The Pittsburgh Pirates have a cleanup hitter problem.
Indeed, the fourth spot in the batting order is a nebulous one for the team as it is currently constructed. Traditionally, a hitter in that spot is counted on to provide protection for a team’s third hitter and, well, clean up by driving in any runners left on base.
Last year, the team felt that the cleanup hitter was enough of a weakness to address it mid-season in the form of welcoming Aramis Ramirez back to the fold. Ramirez performed well in that spot, with 33 RBI in 56 games. Ramirez’s best contribution to the slot came from a low strikeout rate, coming in at 13.6 percent.
Ramirez is now retired, and the team’s recent acquisitions in John Jaso and Jason Rogers may not yet be ready to assume an everyday cleanup hitter role. To many, the two in-house options most likely to assume the role would be Jung Ho Kang and Starling Marte.
In Marte’s case, it’s tempting to track his growth as a hitter, with a career high 81 RBI last year, as a natural progression toward the cleanup slot. It’s also tempting not to break up the electric top of the order that sees Gregory Polanco, Marte and Andrew McCutchen form a formidable young row of hitting talent.
Last year, Marte struck out at a 22.9 percent clip when batting fourth, compared to just a 14.9 percent rate when batting second. Does Marte still need protection behind him in the order? Perhaps that doesn’t even matter, as Marte’s triple-slash line of .327/.373/.464 while batting cleanup speaks volumes. The run production is there – Marte accounted for 27 RBI and 25 runs in 212 plate appearances while hitting fourth – in a similar vein to his numbers at the second slot. Is it simply a matter of taking the production from Marte wherever it may come from?
The lone viable candidate comes with a huge cloud above him. Kang’s timetable for return in 2016 is still very much up in the air despite the many encouraging signs that he will be ready sooner rather than later. Kang spent time at the fourth and fifth spot in 2015, with his performance being markedly better in the non-cleanup role. Kang had an .OPS (on base plus slugging) of .894 from that spot,
If the Pirates may be hesitant to move Marte from a spot that he is comfortable in, then they may be downright scared to move Kang from the five-hole. Not only is Kang still transitioning to the American game, it remains to be seen how much of a setback the knee injury will truly be. Allowing Kang to return to a batting order slot he is familiar with may prove to be a small piece of insurance against a backslide.
With John Jaso and a healthy Josh Harrison in tow, the team has some options for a number two hitter, which may force the team’s hand in tabbing Marte for the cleanup role. With Kang presumably behind him, and Francisco Cervelli lurking not far behind, the 1-through-6 spots in the Pirates lineup could be a formidable bunch.
There is still plenty of offseason left. For now, Marte may be the best answer to the Pittsburgh Pirates’ cleanup problem
