Now that the holiday season has come and gone — and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday — it is time to start preparing for the 2015 baseball season.
Yes, it is only the first week of the new year and it’s still cold enough outside to freeze the Allegheny, but it’s never to early to discuss the fast-approaching season which is now less than 90 days away.
It has already been a busy offseason for the Pirates with the acquisitions of Francisco Cervelli, Corey Hart, Radhames Liz, Brad Lincoln and A.J. Burnett to name a few along with the re-signing of Francisco Liriano.
With most of the acquisitions done with for the Pirates for the offseason, it’s time to take an early look at the projected 25 that could take the field in Cincinnati on April 6th.
Projected Opening Day lineup
1) Josh Harrison 3B – .315 BA, 13 HR, 38 doubles, 52 RBI in 2014 (143 games)
2) Starling Marte LF – .291 BA, 13 HR, 29 doubles, 56 RBI in 2014 (135 games)
3) Andrew McCutchen CF – .314 BA, 25 HR, 38 doubles, 83 RBI in 2014 (146 games)
4) Neil Walker 2B – .271 BA, 23 HR, 25 doubles, 76 RBI in 2014 (137 games)
5) Pedro Alvarez 1B – .231 BA, 18 HR, 13 doubles, 56 RBI in 2014 (122 games)
6) Gregory Polanco RF – .235 BA, 7 HR, 9 doubles, 33 RBI in 2014 (89 games)
7) Francisco Cervelli C -.301 BA, 2 HR, 11 doubles, 13 RBI in 2014 (49 games)
8) Jordy Mercer SS – .255 BA, 12 HR, 27 doubles, 55 RBI in 2014 (149 games)
9) Pitchers spot
Look for the lineup to change some once the season gets rolling as Polanco will most-likely move to the leadoff spot once he gets established. The same could go for Pedro Alvarez and the cleanup spot.
Projected bench
1) Travis Snider – .264, 13 HR, 15 doubles, 38 RBI in 2014 (140 games)
2) Corey Hart – .203 BA, 6 HR, 9 doubles, 21 RBI in 2014 (68 games)
3) Chris Stewart – .294 BA, 5 doubles, 10 RBI in 2014 (49 games)
4) Andrew Lambo – .256 BA, 4 doubles, 1 RBI in 2014 (21 games)
5) Sean Rodriguez -.211 BA, 12 HR, 13 doubles, 41 RBI in 2014 (96 games)
Jung-ho Kang could play himself into a bench spot if he signs with the team and shows he can put together a solid defensive game along with his solid offensive numbers.
Projected rotation
1) Gerrit Cole – 11-5, 3.65 ERA with 138 strikeouts and 40 walks in 22 starts (138 innings) in 2014. Cole spent time on the disabled list in 2014, but continued to establish himself as the team’s future ace when he was able to pitch. He finished the year with 9.0 K’s per nine innings which is 2.3 higher than his rookie year in 2013.
2) Francisco Liriano – 7-10, 3.38 ERA with 175 strikeouts and 81 walks in 29 starts (162 1/3 innings) in 2014. Liriano fought through the first have of the 2014 season with an oblique injury, but bounced back after spending time on the disabled list by going 4-0 in his final seven starts (1.22 ERA)
3) A.J. Burnett – 8-18, 4.59 ERA with 190 strikeouts and 96 walks in 34 starts (213 2/3 innings). Burnett struggled last season while pitching the majority of the year with a Sports hernia. However, he did not miss a start due to the injury and led the league in games started.
4) Charlie Morton – 6-12, 3.72 ERA with 126 strikeouts and 57 walks in 26 starts (157 1/3 innings). Morton pitched injured last season with a torn right labrum and was shut down in August. He had surgery in September and expects to be ready for opening day.
5) Vance Worley – 8-4, 2.85 ERA with 79 strikeouts and 22 walks in 17 starts (110 2/3 innings). Worley helped the Pirates maintain themselves when the injury bug struck the starting rotation. He went 3-0 in his final five starts (2.07 ERA) and had the team’s lone complete game shutout of the season.
Rotation wild cards
1) Jeff Locke – 7-6, 3.91 ERA with 89 strikeouts and 40 walks in 21 starts (131 1/3 innings). Locke, once again, hit a late-season wall going 1-3 his final five starts (5.47 ERA). He did the same last season going 1-3 in final 5 last season after being one of the Pirates better starters during the first half of the year.
2) Jameson Taillon – The 16th ranked prospect by MLB.com (pre-2014 season) underwent Tommy John surgery last year and looks to get back on track this season. If things go as planned, Taillon could be a possibility for the rotation by July.
3) Radhames Liz – 3-2, 2.95 ERA with 44 strikeouts and 24 walks in 12 starts (61 innings) in the Blue Jays organization (AA-AAA) in 2014. Liz went 26-38 in the Korean Baseball Organization (3.51 ERA) between 2011-2013.
4) Nick Kingham – 6-11, 3.34 ERA with 119 strikeouts and 52 walks in 26 starts (159 innings) between AA-AAA in 2014. Kingham will start in AAA and could be a possible spot starter if needed.
Projected bullpen
CL – Mark Melancon – 33/37 in save opportunities with a 1.90 ERA, 71 strikeouts and in 72 appearances (71 innings) in 2014. Melancon made a smooth transition from setup man to closer after Jason Grilli’s struggles removed him from the position early in 2014.
SU – Tony Watson (LHP) – 10-2, 1.63 ERA with 81 strikeouts and 15 walks in 78 appearances (77 1/3 innings) in 2014. Watson went 20 straight appearances without allowing a run to score and led the league in appearances.
MID – Antonio Bastardo (LHP) – 5-7, 3.94 ERA with 81 strikeouts and 34 walks in 67 appearances (64 innings) in 2014.
MID – John Holdzkom – 1-0, 2.00 ERA with 14 strikeouts and 2 walks in nine appearances (9 innings) in 2014. It will be interesting to see how Holdzkom will pan out over the course of a full season once teams get a full scouting report on him.
MID – Jared Hughes – 7-5, 1.96 ERA with 36 strikeouts and 19 walks in 63 appearances (64 1/3 innings) in 2014. Hughes had a solid 2014 and only allowed a .175 batting average to opponents in high leverage situations.
MID/LONG – Brad Lincoln – 6-11, 5.11 ERA with 112 strikeouts and 58 walks in 22 starts and five relief appearances (123 1/3 innings) in AAA (PHI) in 2014. Lincoln established himself as a reliever/spot starter for the Pirates in 2012 before being sent to the Blue Jays for Travis Snider. He could, once again, find himself in that role with the Pirates.
LONG – Stolmy Pimentel – 2-1, 5.23 ERA with 38 strikeouts and 16 walks in 20 appearances (32 2/3 innings) in 2014. With Jeanmar Gomez gone, Pimentel will be the main long reliever for the Pirates in 2015 and could spot start if needed.
Other names that could play themselves into the bullpen: Bobby LaFromboise, Rob Scahill, Casey Sadler, Brandon Cumpton.
Early projected win total: 88
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(Photo Credit: Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
