Some of you will recall I graded all the Pirates players at the quarter pole of the season, well we have went another quarter so it’s time to grade the players again this time on their performance through the first half of the season. The grades are of course subjective and our on a player by player scale. The idea is to weight actual performance with expected results. I am going to start this one a little different and begin with what I believe is the easiest grade on the entire board.
The Pittsburgh Pirates: A+++++++++++++++++++
Honestly what more could we have asked for at this point? Simply a superb first half basically as perfect as it could have been. Not much more needs to be said here so on to the players.
Russell Martin: A
He has done it all. When the Pirates signed him I was a little disappointed mainly because I didn't think he would provide a significant offensive upgrade. I had him pegged for an OPS of around .700 this season and thus far he has far surpassed that mark. Add to it what has been some stellar defense and an amazing job handling the pitching staff and you have one of the best bargains in this year's free agency class. There isn't much more we could ask of Martin at this point. He has been a great stabilizing force at a position that has been unstable for the Pirates for years.
Michael McKenry: C-
I know McKenry has been bad in a lot of aspects this season and that his grade may actually seem a bit high to many but he has essentially been what we all thought he was anyway a backup catcher. Look around the league and you'll see that the catcher position is very shallow and that quality starters let alone quality backups are hard to find. McKenry is perfectly acceptable for what he is and that is a backup catcher who plays once a week. Now of course he does receive knocks on not being able to throw anyone out and for seeing a pretty big dip in his offensive numbers.
Garrett Jones: C
Lost in the shuffle of the Pirates success is the fact that our usual cleanup hitter really hasn't been all that good. On the year he has a wRC+ of only 101. For a first baseman that is pretty bad defensively being an average hitter really isn't going to cut it. Don't get me wrong the Pirates shouldn't be giving up on Jones right now but they are going to have to see more production out of him going forward or else they may have to explore other options.
Gaby Sanchez: B
Sanchez has been rock solid this season and has filled his role very well. He is currently amongst the best in the game when it comes to facing left handed pitchers and he has proven to be one to always get his money worth at the plate. His 14.1 BB% is quite easily the best on the team and his 17.7 K% is also very good. In short he has been that ideal platoon partner the Pirates have spent the last couple of seasons looking to pair with Jones. Of course he has struggled when called upon to face right handed pitching more than I would like to see but I guess to some extent that could have been expected.
Neil Walker: B
Neil Walker has quietly been doing what it is Neil Walker does. He isn't flashy and his contributions often go under noticed but he is as consistent as they come. Walker's batting average is a little low for him at this point but his walk rate is up largely offsetting the difference. Currently Walker sits as an above average offensive second baseman that is average defensively making him an above average option. It isn't a flashy performance filled with astonishing numbers but it is solid and that is all the Pirates ask Walker to be.
Pedro Alvarez: B
Alvarez might be the toughest grade on this team. He has been himself meaning great at time and looking completely lost at others. His power has been hugely important to the Pirates as has his improved defense but the strike outs remain a concern. No matter how skilled a player is it is difficult to be a productive player over the course of a season when you strike out one third of the time. Getting the strike out rate down even to the 27-28 percent range would really help Alvarez out and probably shorten the lengths of these long cold spells he goes on. He has the ability to wreck havoc and carry the team for stretches but he also has the ability to be a black hole in the lineup for a few weeks in a row.
Jordy Mercer: B
I think a theme might be developing here. Mercer marks my fourth consecutive B. Which essentially means his performance has been great but I can envision some ways it could get better. For Mercer the knock I have on him is that his performance so far against right handed pitching hasn't been too good. A 71 wRC+ is an improvement over Barmes but still isn't good. He has played a competent shortstop and shown an excellent stick against left handed pitching. Largely due to his ability to not completely be a black mark in the lineup Mercer has provided a temporary stop gap solution at shortstop.
