It’s that time of year. Major League Baseball is closer to opening day than to last fall’s Worlds Series finale. Clubs are about to swing open their gates for pitchers and catchers returning in about three weeks, first, before the rest of the squad appears.
Gear from Pittsburgh has been trucked down to Pirate City. All teams are equal as camps open. There are many reasons for Pirates fans to be excited about the upcoming regular season.
Baseball at its highest levels back in Bradenton is a beautiful thing.
Pirates ownership and general manager Ben Cherington were busy strengthening the club this past off-season.
Free agent Andrew McCutchen was signed in January to a one-year deal. Rumors have it that the free-spending New York Mets and Minnesota Twins offered the 2013 National League MVP more money than the Pirates. But, now in the twilight of what has been an all-star career, McCutchen is said to want to complete his playing days where he spent the first nine years in the big leagues.
Along with the added offense to Pittsburgh’s lineup with McCutchen, the club added Austin Hedges, one of the game’s top defensive catchers to their roster. Hedges, who spent the past three seasons with Cleveland, also arrives in Bradenton on a one-year contract.
Carlos Santana, who split last season with Kansas City and Seattle, has belted 19 home runs in each of the past two seasons. Santana, who made just two errors playing first base last season with 625 total chances, is a switch-hitter.
Two other top additions to the Pirates for the coming 2023 season are veteran pitchers Rich Hill and Vince Velasquez. Combined the duo started 53 games and logged 200 innings of work in 2022.
The Pirates, who finished last season with a record of 62-100 (31 games back of National League Central leader St. Louis Cardinals), also acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays Ji-Man Choi. A left-handed bat, Choi can play several positions. Choi came to the Pirates in a trade last November in exchange for a minor-league pitcher.
Perhaps the most anticipated human-highlight show with the Pirates, beginning with the arrival of training camp, is shortstop Oneil Cruz.
Cruz in his rookie 2022 campaign was nothing short of electric, both from the batter’s box and in the field. After being called up from Triple-A Indianapolis last June, the 6’7“ shortstop in 87 games smacked 17 round-trippers, and drove in 54 runs in 87 games.
During his introduction to MLB play last season, Cruz set a record for the fastest throw (97.8 mph) ever recorded by an infielder last July in Miami. On the flip side, the Pirates' prize 24-year-old from the Dominican Republic also recorded the hardest-hit ball in a game last August against the Atlanta Braves.
The ball clubbed by Cruz was clocked at 122.4 mph, quite good for a long single.
Anything and everything remain possible at spring training complexes come February. Baseball in Bradenton this spring should be fun. The magic just may be back with the Pirates.
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