Pittsburgh Pirates: Colin Moran’s Potential Long-Term Future

Colin Moran has been trending upward since his arrival with the Pittsburgh Pirates, so could he be a long term answer at first base?

Colin Moran is preparing to enter his fourth season with Pittsburgh Pirates. Acquired as part of the Gerrit Cole trade Moran was one of the Pirates’ primary answers at third base. In 2018, he served as the platoon mate for David Freese up until Freese was traded and then as their main hot corner defender in 2019.

But with star prospect Ke’Bryan Hayes looking to take the reins at third base, Moran will shift across the diamond to first base in 2021. So far, Moran has shown the ability to be a very good batter at the major league level, but hasn’t put it all together yet. However, if he can breakout, does he become the long term answer at first base for the Pittsburgh Pirates?

Moran’s rookie campaign back in 2018 saw him hit for a solid .277/.340/.407 line, with11 home runs while having a .322 wOBA and 102 wRC+ in 465 plate appearances. Moran’s power was mostly absent with a .130 ISO, exit velo of 88.2 MPH and 35.9% hard hit rate. While not awful, they weren’t anything to write home about. However he did show solid plate discipline striking out just 17.6% of the time while having an 8.4% walk rate.

Moran got off to a hot start in 2019, batting .294/.335/.480 with a 109 wRC+ and .339 wOBA. The lefty batter saw a huge rise in power with his slugging percentage rising by nearly 80 points and ISO falling just short of .190 at .187. Moran nearly matched his 2018 home run total in just 269 plate appearances. Although it did come at the cost of his walk rate (5.9%) and strikeout rate (24.2%).

However, Moran’s bat went ice cold in the second half of 2019 which saw him turn in a .254/.308/.369 line, a wRC+ of just 75 and wOBA of .287. The power he showed in the first half of the season evaporated as his isolated slugging percentage fell to .112 and would hit just 3 more home runs in his last 234 plate appearances of the season.

Moran ended up as a below average hitter in 2019 posting a .315 wOBA and 94 wRC+. He was about average in terms of batted ball rates with an exit velocity identical to his 2018 mark of 88.2 MPH and hard hit rate of 34.8% (league average is 34.9%).

This past season, Moran’s plate discipline rebounded, having a 9.5% walk rate, albeit at the cost of a 26% strikeout rate. He also saw a major increase in power. Through his 200 plate appearances, Moran crushed 10 home runs, had a .225 isolated slugging percentage and .472 slugging. Though he did have a .247 batting average, Moran’s power spike was very promising. It also helps he had a 91.9 MPH exit velo (top 89th percentile) and 47.2% hard hit rate (top 86th percentile). All told, his 113 wRC+ was a career best mark.

Another promising part of his game in 2020 was his .480 expected slugging percentage, .336 xwOBA, .334 xOBP and 104 DRC+. The only one of those that wasn’t a career best was his xOBP.

Moran was a notoriously bad defender at third base, but his play at first base wasn’t all that bad. He had 0 DRS, -5.7 UZR.150 and +0.1 range runs above average at the corner infield position. Moran wouldn’t have to play all of his games at first base either as the universal DH will likely return by 2022 at the earliest.

Moran could be a long term answer for the Pirates at first base or DH. Right now, their best answer for a long term first baseman is Mason Martin. Martin can absolutely demolish the baseball. In 2019, he smacked 35 home runs while having a .553 slugging percentage and .304 ISO with Greenboro and Bradenton. However, he strikes out a ton. Throughout his minor league career, he has a strikeout rate over 30% at 30.8%. Although it is worth mentioning he walks a lot as well with a 13.8% walk rate, the strikeout rate is a bit concering.

Another long term answer could be Alexander Mojica. Mojica put up an outstanding 182 wRC+ and .491 wOBA through his first 218 professional plate appearances. However with 2021 being just his age-18 season, he’s likely not a long term answer for the near future.

With the designated hitter likely returning by at least 2022, Moran could be a long term player for the Pittsburgh Pirates at 1B/DH. Even if Martin does become a regular for the Pittsburgh Pirates, the team will need someone to DH and be a good hitter. Both Martin and Moran could share duties at the two positions and make themselves part of the Pirates’ competiton ready core.