If you’re a Pittsburgh Pirates fan this year you don’t have much to cheer for, unless Phillip Evans’ name appears in the starting lineup.
Off to a horrible start, the Pittsburgh Pirates are now sitting at 3-13 on the year. Their run differential is -30, worst in the National League. Finding reasons to watch Pirates games is hard, especially after they give up the lead early. You’d be forgiven if you turned off the television mid-game, that is, unless Phillip Evans turn to bat was coming up.
If you haven’t heard the name Phillip Evans before, don’t worry, I hadn’t either. He was a late round pick of the New York Mets in 2011, finally making it to the big leagues in 2017. A relatively uninspiring cup of coffee with the team followed in 2018 as well.
After spending all of last year in the minors as a part of the Chicago Cubs organization, Evans latched on with the Pirates and made the team out of the gate.
The fascinating fact about Evans this year, he has only ended one game where he was hitting below .300, and that was his first game of the season.
Evans took the collar in his first action of the 2020 campaign, then followed it up with a three hit performance in his next. Since then he has hit, hit some more, and hit even more. He has three-three hit games and the closest his average has been to .300 since the first game was after an 0-for against the Cubs five games in.
Evans quickly rebounded to get six hits in his next twelve at bats to shoot the average up to .393.
He currently sits at .359 and gives Pirates fans something to watch in games where their fate has already been decided. How much longer can he keep this streak going?
Not having enough at-bats at the moment to qualify for the batting title (for several reasons it would be great if he contended for the batting title), I can imagine fans on the edge of their seats with every upcoming Evans at-bat.
Or not.
Either way, after ten games, Phillip Evans has ended with his average above .300. He’s not flashy. He doesn’t hit for power. I’m going to call him baseball’s favorite Punch and Judy hitter. And he’s given me a reason to take interest in this year’s Pirates team.