O'Hearn's reputation as a clubhouse connector and respected teammate drives his value beyond the stat sheet. He prioritizes relationships, aiming to build trust on and off the field.
Ryan O’Hearn is known in baseball circles for being a good guy and a good teammate. When someone tells the Pittsburgh Pirates’ first baseman/outfielder that, it makes him smile.
"That's probably the greatest compliment I've ever received because it's about relationships,” O’Hearn said. “On the field, stuff happens when there's great relationships in the clubhouse. You've got to trust the guy that you're next to. I've never tried to be a glue guy. I think I just try to treat everybody with respect and get to know everybody. I want to know about their lives and build relationships.”
The Pirates made O’Hearn the first free agent to get a multi-year contract from them since 2016. The biggest reason Pittsburgh signed O’Hearn to a two-year, $29-million deal earlier this month is that they feel he can boost a lineup that was last in the major leagues in runs scored last season. Yet general manager Ben Cherington sees any player with a good-guy reputation as having added value, someone who can provide cohesion and focus to a team.
Second baseman Brandon Lowe and outfielder Jake Mangum, who were acquired in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays in December, are also considered good guys. Mangum won the fans over last weekend at PiratesFest with his magnetic personality.
“The idea of keeping the most important thing the most important thing, which should be the game on the field at night,” Cherington said of what players with good guy reputations provide. “As many guys walking into that (locker) room, where that’s the most important thing. Certainly, everything we’ve gotten to know about Ryan fits that, the same for Lowe. We have plenty of guys already, where clearly that’s the focus. We need to live that out every day. That has to be the most important thing. Keep it the most important thing.”
It can be difficult to join a new team and step into a leadership role. However, O’Hearn considers himself a connector and is looking forward to what happens off the field during spring training, which begins on Feb. 11 in Bradenton, Fla., as much as to what happens on it.
“One of the beautiful things about this game is that it's such a small world,” O’Hearn said. “You get to play with a guy, you learn his family, you might see him again in a couple years on a different team. I'm excited to get to know these guys. I don't know a ton of guys in the clubhouse. Respect for a lot of them just playing them over the years. That's probably the thing I'm most excited about in Bradenton, just to get to know everybody and get to work and see what that looks like.”
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