Three Takeaways: Pirates’ Michael Chavis Turns Pressure Around (+)
Seemingly nothing bothers Michael Chavis.
The Pittsburgh Pirates infielder is a high-energy guy. He is always upbeat and smiling. Nothing seems to bother him.
So, it stands to reason he has the right personality to be the right man at the plate in clutch situations.
Chavis certainly was Friday night when his single in the bottom of the ninth inning rallied the Pirates to a 5-4 victory over the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park. The walk-off hit capped a two-run rally and gave the Pirates back-to-back wins following six straight losses.
“It’s exciting,” Chavis said. “I love being in those types of situations, those clutch moments where I get an opportunity to help the team. I love just changing the perception of the pressure being on the pitcher. It came out good. Got a good pitch to hit.”
Chavis is having a slightly below average season in its totality. His 93 OPS+ means he has been 7% below a major league average hitter.
However, Chavis remains an intriguing player.
Though his slash line is .246/.278/.417 in 102 games, he has 12 home runs. That ranks second among players currently on the Pirates’ big league roster behind Bryan Reynolds, who has gone deep 20 times.
Yet Chavis has been reduced to the short end of a platoon at first base Bligh Madris. The right-handed hitting Chavis usually only starts against left-handed pitching.
Chavis’ 94 strikeouts in 327 plate appearances with just 13 walks is concerning. Yet there isn’t enough of a disparity in his career left/right splits to suggest he should automatically sit out against right-handed starters.
Chavis turned 27 earlier this month, so he isn’t a kid. Yet, on a team struggling to score runs, he should be more of an option than a short-side platoon player.
MADRIS CAN SMILE
Madris has tried to stay positive throughout the major slump he had been going through in recent weeks. He could finally smile following Friday’s game.
Madris singled twice on the heels of a 2-for-44 slump. He also scored the tying runs in the seventh and ninth innings.
“It felt really good,” Madris said. “I’ve been barreling the ball, but I haven’t been able to find grass or a hole anywhere, so that felt really good for me. It was huge for us as a team, and to be able to contribute to that is what I’m here for.
“I’ll just try to pile that on and get that snowball effect going and, hopefully, get a couple of rallies going here in the next few days.”
Madris was not considered a top prospect coming up through the farm system. In 34 games with the Pirates, he is hitting just .180/.234/.260.
Yet Madris has shown flashes. He had three hits and two RBIs in his major league debut June 20 against the Chicago Cubs then had another three-hit game five days later against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Perhaps the recent slump exposed Madris as a player who can’t consistently hit major league pitching. However, nights like Friday, is a reminder the Pirates need to give him a little longer look.
WILSON THE WORKHORSE?
Right-hander Bryce Wilson certainly has the look of a workhorse pitcher, standing 6-foot-1 and weighing 250 pounds.
Yet Wilson’s seven innings pitched Friday night was the most he had ever thrown in 37 career starts. He allowed three runs on five hits while striking out four and walking none.
That came a night after J.T. Brubaker pitched seven scoreless innings to beat the Boston Red Sox. It marked the first time Pirates starters pitched at least seven innings in consecutive games since Joe Musgrove and Steven Brault in 2019.
On Wednesday night, rookie Roansy Contreras went six innings in a loss to the Red Sox.
The innings the starters are providing is encouraging to manager Derek Shelton. The Pirates’ bullpen has been in overdrive most of the season with the starters’ inability to work deep in games.
“I think it’s very important to develop that trust with Shelty,” Wilson said of going seven innings. “Not only for the rest of this season but going into next season and into the rest of my career. I think it’s very important to show that I can get guys out three and four times.”