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