When the Pittsburgh Pirates traded RP Brad Lincoln to the Toronto Blue Jays at the 2012 MLB trade deadline, the deal was not popular with Pirates fans. At the time, the Pirates were sitting pretty at 58-44, just three games back of first place in the National league Central Division. The biggest strength for the team that summer was the surprising bullpen, which had kept an offensively-challenged Pirates team in the division race all season. One piece of the pre-“Shark Tank” bullpen that seemed to be firmly establishing himself as a part of the future was top pitching prospect Brad Lincoln. Lincoln, chosen fourth overall by the Bucs in 2006 MLB Amateur Draft, had spent parts of the 2010 and 2011 seasons in Pittsburgh. Mainly used as a starter in those first two stints with the big club, Lincoln finally seemed to find his groove with the Pirates in 2012 as a middle reliever in front of closer Joel Hanrahan.
In 28 games with the Pirates that summer, Lincoln had posted a 2.73 ERA with a 60/14 K/BB ratio in 59.2 IP. Manager Clint Hurdle had found confidence in Lincoln, using him in high-intensity, late-inning matchups and seeming to prefer the righty to fellow set-up men Jared Hughes and Chris Resop at times. The Pirates had a great deal of time and effort wrapped up in Lincoln, signing him to a $2.75 million deal right out of the draft and then sticking with him through injury problems that seemed to pop up right away in 2006. Lincoln only pitched 24 innings during his first professional season, as he split time between the GCL Pirates Rookie League team and the Single-A Hickory Crawdads. An oblique injury ended his season early, before Tommy John surgery completely derailed the 21-year-old for the entire 2007 campaign.
From 2008-2010, Lincoln slowly climbed the ladder of the Pirates farm system, being used primarily as a starter. When he made his Major League debut in 2010, that was the role the Pirates envisioned Lincoln filling in Pittsburgh. Finally in 2012, a move to the bullpen seemed to click everything into place for Lincoln, and his electric fastball began to show its full effect once he was able to fully dedicate himself to the shortened role. It seemed as if the Pirates had finally found a gem among so many first-round draft pick pitchers gone awry.
The 2012 Pirates were coming off a season in which they had actually been in first place past the All Star break for the first time since the 1997 “Freak Show” team sat in the top spot with a 47-46 record in mid-July of that season. The 2011 Pirates were tied for the N.L. Central lead on July 25, a 52-47 record giving the front office enough confidence to go out and make trade deadline deals for 1B Derrek Lee and OF Ryan Ludwick. Almost immediately following those deals, the Pirates embarked on a 2-12 tailspin that put them firmly behind the St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers, and the team finished the season with their 19th consecutive sub-.500 campaign.
The 2012 Bucs were once again in the hunt for the division at the July trade deadline, sitting at 59-44 – just three games behind the Cincinnati Reds. Once again, the Pirates front office decided to make some moves to shore up the roster heading into August. After making a very contender-like move in trading three minor-leaguers for SP Wandy Rodriguez, the Pirates made several odd deals that made fans wonder just what G.M. Neil Huntington was trying to accomplish. On July 30, the Bucs traded Lincoln to the Toronto Blue Jays straight up for former top prospect OF Travis Snider. Snider had long been the Blue Jays top position prospect, drafted 14th overall in the 2006 MLB Amateur Draft – just eight slots behind Brad Lincoln.
After showing great power in the minor leagues, the Blue Jays promoted Snider to Toronto in late-August of 2008. The then 20-year-old immediately stepped into the Blue Jays starting lineup, splitting time between the outfield and the designated hitter role. In 24 late-season games for Toronto, Snider impressed his club – finishing the season with a .301 batting average, two home runs and 13 RBI in just 80 plate appearances. The Blue Jays inserted Snider as their starting left fielder on Opening Day 2009, and he produced well during the month of April. By mid-May, however, Snider had fallen into a long slump at the plate. He was sent back to AAA Las Vegas on May 20, where he proceeded to tear up the Pacific Coast League to a tune of .337/14/40 in 48 games. Toronto recalled Snider on August 18, once again handing him a starting role.
Snider was the primary right fielder for the Blue Jays for the remainder of 2009, showing good pop with nine home runs but suffering from a lack of plate discipline. That would be the story for Travis Snider with the Blue Jays, despite blasting 14 home runs in limited action the following season, he was never able to fully secure a long-term starting spot. By 2012, Toronto had moved in another direction in their quest to challenge the star-studded A.L. East Division. A 2011 trade for CF Colby Rasmus and the emergence of Jose Bautista as a dominant power hitter had virtually assured Snider of not finding a future north of the border. In 2012, Snider spent just 10 games with the Major League club before Toronto dealt him to the Pirates.
Since arriving in Pittsburgh in 2012, Snider has still been unable to find the potential he showed as a young power hitter. The Pirates gave him a chance to start 29 games down the stretch in 2012, but he did not capitalize on the opportunity and found himself back on the bench to start 2013. Rookie phenom Starling Marte took over the left field job last season, a spot that he will own for the foreseeable future. Former starting outfielder Jose Tabata has not developed the way many expected after hitting .299 in his 2010 rookie season. The Pirates seem to be simply counting down the days until uber-prospect Gregory Polanco makes his way to Pittsburgh in June.
In the meantime, Snider will be taking the lion’s share of at bats in right field. Snider came into Spring Training looking much leaner than past years, and a new, more compact approach at the plate helped contribute to a .340 batting average in 17 games during the exhibition season. Snider has started all three games against Chicago to start the season, a sign that the Pirates are going to give him the opportunity to secure a long-term roster spot even after Polanco arrives. Snider will more than likely start against right-handed starters, and based on his career splits, one would assume he would sit against the tough southpaws, with Tabata getting the nods in those matchups.
Once Polanco does get called up – a virtual certainty at this point – the Pirates will have a decision to make on their 25-man roster. The current platoon at first base between Gaby Sanchez and Travis Ishikawa and the lack of options for relief pitchers Bryan Morris and Jeanmar Gomez leaves the Pirates with very limited space on the active roster. It would seem that either Tabata or Snider will be out of time when Polanco makes his anticipated debut. For Snider, that means every game is important to his future with the club, and he will need to get into a groove very soon to secure his future. Neither Snider nor Tabata has the ability to play first base, so the battle between them is for the fourth outfielder spot long-term.
Of course, there is always the chance that Polanco is not completely ready for an everyday Major League job. Pirates fans have been spoiled by the immediate success of Marte and Andrew McCutchen upon their arrivals in Pittsburgh, so the assumption is that Polanco will enjoy the same type of immediate success. Should he falter, the Pirates will almost be forced to make a mid-season deal to shore up the first base/right field quagmire – unless Snider shows he is ready to be an every day player.
At just 26 years old, Snider is still young enough to turn his career around. His pedigree is still there as a power-hitting, left-handed bat with a decent enough glove to warrant an every day job. He will need to show that he is able to do more than pop the occasional ball over the Clemente Wall, though. The next two months could be the most important in the career of Snider. Hopefully, he is able to finally come into his own in Pittsburgh and give the Pirates an added insurance policy in right field for the foreseeable future.
