Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Of the countless ways to delineate the Pirates' rotten season, this might be the most instructive:
It took until Memorial Day for Sean Casey -- the team's highest-paid player -- to play in a win.
And Casey thought his pain from a broken back was excruciating.
"It's kind of hard to believe it took this long," Casey said after he and the Pirates provided one of their more entertaining performances at PNC Park by thumping the Milwaukee Brewers, 14-3, last night.
"[Teammate] Roberto Hernandez was kidding me before the game. 'It's time to get your first win.' It was good to get back in there."
It's hard to say how many more games the Pirates would have won if Casey hadn't gone down in a heap after a collision at first base April 14. A cynic would say not many. The team lost all nine games in which he played before his injury.
But Casey is a professional hitter, a .305 lifetime batter. That's why the Pirates were so eager to trade for him in the off-season and pick up $7.5 million of his $8.5 million contract. You have to think he might have made a difference in a few of their 12 one-run losses without him. Certainly, he had a sudden and dramatic impact in his return last night. It wasn't just his run-scoring single in the first inning, his two-run double in the fourth and his lashing single in the sixth. "He lengthens our lineup," manager Jim Tracy said.
Translation:
Casey took the third spot in the batting order, dropping Freddy Sanchez to the No. 6 hole. Sanchez is a dirtball player who is easy to love, but he's no No. 3 hitter. Jose Castillo and Ronny Paulino, both of whom have been swinging hot bats, hit No. 7 and No. 8.
"Our lineup is fairly deep again," Tracy said.
It's funny, there has been plenty of angst about that lineup in recent days, which is surprising because these are the Pirates of the dismal 17-34 record, not the '27 Yankees. Much of it has centered around Casey's return to first base. What is Tracy going to do with Craig Wilson? More of it, implausibly, has centered around Joe Randa's return to third, still several days away. What is Tracy going to do with Sanchez?
Easy, people.
It doesn't make sense exerting a lot of worry about Wilson, Randa and Jeromy Burnitz at this point. None will be with the Pirates next season. Nor probably will Casey, for that matter, because he's 32 next month, will be a free agent, makes a big buck, has had to fight through a ton of injuries and doesn't hit many home runs. That isn't to say he doesn't deserve the most playing time of the group. He gives the team its best chance in any given game.
The best part of Tracy's lineup last night was that Jose Bautista was in it, batting leadoff and playing center field. It's true, he came in with a .212 batting average, but he's an intriguing player and should be a big part of the Pirates' future, although there are no guarantees with this cursed team. (Can you say Chris Duffy?) He hit his fourth home run last night in just his 55th at-bat of the season and just missed another when he doubled off the left-field wall an inning later.
You bet Bautista is an intriguing player.
He's also the one name that should be in the Pirates' lineup almost every game, either in center field, right or at third base, his likely long-term position.
Tracy started Wilson in right last night against Brewers left-hander Doug Davis. It's smart to platoon Wilson and Burnitz, even smarter to give some of Burnitz's at-bats against right-handers to Bautista. Wilson also will get some starts at first base to give Casey a rest as he plays his way back into game shape.
Like Bautista, Nate McLouth is a young player who has to play. The Pirates need to find out if he's their answer in center, especially now that Duffy has disappeared -- literally -- from the team picture.
As for Sanchez, he has to stay at third base until he stops hitting. It looked like it might be happening over the weekend when he went 2 for 17 against the Houston Astros, dropping his average from .341 to .315. But he had three singles and a sacrifice fly last night.
It's hard to imagine Randa coming back to take the position. At 36, he might be all but finished.
But it's not hard to imagine Bautista taking over at third. He appears to have the pop that's necessary at a power position. Sanchez doesn't. The day Bautista claims the position for good and Sanchez becomes a valuable utility player is the day the Pirates will have a chance to be a winning team.
"Basically, it's a pleasant problem to have," Tracy said of his lineup options.
It's all possible, at least for now, because of Casey, who was like a little kid after his successful return. Growing up in Upper St. Clair, he dreamed of playing for the hometown Pirates. His first win with the team tasted especially sweet.
"You can expect this every night -- 14 runs and 3 for 4," he said, grinning.
Not really, but it's nice to think Casey and the Pirates won't have to wait until the Fourth of July for the next win.
(Ron Cook can be reached at rcook@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1525. )
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