Pittsburgh Pirates: 3 Takeaways From Series Loss Against The Cardinals

PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 08: Adam Frazier #26 of the Pittsburgh Pirates is restrained by third base coach Joey Cora #28 after being ejected in the seventh inning during the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on September 8, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 08: Adam Frazier #26 of the Pittsburgh Pirates is restrained by third base coach Joey Cora #28 after being ejected in the seventh inning during the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on September 8, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next
Pittsburgh Pirates
PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 06: Melky Cabrera #53 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrates with Jose Osuna #36 after they both came around to score on a two run RBI triple by Adam Frazier #26 in the seventh inning during the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on September 6, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

Jose Osuna is starting to look like a bench player

Jose Osuna got off to scorching hot start to the season for the Pirates. Combine this with the team being out of contention and having at bats available in right field due to Gregory Polanco‘s injury, and Osuna needed to earn consistent at bats to see if he had turned a corner or not.

Osuna has spent the better part of two months as essentially an every day player. Unfortunately, it appears that this has led to Osuna getting overexposed.

Since July 1st Osuna has had at least two plate appearances in 35 of the 52 games he has appeared in. In these 52 games Osuna has slashed .252/.288/.448 with a 5.6% walk rate and a 17.4% strikeout rate.

While Osuna has continued to hit for power during this stretch, he has struggled to consistently make quality contact. Additionally, a 5.6% walk rate and a .288 on-base percentage simply are not good enough.

Due to his struggles Osuna’s overall numbers for the season have slumped. He is now slashing .266/.307/.511 with a 107 wRC+ this season. While these numbers, other than his OBP, are not bad, they are trending in the wrong direction.

Next. Cam Junker's Career Is Off To A Strong Start. dark

Osuna definitely has a role on a MLB roster. He is slashing .345/.345/.966 with a 226 wRC+ as a pinch hitter this season. So, Osuna is very capable of being a strong bench player for a MLB team. However, it appears Osuna is not an every day player at the MLB level.