Despite projections, Pittsburgh Pirates brass believes expert tutelage will elevate outfield defense beyond expectations.
On paper, the Pittsburgh Pirates look like they will have a poor defensive outfield this season.
Games, of course, are played on grass, occasionally on artificial turf, rather than on paper. Nevertheless, it’s hard to have confidence in the Pirates' outfielders chasing down many fly balls, though general manager Ben Cherington begs to differ.
Pittsburgh signed Ryan O’Hearn to a two-year, $29-million contract during the offseason with the idea that he would be the primary designated hitter. Those plans changed just before the start of spring training when designated hitter Marcell Ozuna signed for one year and $12 million.
O’Hearn has played just 101 games in right field during his eight seasons in the major league and has been charged with only one error. However, he has minus-11 defensive runs saved in the rather small sample size.
Cherington is hopeful O’Hearn’s work ethic will help him improve his fielding. It also helps that the right field at PNC Park is a relatively small area to cover.
“It's been really encouraging in that he's been able to focus on it a lot and he's expressed to us that in the past when he's been asked to do multiple things that he didn't always have the time to get out and do the extra work in the outfield,” Cherington at the Pirates’ spring training camp in Bradenton, Fla. “He's had more of that this spring.”
The results so far have been promising for O’Hearn in right field.
“From what we've seen in games, he's made the plays,” Cherington said. ‘He looks comfortable. We're just thrilled to have him as part of the team. He's going to get after it, whatever it is, he's going to get after it in a really positive way. He only cares about the team.”
With O’Hearn now in right field, the team will shift Bryan Reynolds to left.
Reynolds is familiar with PNC Park’s spacious left-center gap after playing 371 games in left field in his seven seasons with Pittsburgh. However, moving back to left seems problematic after he had minus-6 DRS—a metric that quantifies fielding impact in runs—in 118 games at the position in 2024.
Reynolds’ defense improved last season after manager Don Kelly suggested that he take a crow hop as each pitch was delivered to get in a better rhythm.
“The defensive part of his game really ticked up in the second half of the season, and that was after some conscious changes that he made,” Cherington said. “And so, he's just taken those into the spring and left field.”
Center fielder Oneil Cruz struggled last season with minus-14 DRS in his first full year after moving from shortstop. In response, Cruz spent part of the offseason working with Kevin Kiermaier, a four-time Gold Glove winner in center.
Third base coach Tony Beasley doubles as the Pirates’ outfield instructor. Cruz was Beasley’s special project before leaving camp to play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.
“Having some awareness of the work he was doing in the offseason, including on the defensive front, we were excited to see what that was going to look like,” Cherington said. “His work was really good early in spring. He knows that's a part of his game that he can excel at, and I think he's gotten a lot of feedback about what it takes to excel at that spot.
“He's got a new voice here in Beas that we think will be really helpful for him. Beas has been around a lot of great outfielders in his career, and he's got that insight.”
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