Josh Harrison is a ballplayer. That’s what they say, right? He’s gritty, hustles and plays the game the right way. For the past two months, Harrison hasn’t only been playing the game the right way, but he’s been playing the game really, really well. Actually, it’s a little too well.
Let me start by saying that I absolutely love Josh Harrison. When it comes to interacting with the media, Harrison was up there with Michael McKenry, Jared Hughes and Andrew McCutchen as far as being willing to talk at any moment during my 1.5 years on the beat. He smiled, joked and he’s just truly a nice guy. He’s someone that you root for, in fact. While I do hope that Harrison enjoys a long, successful career, I’m realistic enough to realize that if he’s going to do so, it will be as a role player.
In May and June, Harrison has averaged a .317/.357/.476 slash, with four home runs, 22 RBI and six steals. Tremendous numbers over the course of 49 starts. In fact, Pittsburgh was half-joking when it hoped that Gregory Polanco would match Harrison’s production when he came up.
So, the conversation began as to where Harrison would play once Polanco came up, and once Starling Marte and Neil Walker were both healthy. So far, we’ve see Harrison come off the bench. There are internal talks that Harrison will get more time at shortstop, which could lead to the end of Clint Barmes’ time with the Pirates. But with Harrison average at very best at the position, paired with the erratic Pedro Alvarez at third base, it’s a recipe for disaster for the team with the highest ground ball to fly ball ratio in baseball for the second straight season.
But my question, showing my age and music taste as a teenager, is will the real Josh Harrison please stand up?
We’ve seen this type of play from Harrison in that past. He hit .333 in 25 games during July and August last year, only to regress to .150 the rest of the year. Two years ago, over the same months, he hit .288 in 36 games, and that includes eight multi-hit efforts. Harrison ended that year hitting .230.
Now yes, the 49 starts are a much bigger sample, but there’s a reason that Harrison was considered the 25th man on the roster multiple times over the past two years, and those who are singing his praises now are the same ones who were criticizing manager Clint Hurdle for having Harrison on the roster at all before.
A big reason for Harrison’s success this year is the high .333 BAbip, up over .40 from his career average. The balls that Harrison is hitting are finding open spots. Harrison’s .333 is also higher than the MLB average (.290-.310). Another big reason for his success is his .339 OBP, which is out of character for the sixth-round pick out of Cincinnati, being that he had one of the worst OBP’s in baseball over the past four seasons.
Is it possible that the 26-year-old Harrison — who turns 27 on Tuesday — is enjoying a breakout season? Sure. But those who believe that probably also believe that Brock Holt is the real deal, and that Chris Davis would continue his homer pace from last year. I mean, it does happen, I guess. Just look at Jose Bautista. Bautista was 29 years old when he had his breakout season with 54 home runs in Toronto, but if I was a betting man, I’d say Harrison is enjoying just a short amount of success. His 2.0 WAR is the highest of his career (0.3 last year), and is tied with Russell Martin, second only to Andrew McCutchen’s 3.7 this season.
He can be useful, though. Hurdle obviously believes it, as he pinch-hit Harrison over the only true power source in the Pirates’ lineup during Thursday night’s loss to the Diamondbacks. Harrison can be an above-average utility player for the Pirates, and he can serve at the team’s go-to pinch-hitter. His flexibility allows the Pirates to plug him into the outfield, third base, second base or short stop any day of the week. If the Pirates use him like that, he’ll remain valuable.
However, to think that the Pirates should trade Alvarez — who is playing horribly, mind you — is absurd. Well, it’s absurd to the point that you’ll trade him so that Harrison can play each day there. Eventually, the numbers will catch up to Harrison. Remember when Alex Presley came up in 2011? He hit .298 and all of the sudden, he was the answer to all of the Pirates questions in the outfield. When Presley had the chance to showcase his abilities in 2012, well, let’s just say it went the way it should have.
Harrison is a better ballplayer than Presley, but it’s the same discussion. He’s more of a second-to-last guy on the roster, than he is a top-eight position player. But hey, here’s hoping that Harrison proves me wrong, but by 2017, don’t be surprised if you find yourself Googling Harrison’s name to find out if he’s still in the big leagues.