Clint Barmes: C-
I'm not going to throw the book at Barmes here. We all know his offense has been terrible but overall he has been an excellent defender and from what I can tell has become sort of a mentor towards Mercer helping him learn how to play the shortstop position. Make no mistake his offensive output has reached such a low point that his superior defensive skills no longer make him a starting option but that doesn't mean he has no value. As a defensive oriented middle infielder off the bench Barmes is a solid player. The Pirates are paying Barmes a rate far above that level but for the remainder of the season he should be able to fill that role adequately.
Brandon Inge: D
For as bad as Barmes has been at the plate Inge has remarkably been worse. Having one defensive oriented middle infielder on the bench is a good idea and provides value to a team but having two just is a difficult thing to digest. Barmes has the upper hand over Inge because of his ability to play shortstop but Inge just seems to have an attitude that fits with this team. At some point probably this month Inge is going to have to start producing in order to remain any sort of asset to this team but perhaps he does provide some sort of intangible presence that cannot be quantified.
Starling Marte: A-
I don't think I need to add much here. Marte has been all we could have hoped for and more this season. He has shown some pop with 8 HR a lot of speed with 22 SB and has been great defensively and running the bases overall. Even with just an average bat Marte would be a hugely valuable player because of his speed and defense but he has been the Pirates second best hitter this season. The only reason I don't give him a straight A is his strike zone issues. His strike outs are fine as I can deal with a 22.1 K% but having a leadoff man with a 3.8 BB% is something that needs a little adjusting.
Andrew McCutchen: B+
On his scale and his scale only is this season not an A. Some of you might be wondering how I can say Marte has been only the team's second best hitter well it is because McCutchen has quietly surpassed him at this point. Their overall numbers are similar but McCutchen doesn't have Marte's weakness as he does a great job controlling the strike zone. In fact McCutchen has cut his K% way down this season lowering it to 14.6%. Honestly I'm not sure there is much this guy can't do.
Travis Snider: D+
Snider started the season off well enough but has hit a little funk here. Over the last 30 days he has a wRC+ of just 28. Simply put he hasn't been good at the plate. His overall numbers are not a complete train wreck but they certainly aren't good either. The biggest weakness people tend to talk about the Pirates having is right field and for more games than not Snider has been manning that position so it should come as no surprise I have him graded so low. He has shown good signs of being able to come off the bench and hit decently as he has a .706 OPS as a substitute which is quite a deal better than the league rate of .626 so perhaps a bench job is what he is best suited for.
Jose Tabata: C+
Tabata has shown a lot of positive signs in his limited big league time this season including being a respectable hitter with a 111 wRC+. That of course comes with a tiny sample of only 90 PA. Still that couple with the struggles of Snider could earn a look as potentially the everyday right fielder. Tabata is far from the player the Pirates were hoping they were getting when they signed him to a team friendly extension but this season he is showing signs of potentially being useful.
Jeff Locke: A
What can I say about the job Locke has done this season? He has been just simply terrific. Some of it has of course been luck but there is no doubt we are seeing a good pitcher when Locke is on the mound. A 2.06 ERA will be near impossible to keep moving forward but if Locke continues to pitch the way he has he should still be able to keep it rather low. He has shown to have some bugaboos with walks but really that is just nitpicking what has been an amazing half season. Again I will stress this Locke fellow isn't quite this good but I think there is a strong possibility that he is much better than a lot of thought he would be.
AJ Burnett: B
Burnett continues to be an important piece of this Pirates team. Even though he is currently out with an injury he is still second on the team in innings pitched by quite a lot. His numbers have quite simply been solid and given his age and the fact he was a reclamation project there isn't much more we could ask out of him. He has been a terrific veteran presence at the top of what is quickly becoming a very young rotation. The Pirates need to get Burnett healthy and back on the mound as there is no doubt he is the leader of this pitching staff.
Wandy Rodriguez: B-
Rodriguez has battled through some injuries this season which is a bit atypical for him. He has been a pretty durable pitcher in the past and the injuries should serve as something as a red flag. He has recently been shut down and probably won't be back for a while. Still the point of these grades are to assess each player's first half performance and Rodriguez still has the third most innings of this staff and pitched decent when he was healthy. His numbers are not great but they are certainly solid. He has shown to be a solid veteran middle of the rotation presence and the Pirates are certainly a better team when he is healthy and on the active roster.
