May 28, 2012
PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 22: James McDonald #53 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches against the New York Mets during the game on May 22, 2012 at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.(Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
When James McDonald takes the mound on this Memorial Day at PNC Park, he’ll do so as an All-Star in the making. He’s been that good, with a 2.51 ERA and the National League’s 10th-most strikeouts.
Hats off to him.
And hats off to Neal Huntington and the Pirates for how they analyzed, acquired and adjusted McDonald the past two years. It’s been a model of how a big league organization should — and how low-spending teams must — build a championship-caliber roster.
Yeah, I can guess what you’re thinking now.
Just wait. I’ll get there.
Let’s first revisit three key points in McDonald’s ascent:
1. McDonald was an underachieving, wiry-framed reliever with the Dodgers, but the Pirates’ scouts still had his name high on a list of targets — as a starter — at the 2010 trading deadline.
2. The Pirates zeroed in on a then-dysfunctional Los Angeles front office — ownership was in flux — and pounced by stealing McDonald for a 36-year-old Octavio Dotel.
3. When McDonald sputtered as a starter, the Pirates stuck by him. When he struggled to get past five innings, Ray Searage, the superb pitching coach, sold him on efficiency over strikeouts. When he became too reliant on the fastball and curve, Searage added a slider this spring.
It’s all been outstanding work by the Pirates, every step handled impeccably.
And the fact is, McDonald is one of many examples of Huntington and the Pirates producing quality pitching, whether through trades, free agency or the draft.
OK, now let’s get to that earlier thought you might have had: WHAT ABOUT HITTING?
Actually, let’s amend that to reflect the unicorn sighting of a 10-4 rout of Chicago on Sunday: WHAT ABOUT HITTING AGAINST TEAMS NOT NEARLY AS PATHETIC AS THE CUBS?
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