By Kevin Gorman
August 1, 2018
(Christopher Horner/Tribune-Review)
Before he was formally introduced as a Pittsburgh Pirate, Chris Archer introduced himself Wednesday wearing an Antonio Brown jersey in photos posted on social media while en route to PNC Park.
That plays well here, Pirates president Frank Coonelly told Archer after a 16-minute news conference, sharing something the 29-year-old right-hander already knew.
Before pitching a game for the Pirates, Archer already notched his first victory.
Archer said all the right things, short of ordering fries on his sandwich. Faster than you can say “blue collar” – which he did, of course – Archer ingratiated himself to Yinzer Nation by casually mentioning the 1979 World Series anthem “We Are Family,” saying he would use Wiz Khalifa’s “Black and Yellow” as his warm-up song and switch his jersey from No. 22 to No. 24 in deference to its previous owner.
“I have a lot of respect for Andrew McCutchen,” Archer said. “His jersey is not retired yet. I think in the future it will be. I mean, he’s done a lot of great things for this city, on the field and off. He is what I aspire to be.”
By that, Archer meant he wants to be influential and successful. But the trade-deadline deal with the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday provided the Pirates and their fans with the possibility Archer could be the answer to the two things missing since Gerrit Cole and Cutch were traded in mid-January: an ace and face of the franchise.
“A few coaches, trainers, guys asked me what I thought about him, what I have on him,” said Pirates leftfielder Corey Dickerson, Archer’s teammate for two seasons with Tampa. “I told them it would be worth anything they can give up to get a guy like this because it’s more than just what he does on the field. It’s leadership. It’s community. It’s a face – and for a couple years. You can’t replace that.”
No wonder Pirates general manager Neal Huntington wanted him to make his PNC Park debut Wednesday against the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs. The logistics of flying his family in from Florida didn’t work for Archer, but he appreciated the “passion and excitement, the joy that was there” in Huntington’s voice.
Archer will make his first start Friday night against the St. Louis Cardinals, but the Pirates had him take the top step for a warm reception from the home crowd after Nick Kingham allowed four runs on 51 pitches in the top of the first. Not only is Archer likely to take Kingham’s spot in the rotation, but he has a rep as a top-step guy.
“No matter if he does bad or good, he’s always a cheerleader for the team,” Dickerson said. “He’s the guy on the front step, congratulating the starter every time. Huge out, he’s the first guy on the step. You’ll see him out there in the dirt, giving you a high five.
“It’s the little things the media and fans don’t see in the clubhouse, where guys lean on him and you can come to him about anything communication-wise. It’s hard to keep bragging on a guy but he’s just a good dude, nothing more, nothing less. We’re all going to benefit from having him, both sides. It’s more about what he brings.”
Archer credited his blue-collar work ethic to his father, “who laid hardwood floors on his hands and knees to provide for me.” Archer channeled Roberto Clemente in talking about how transformative, literally and figuratively, it was to put on the Pirates uniform. And he even started to sound like McCutchen, when talking about how “this yard being my office every day is something I really look forward to” and wanting to continue the legacy of being a good person.
More than anything else, the Pirates need Archer to be the star pitcher for which they were willing to trade outfielder Austin Meadows, pitcher Tyler Glasnow and a “significant player” to be named later. Theirs is a young rotation with four starters 26 or younger who are excited to learn from a two-time All-Star who learned from All-Star pitchers like James Shields and David Price.
Now 29, Archer talked about how the game has slowed down and his stuff has gotten better, how his swing-and-miss numbers are up and opponents’ exit velocity is down, how his value is as an innings eater who has made 32 or more starts each of the past four seasons and thrown 200 or more innings each of the past three.
While the Pirates are optimistic Archer will benefit from the change of scenery, especially leaving the homer-strikeout nature of the AL East for the NL Central, Archer was dismissive of that argument.
“It’s Major League Baseball, man,” Archer said. “Anybody with a bat in their hands is dangerous. There’s no sense of relief. The Cubs, Cardinals, Brewers and Reds all have really good offenses. They might not have a designated hitter, but I’m never going to let my guard down, regardless of the park or league. If I go out and face high school hitters, I’m not going to let my guard down. It doesn’t change my mind at all. If anything I want to be even more aggressive because the last thing I want to do is be passive.”
What Archer brings most is heat, whether it’s with his words or his 95-mph fastball. Archer has an opportunity to positively impact the Pirates’ pitching staff the way A.J. Burnett did upon his arrival in 2012, helping push them from playoff pretender to contender.
“It’s stuff that everyone here is shooting for. To have a guy like him to pick his brain and learn from, you can’t really ask for more,” said Musgrove, acquired from the Houston Astros in the Cole trade. “I think that he brings everything we’re looking for in a pitcher to this side, and he brings more than just his physical ability. He has the ability to lead and be the ace of this staff. It’s nice to have somebody around to quarterback things and show us how to do it.”
Archer can be for the Pirates just what this town loves most, a franchise quarterback who knows when to throw the fastball and when to go deep.
He’s already won over Pittsburgh.
Now all he has to do is win games for the Pirates.
Kevin Gorman is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Kevin at kgorman@tribweb.com or via Twitter @KGorman_Trib.
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