Francisco Liriano: A
Other than the fact Liriano missed the start of the season he has been just as good if not better than Jeff Locke. His numbers are a touch worse than Locke's but really we are splitting hairs here and the truth here is I would say Liriano is likely to finish the year with better overall numbers than Locke. Liriano has been a strike out machine with just under 10 K/9 and has a decent job limiting walks and has his ground ball percentage just a couple ticks below 50%. All three of those things are vital to his success and overall he is proving to be a great bargain so far.
Jeanmar Gomez: B+
Gomez has done everything the Pirates have asked of him. He essentially started the year piggybacking with Jonathan Sanchez because Sanchez barely seemed able to get out of the 3rd inning. Then he moved to the rotation and managed to get himself stretched out fairly quickly on. He then found himself on the DL but is now back in the rotation and still managing to give the Pirates a chance to win each time he goes out. His strong performance is probably largely smoke and mirrors and the Pirates would be best served to get him to the bullpen as soon as possible but for now you have to like what Gomez has done.
Justin Wilson: A-
Now we move into the bullpen. Honestly I'm not sure if there are enough superlatives to describe just how well the self dubbed Shark Tank has performed. Wilson has been simply wonderful showing the flexibility to give multiple innings and also serve as the 7th inning guy. His control has been a little wild but outside of that there is really not much more you could ask for.
Mark Melancon: A
The guy has almost been perfect. He is striking out 9.6 batters per nine and walking under a batter per nine. His ERA sits below one for goodness sake. This guy has just been ridiculous and it will be a shame if it doesn’t make the All Star team.
Tony Watson: B
It truly says something that Watson has probably been the least effective regular pitcher out of the bullpen. Watson's ERA may not look to shiny but he a WHIP of 0.97 and a batting average against of .197. I know a lot of fans rag on him but honestly he has been vastly more effective than a lot of relief pitchers throughout baseball. From a talent and skill perspective he is probably the Pirates 4th best reliever and there are a lot of teams out there that would probably take him as their #2.
Vin Mazzaro: B
Here is yet another player who has been an unheralded part of the bullpen's success. With Gomez now in the rotation Mazzaro has been relied upon as the long reliever and he has done exceptionally well in that role and did well in a middle relief role before Gomez joined the rotation. Unlike the rest of the bullpen arms Mazzaro isn't getting the strike outs but he is doing a fine job limiting walks and inducing ground balls. The guy has been an exceptional middle reliever so far this season.
Jason Grilli: A
Grilli has been insanely lights out and yet he might not even be having the best season of all the relievers in the bullpen. Grilli's numbers are truly insane he is striking out 14.48 per nine and only walking 1.72 per nine. If there is a slam dunk All Star on this Pirates team it is Jason Grilli. It would be so cool to see Mark and Cheese set up and close out the game for the NL All Star team.
Bryan Morris: C+
I'm going to be a little tough on Morris despite his stellar 2.83 ERA because I have been disappointed with him. He isn't striking out hitters like I know he is capable of with only a 5.91 K/9 and he is walking too many with a 4.11 BB/9. He is sliding by with an unbelievably low .156 BABIP and that is sure to regress in the other direction if he keeps pitching the way he has. A potential upgrade in the bullpen is probably most likely by replacing him.
I'm going to stop my grades here as this list includes every player who has had at least 90 PA or pitched at least 30 innings. With a few obvious exceptions everyone else either gets an NA or an I. The NA is for not applicable and applies to players such as Tony Sanchez and Brandon Cumpton who were here only for a cup of coffee and the I applies to players like Charlie Morton and Gerrit Cole who are likely to be here for a while but haven't logged the time yet. The exceptions to this are the failures such as Jonathan Sanchez, Mike Zagurski and John McDonald (you could probably include James here as well).