The Pirates need to get the fuck on base. Solving our offensive problems (sans trades) begins there.

Can our current guys turn it around? I don't know.

League average OBP is around .340. Who on the team is getting the job done?

MLB
Andrew McCutchen .397

That's it!! Just him!!

While I know a players minor league #s don't directly translate to equal MLB #s, let's take a look at who is over .340 down on the farm:

AAA
Jordy Mercer .379
Jeff Clement .374
Jose Morales .368
Gorkys Hernandez .361
Brandon Boggs .353
Yamaico Navarro .345

AA
Adalberto Santos .484
Drew Maggi .400 (was at .352 in almost 200 ABs in Bradenton)
Kelson Brown .388
Brock Holt .382 (repeating the level; was .356 in '11)
Charles Cutler .376
Tony Sanchez .370 (currently at .226 in AAA)
Matt Curry .356 (repeating the level; was .376 in '11)

A+
Justin Howard .393
Alex Dickerson .356
Evan Chambers .352 (now in AA at .333 in only 28 ABs)
Benji Gonzalez .342

A-
Alen Hanson .389
Gregory Polanco .357
Junior Sosa .342 (currently in A+ at .182 in only 22 ABs)

Sample sizes at lower levels are all too small.

The numbers above scare me because only some of those guys are actual prospects.

Now, everybody knows we have a surplus of pitching talent. It's obvious we should deal from there to net some bats, and I'd prefer that we target high OBP. If we get such returns with multiple years of control, so much the better. If you've got an idea of a realistic trade scenario for a blocked bat or a youngish bat on a team that is an obvious seller, I'd love to hear it. Until the Pirates make such moves, we'll just have to pray for our pitching to be stellar and our bats to not suck out loud. And I can't get excited about that.

The NL average is actually .318. AL Average is .320. Neil Walker and Jose Tabata are both players that proved to get on base at much higher clip than that in their first two seasons. Those are the players that need to snap out of it. If those two can just find their level and Clint Barmes can atleast hit near his career average the rest of the way that would solve a lot. Chase Headley is the guy available that makes the most sense for both the short and long term.

I used a wiki article that said .340 in the modern era, .300 in the dead ball era. I have no idea if these numbers are valid.


What do you think it takes to get him?

And assuming we got him, do you play him at 3rd and move Pedro to 1st?

It would take a lot to get him. Several good prospects or one really great prospect. I'd put Headley in the OF for now. Pedro is too much of a head case and too unstable for a position change. He is hitting again and I wouldn't do anything to eff with his comfort zone. If I were Hurdle I'd do everything possible to help Pedro find some consistency. No way I mess with his position on the field or in the batting order.

Is SD really that good of a trading partner for the Pirates?

We have arms, and given that Petco is a pitchers park, don't they need bats even more than we do? How much would they really value our arms?

I'm reluctant to give up any of our legit bats in the farm system.

What legit bats Ol Skool ?

Not a dig on you brother ....just saying

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They are a bunch of fuckers

Getting guys on base is huge, no doubt about it.

Walker and Tabata, I believe, can be better than they've played. Walker hasn't been terrible, but not as good as when he first came up. Tabata has been mostly bad this season thus far.

I wouldn't worry about anything below AAA when looking at this, all that is too far skewed. Gorkys was brought up earlier but rarely got to play. I'd be open to another look his way. I'm still not sold on Casey, so I'd be up for a look at Clement. NO to NOvarro! Jordy had 1 hit in his very brief stint here. He only got to play a brief time, then was benched and finally sent back. I'd be open to another look there as well, though Sutton can play some SS, so that might be moot until we see what Sutton can do with the stick.

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Playing football was the greatest thing that ever happened to me. If I could go out today and suit up, I would do it.--Jack Butler

Getting guys on base is huge, not running into outs over and over is even bigger.

Same goes for sac bunting. The Pirates are much more likely to get a hit in three opportunities than two.

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This is Getting Old


https://www.facebook.com/ThisIsGettingOld

I'm definitely being generous with the term.

Who is your brother Ol Skool?