Opening day lineup...

RichD · Post by **RichD** » Fri Feb 09, 2018 9:25 pm

I'm expecting Mercer to have a big year since he will be a FA . I think 20 hr from him could be possible and maybe a solid .270 that would go along way for next year $$$.Bell will get better avg. wise but I see him hitting more 2B and maybe not more hr. I really want Moran to just take the 3b job from day 1 and run with it . Ready for the new season ;D

GermanTownship · Post by **GermanTownship** » Fri Feb 09, 2018 9:59 pm

Pitching, defense, moving runners in key situations, and playing smart baseball will accomplish and eliminate all problems when it comes to winning games.

Bobster21 · Post by **Bobster21** » Fri Feb 09, 2018 10:57 pm

6A515B507C380 wrote: I'm expecting Mercer to have a big year since he will be a FA . I think 20 hr from him could be possible and maybe a solid .270 that would go along way for next year $$$.Bell will get better avg. wise but I see him hitting more 2B and maybe not more hr. I really want Moran to just take the 3b job from day 1 and run with it . Ready for the new season ;D
I don't think it's as easy as that. Just because it would benefit a player to do well doesn't mean he finds another level to outperform his past.

Ecbucs · Post by **Ecbucs** » Fri Feb 09, 2018 11:19 pm

527E76717A5D6A7C6C1F0 wrote: Baseball appears to again be transitioning to a game of power. The above line-up has very limited overall power; perhaps 80 - 90 HR's.

I like Frazier as a hitter, even though he has limited power, but his bat doesn't play as a corner outfielder unless other players on the team can deliver in the power Department. To date, both Marte and Polanco have exhibited limited power, and there is little reason to believe that one or both will suddenly hit 25+ HR's. J-Hay, Mercer and even Bell likely top out where they did last year. While Moran may hit more HR than Freese (he better), the team is still sorely lacking in power.

I also believe that the lack of power is complicated by the lack of good speed through-out the line-up. The only player who is a true base running threat is Marte. But, perhaps more troubling, is that so few players in the line-up appear to have the speed and good base running aptitude to successfully take an extra base.

I am expecting a really down year, unless the starting pitching staff really over-performs.

I think you are right on the money here. The lack of power is going to be a killer. It is not like the players that lack power are 300+ hitters either or even players that draw a lot of walks.

timozbuck · Post by **timozbuck** » Fri Feb 09, 2018 11:34 pm

313A323E3B3A216462152C343D3A3A7B363A550 wrote: I would think Harrison, Polanco, and Frazier all have above average speed. Frazier is the best base runner of the bunch. Mercer is a good base runner too, just not very fast.

Frazier stole 9/14 attempts last season. If he’s the best base runner, then they suck even more than I think.

SCBucco · Post by **SCBucco** » Sat Feb 10, 2018 12:35 am

4E69787C79645B6F787979641D0 wrote: The more I stop and think about things and this roster overall and this lineup believe it or not I still think it’s a fairly decent lineup with a chance to score runs. Obviously guys like Marte and Polanco need to step up big time. But if you keep JHay around and mix a guy in like Moran who I like a lot in the Cole deal I think this lineup has a real good chance to be solid. You have a good bench with Sean Rod, Freese, Osuna, Moroff, Luplow, and Diaz. And once Austin Meadows figures it out and gets up here it will make them that much better. With that being said I think this lineup below to start the season gives the Pirates the best chance to win games early on.

Harrison 2nd

Frazier LF

Polanco RF

Bell 1st

Marte CF

Moran 3rd

Cervelli C

Mercer SS

That lineup looks good on paper, but I know better. Its dependent on Polanco playing well; not being fragile and inconsistent ... it mean Marte needing to be consistent, which he really isn't. It's about Cervelli having a good year, which I'm not sure he is going to based on his fragile ways and its about Bell not regressing. I haven't tackled Moran yet because its not like our 3B did anything last year.

rucker59@gmail.com · Post by **rucker59@gmail.com** » Sat Feb 10, 2018 12:42 am

It’s not just a lack of power - there is a lack of any offense. It would be one thing if the lineup played small ball effectively; they don’t. Among the last in HRs we obviously know, but also among the the last in doubles and total hits. 28th I think in OPS.

And We don’t have a pitching staff that can win many games 3-2 or 4-3.

I like the lineup generally. I like the pitching staff generally. It’s all got potential if everything breaks right. But Realisticly we won’t be able to score enough runs for this pitching staff. Add to this poor base running and poor defense and we are probably looking up from the bottom of the division.

dmetz · Post by **dmetz** » Sat Feb 10, 2018 1:00 am

Theres like a 9 in 10 chance lineup stinks and will be bottom 5 in NL runs scored.

The season is over. We need to find useful parts for when we have a shot at competing again

dogknot17@yahoo.co · Post by **dogknot17@yahoo.co** » Sat Feb 10, 2018 5:52 am

504D494B5E4651474F240 wrote: I would think Harrison, Polanco, and Frazier all have above average speed. Frazier is the best base runner of the bunch. Mercer is a good base runner too, just not very fast.

Frazier stole 9/14 attempts last season. If he’s the best base runner, then they suck even more than I think.

Base running and stealing bases are two different things.

Bobster21 · Post by **Bobster21** » Sat Feb 10, 2018 12:36 pm

656E666A6F6E753036417860696E6E2F626E010 wrote: I would think Harrison, Polanco, and Frazier all have above average speed. Frazier is the best base runner of the bunch. Mercer is a good base runner too, just not very fast.
Frazier stole 9/14 attempts last season. If he’s the best base runner, then they suck even more than I think.
Base running and stealing bases are two different things.

True. Stealing bases is great but there's more to it than that. Good base running means knowing when to take the extra base and when not to risk it. It means not making the stupid base running mistakes that Marte and Polanco often make. One of the best base runners I ever saw was old, slow Lee May with the Orioles in the 1970s. No speed but always knew when he could take an extra base, score from 2B, etc. He was not a station to station runner and rarely got thrown out. The Pirates won't overpower teams so they need to play smart, get the most they can out of the players they've got, and avoid making costly mistakes.