Projecting the Pittsburgh Pirates 2016 Opening Day Lineup

The Pittsburgh Pirates have made the playoffs in each of the past three seasons due to surprising performances from both their starting rotation and bullpen. However, the Pirates lineup has been very solid over the past couple of years as well due to their combination of young and talented building blocks, while also finding good value on the free agent and trade market. The Pirates lineup this year seems to follow the same formula. Let’s take a look at how Pittsburgh’s roster of starters is shaping up with Opening Day just a couple of weeks away.

Next: 1. Gregory Polanco RF

1. Gregory Polanco RF

In 2015, Polanco led off more than any other hitter on the Pittsburgh Pirates roster. Polanco is still young at 24 years old and really isn’t the type of hitter that would normally be at the top of a batting order. The outfielder from the Dominican Republic had on on-base percentage of .320 in 2015 and .307 the year before that.

Granted, he is still young and with some more experience, his numbers should increase with the talent that he has. Polanco did steal 27 bases in 2015, which should be a good weapon for the Pirates when he gets on-base to start games in 2016. Polanco needs to do a better job of making more consistent contact though if he wants to be an above-average option at the top of the order.

Next: 2. Josh Harrison 2B

2. Josh Harrison 2B

Josh Harrison had a breakout season in 2014 when the utility man went to his first ever All-Star game and finished the season with a batting average of .315 while hitting a career-high 13 homers. The 28 year-old had a slight dip in production last year, but still was a productive player for Pittsburgh.

Pirates fans shouldn’t expect Harrison to repeat his production from two seasons ago, but he should be a hitter that does a solid job of making consistent contact and setting the table for the middle of the order. His skill set screams that he could possibly be a leadoff hitter, but it seems manager Clint Hurdle will put him in the number two spot after non-tendering Neil Walker and not having Jung-ho Kang available for the first month of the season.

Next: 3. Andrew McCutchen CF

4. Starling Marte LF

A lot of praise has been given to McCutchen for the recent success of the Pirates. However, Pittsburgh has another outfielder that has made some big contributions the past couple of years. Starling Marte has kind of been an unknown force in the Pirates lineup.

Marte is batting .286 over the past three seasons and hit a career-high 19 homers in 2015. Marte’s ability to get on-base with a slight uptick in power last season should not go unnoticed. No, he is not a conventional power hitting cleanup option, but the Pirates aren’t a conventional team. Marte is a very good hitter in this league and the Pirates should be happy to have him in their order.

Next: 5. John Jaso 1B

5. John Jaso 1B

Here’s where things get a little murky. There has been some talk about Michael Morse being the  starter at first base, but I expect that Jaso is going to take the spot, with Morse coming more off the bench or being at most a starter against left-handed pitching.

Jaso has always been a solid hitter in the league. He was a catcher earlier in his career until recently when he started to see more time at first base, in the outfield and as the designated hitter. Now in the NL, Jaso cannot DH and the Pirates outfield seems full, so the most logical option would be to stick the 32-year-old at first. Jaso could be another potential bargain for the Pirates in 2016.

Next: 6. David Freese 3B

6. David Freese 3B

It seems like a long time ago that David Freese was the hero of the 2011 World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals. The 32 year-old third baseman has produced solid numbers since then, but he definitely isn’t the player he was three or four seasons ago.

Pittsburgh just signed Freese this past week to a one-year, $3 million deal. It seems that getting a player of Freese’s caliber this late in the offseason is another under-the-radar move for a club that thrives in finding good value on the free agent market. He is no longer a middle of the order option, but he is a better player than most who sign at this point in the season. Freese should be the starter at third base while Jung-ho Kang recovers from injury, and he won’t be a liability while the Pirates wait for their regular third baseman to come back.

Next: 7. Francisco Cervelli C

7. Francisco Cervelli C

Cervelli was another under-the-radar acquisition that worked out extremely well for the Pirates last year. After the club lost Russell Martin to the Blue Jays following the 2014 season, Pittsburgh looked to Cervelli to answer the call, and did he ever.

The former Yankee hit .295 and had an outstanding on-base percentage of .370. Cervelli also was durable for the Pirates as he played in 130 games in 2015. It is rare nowadays that a catcher will play that many games and produce the offensive numbers he did. It is risky to expect that a player without an extenisve track record is capable of repeating a career year. But even so, if Cervelli comes anywhere close to hitting the way he did last season, the Pirates should be pleased.

Next: 8. Jordy Mercer SS

8. Jordy Mercer SS

Mercer was the Pirates’ primary shortstop last season and he will most likely be thrust into that role again in 2016. He is clearly the weak link in the Pirates lineup, hitting wise. Coming off a season where he hit .244, while hitting only three home runs, Mercer did hit 12 bombs in 2014. That is pretty good for a shortstop, but the Pirates shouldn’t expect him to be anything but a solid defensive option that doesn’t give you much at the plate. It may be wise for the Pirates to replace Mercer with Jung-ho Kang when he comes back from injury now that they have signed David Freese to play third base in his absence.

*The 9th spot is occupied by the pitcher

Next: 5 well-known hitters struggling this spring