Pittsburgh Pirates: Clutchest Seasons in Franchise History

5 of 6

PITTSBURGH, PA – OCTOBER 07: Andrew McCutchen #22 of the Pittsburgh Pirates steps onto the field prior to the National League Wild Card game against the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park on October 7, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Andrew McCutchen, 2015

When you think of a modern day clutch hitter for the Pirates, 2013 National League MVP Andrew McCutchen probably comes to mind. You can probably think of many times McCutchen came through when it really mattered, and his 2015 season was when he came through the most often.

The former Pirates’ center fielder had an outstanding run from 2012 to 2015. In those four seasons, Cutch hit .313/.404/.523 with 100 long balls, 76 stolen bases, a 157 wRC+, and 28,8 fWAR. In terms of wRC+, only Mike Trout, Miguel Cabrera, and Joey Votto passed McCutchen. Buster Posey and Trout were the only two players who provided more value than him in fWAR.

Technically speaking, 2015 was the worst season out of those four years. But even though it was his worst year from ‘12-’15, he still batted outstandingly well. In 685 plate appearances, Cutch put up a .292/.401/.488 line, 144 wRC+, 23 long balls, and .380 wOBA. The only other center fielder that outdid Cutch in wRC+ and wOBA was Trout.

During this year, Cutch posted a whopping 1.53 clutch index. When it came time to hit with runners in scoring position, the slugger batted .361/.494/.656. He reached base nearly 50% of the time with RISP. That’s a 196 wRC+. In high leverage situations, he hit .323/.387/.500, coming to a 125 wRC+. Pretty decent numbers. Plus, we all know one of his clutchest moments in his Pirate career was when he hit a walk off home run agaisnt the Cardinals in a marathon, back-and-forth game that ended up being the first of two very dramatic back-to-back walk offs.

Home/Pirates All-Time Lists