The Pittsburgh Pirates clearly understand what they need to do this offseason to improve the team.
Pittsburgh is coming off its second season in a row with a 76-86 record but has a solid foundation to build around. The Pirates have one of the best young rotations in the league, headlined by ace Paul Skenes. The offense is what the team likely will focus on this offseason.
While being interviewed by MLB.com, Pirates manager Derek Shelton teased one potential change the team could be experimenting with putting All-Star Bryan Reynolds at first base, as transcribed by MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf.
“He’ll start his offseason program, but the idea is that we’re going to see what it’s like at first base,” Shelton said. “To see if he is going to play there full-time, I wouldn’t say that. He’s a good athlete. He likes taking ground balls. The initial stuff that he did, the initial work that he did at the beginning — or end of the offseason into the season — was very positive. We’ll see how it goes. Then we’ll see how the rest of our club plays out.”
“I think he’s willing to do whatever it takes to help the team win, and that’s part of what we love about him so much and respect about him so much. I think it’s early in the offseason and this will come down to what our roster opportunities are.”
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Reynolds was named an All-Star for the second time during this season. He performed well at the plate, but his fielding left more to be desired. There are more options in the free agent and trade markets for outfielders, so a potential change of positions for Reynolds may benefit Pittsburgh more.
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