blanks, has led to the Pittsburgh attack ranking among the worst in Major League Baseball.

On the contrary, the Pirates starting rotation was a big question mark as the club broke spring camp. So far, fans expecting the worst have been in for a surprise, as the pitching has been nothing short of superb.

A lot has happened over the past month and a half, and much more is still to come as the weather starts to heat up. In the meantime, this article will be a reflection of the 2017 Pittsburgh Pirates baseball season to this point. It will break down the best, and worst of Bucco baseball thus far. A lot can and probably will change over these next four and a half months. For now, here is where things are at with PBC.

Most Valuable Player: Ivan Nova

The Pirates pitching rotation is the main reason that this ball club is anywhere close to respectable. So it’s only natural to say that the staff ace is deserving of team MVP.

To state that the acquisition of Nova, who the Pirates picked up via a trade with the New York Yankees at the deadline last summer, has worked out well would be a gross understatement. Although his win-loss record does not show it (#killthewin), virtually every other statistical category backs up how good Nova has been. As of May 9, His 2.14 ERA, 2.47 FIP, 0.881 WHIP and, wait for it, 0.2 BB/9 rate all were tops among Pirates starting pitchers.

Perhaps the most glowing example of how good Nova has been throughout his time in the Steel City is the fact that, in 17 starts, he has thrown more complete games (5) than walks (4).

Although it would be a reach to expect him to sustain this success for four more months, there is no reason that Nova and Gerrit Cole  can’t make up a dominant duo in Pittsburgh’s rotation. With the loss of Jameson Taillon, it becomes even more critical for Nova to perform well.

If Nova can pitch even close to the level he is at right now throughout the season, then that trade with the Yankees is set to go down as one of Neil Huntington’s best.

Biggest Disappointment: Gregory Polanco

Although the Pirates offense collectively is deserving of this distinction, I’ve narrowed it down to a two-hoarse race between Andrew McCutchen and Polanco. Ultimately, due to Cutch’s seniority, Polanco won out.

Coming out of spring training, I had high expectations for “El Coffe.” After making strides in his first two full seasons in the majors, I felt Polanco was ready to explode for a dominant year, and his performance in the World Baseball Classic backed that up. Unfourtanly, Polanco has not been getting the job done at the plate so far this season.

In fact, Coffe hasn’t been too hot since June of last year, as Polanco ended 2016 with a .220 batting average and .267 on-base percentage after the All-Star break. That rough second half seems to have carried over into 2017, as thus far,  he is hitting .255 with a modest .348 OBP and, perhaps most concerning, 0 home runs as of May 9.

Polanco might be turning a corner, as he has an impressive .400 OBP in the month of May. One can only hope that is the case.

With the absence of Kang and Marte as well as injuries to David Freese and Adam Frazier, the Pirates need Cutch and Coffe to step up now more than ever. The offense stinks, and Polanco getting back to where he was in the first half of 2016 will go a long way to freshening the air.

Most pleasant Surprise: Tony Watson

After the trade of Mark Melancon last July, the closer spot became a big concern for Pirates fans and remained that way through the end of 2016 and beginning of ’17.

After a rough end to last season, some fans expected Watson to continue to struggle in 2017. Other expected him to bounce back. Few, however, envisioned that Watson would be thriving the way he is right now.

As of May 9, Watson is a perfect seven for seven in save opportunities, having allowed just one earned run- a wind-aided bomb to Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant on April 15. While it is true that Watson tends to put men on base, and that he isn’t even the best pitcher in the Pirates bullpen, as Felipe Rivero has been even more dominant, Watson has gotten the job done every time he’s had to. Besides, whenever he pulls a Mike Williams and makes things hairy, it’s usually a result of the Pirates knack for butchering their defensive responsibilities.

At the moment, Watson has locked down the closer role, and hopefully, the Pirates back-end continues to be among the games finest as the season trundles along.

Offensive MVP: Josh Harrison

I’ve been a harsh critic of Jay-Hay for about a year now. The way I see it, while Harrison is a likable personality and solid defensively, his offense has not been up to par since that magical year of 2014. Harrison spent the first month of 2017 trying to prove people like me wrong, and so far, he is doing an outstanding job.

The Pirates offense has been so bad that I don’t want to give anybody credit for anything. But if I were to pick one hitter that has shined above the rest, Harrison has been that guy.

So far, Harrison has been excellent at the top of the lineup, as he is batting .294 with an OBP of .361  and even is showing some power with five home runs to lead the team as of May 9

Before anybody gets too high on Harrison’s hot start, consider that in 2016, he hit .333 in April and .325 in May before coming back down to earth.

Maybe his early success will carry throughout the season, or maybe Adam Frazier will indeed prove to be a better player. But for now, Harrison is fun to watch, and we can’t say the same for most of the offense.

Best Story: Gift Ngoepe

All of us know at least the gist of the Gift Ngoepe story, so I won’t go deep into the details of that. Given all that this man has had to go through to make history in getting to the big leagues, he will be an inspiration even if he never gets another hit. With that said, if early results are any indication, Ngoepe could be turn out to be an asset to the Pirates regardless of nationality.

Gift is off to a respectable start, hitting .292 with an OBP of .433 as of May 9. It might be hard to see the African become an everyday starter, but Ngoepe has defied the odds all his life. If the 28-year-old rookie can live his life in a clubhouse, bust his hump in the minors for almost a decade, and do what nobody else from his continent has ever done in getting to the big leagues, there is no telling what else this man can accomplish.

In any case, Gift Ngoepe is an inspiration, and not only is he the story of the year in Pittsburgh, but possibly in all of baseball as well.

Overall State of the Pirates: Smoky 

Things have been rough for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017, and with the terrible news about Jameson Taillon that we learned on Monday afternoon, it looks like they will only get worse.

There just doesn’t seem to be a whole lot positive to say about this team right now. The offense is terrible, the starting pitching just lost one of it’s best arms, and the bullpen can only do so much if the other two machines aren’t running properly. A lot of this is due to unfortunate circumstances that one could not have seen coming before the season, but plenty of players that aren’t hurt or suspended still are not pulling their weight.

Coming into this season, I thought that the Pirates had a chance to compete for a playoff spot. Now, it looks like they may not even top last season’s 78-win total.

It’s depressing to think that, just two years ago, this was a 98-win ball club that could have won the World Series if they were in any other division in Major League Baseball. Now, they are mediocre.

Even though it is early, the outlook is not brilliant for the Pittsburgh Nine.

One can only hope and pray that this team turns it around.