In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.
With pitchers and catchers for the Pittsburgh Pirates reporting in about a month, our wake up calls will focus on something a little different this week.
Every day, we will take a look at how the Pirates rotation, bullpen and position players compare to each of last year’s five postseason teams from the National League. We will also determine which team has the advantage in each area.
This morning, we take a look at how the Bucs compare to the winner of the 2016 NL Wild Card game, the San Francisco Giants.
Rotation
Like the Mets, whom I highlighted in yesterday’s wake up call, the Giants have a stellar starting rotation. With the likes of Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto, Matt Moore and Jeff Samardzija, the Giants have four guys who at one point in their careers were aces for different pitching staffs. San Francisco even has Matt Cain, who sports a 3.57 career ERA, as a possible fifth starter.
As I said in yesterday’s wake up call, the Pirates do have their rotation’s top three solidified with Gerrit Cole, Jameson Taillon and Ivan Nova. However, the Giants rotation is loaded with talent, which gives them the advantage in this category.
Bullpen
The Giants will have a new face taking over their closing role in 2017. Their new closer is a familiar face to Pirates fans as Mark Melancon was signed this offseason by San Francisco. He is expected to lead a bullpen with other arms such as Derek Law, who posted a 2.13 ERA in 61 appearances last season, and Hunter Strickland, who held a 3.10 ERA in 72 appearances. George Contos and Will Smith are also expected to play big roles in the Giants pen in 2017.
The Pirates do have depth in their bullpen and some of the organization’s young stars could make an impact in relief roles as well. However, the Giants bullpen was boosted with the Melancon signing, which in my opinion gives them the slight edge in this category.
Position Players
We all know what the Pirates starting position players look like, so I’ll just skip to what the Giants have in regards to position players going into 2017.
San Francisco’s outfield unit will likely consist of veterans Denard Span and Hunter Pence in center and right field respectively and 26-year old Mac Williamson in left field. The Pirates may have the edge when it comes to outfielders, but the infield is a different story.
With Eduardo Nunez, who had a career year in 2016, at third base, Joe Panik at second base, and a trio of all-stars consisting of Brandon Crawford at shortstop, Brandon Belt at first base and Buster Posey behind the plate, the Giants infield is stacked.
It’s hard to determine which group of position players is better because both teams have strengths. The Pirates have the better group of outfielders, but in my opinion, the Giants have a better infield. This is a toss up, but I’d give the advantage to the Pirates in this one based on their loaded outfield.
Baseball Talk on the Web
- Forbes.com talks about Giancarlo Stanton being the favorite to win the MLB Home Run title.
- Max Scherzer diagnosed with stress fracture in knuckle.
- Tampa Bay Rays reportedly have deal with Colby Rasmus.
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