Perrotto: The Overarching Thought From Week in Bradenton (+)
The optimism that comes with the beginning of spring training provides an easy trap to get swallowed in.
At this time of the year, even the worst major league teams believe they have a chance to win if a certain number of factors break their way. It doesn’t matter if a team won 100 games the previous season or lost 100 games.
Considering I just covered the first week of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ spring training camp in Bradenton, Fla., it’s easy to be optimistic about their chances of at least taking a step toward respectability. Even for a longtime Pirate cynic like me.
The first three years of Ben Cherington/Derek Shelton regime included a lot of young players getting the opportunity to show they can play in the major leagues. The Pirates compiled a 142-242 record in that span, making them a symmetrical 100 games under .500.
Yet this trip to Bradenton had a different feeling than I expected. Following an eventful offseason highlighted by the return of outfielder Andrew McCutchen five years after the Pirates traded him, the optimism around the clubhouse and practice field at Pirate City is genuine.
That feeling comes from the Pirates having legitimate major league players sprinkled throughout their roster. That wasn’t the case the past two seasons when they lost 101 and 100 games.
There is a feeling that the Pirates are not going to be the punching bag of the major leagues and a punchline for broadcasters across the country.
“There is good energy here,” said designated hitter/first baseman Carlos Santana, who was signed as a free agent in the offseason. “I like the vibe. There’s a good feeling here. I like it.”
McCutchen and Santana were two of six free agents signed to major league contracts with left-hander Rich Hill, right-hander Vince Velasquez, lefty reliever Jarlin Garcia and catcher Austin Hedges.
Though in camp on a minor-league deal, Kevin Plawecki seems a good bet to win the No. 2 catcher’s job. The Pirates also traded for first baseman Ji-Man Choi and first baseman/outfielder Connor Joe.
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“We added some guys with some talent,” relief pitcher Wil Crowe said. “We’ve added some guys with winning pedigrees under their belts. And we’ve added some guys who have some say, who have some go, some push, some leadership that if something goes wrong for a couple week that they are going to step in and say that’s not what we’re doing here.
“To have those guys, to have those voices who have part of incredible clubhouses in the past put their foot in ours and buy into what we’re trying to do shows who they are as people but also that they believe in what we’re doing as a team. When you have that kind of buy-in, it makes a big difference. It makes for a different type of feeling.”
This is not to say the Pirates had a bad clubhouse atmosphere in recent years. The last three seasons weren’t like 2019, the final year of the Neal Huntington/Clint Hurdle regime, in which clubhouse discord was a constant.
Players fighting players. Players fighting coaches. Players threatening media members.
Those problems have been eradicated since Cherington and Shelton got to town.
However, there was a leadership vacuum over the last two seasons because of the number of unproven players. It’s hard to assert yourself, lend a guiding hand to a fellow teammate or make a joke to lighten the clubhouse atmosphere when you’re not sure you belong.
It is difficult to put into words – yes, I realize that’s my job – but it just feels like the Pirates have the right mix of young and old players when you step into the clubhouse. You get the sense things are going to be better this season.
The Pirates might not go from 100 losses to 100 wins in one season. Yet I get the feeling the veterans won’t allow the embarrassment of the last two seasons to continue.
That, in and of itself, is progress.
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