Inbox: Who is the Bucs' CF of the future?

With nearly one-third of the Pirates’ 60-game season in the books and only a couple recent games to break down, it’s a good time to answer some of your emails in the Pirates Inbox.

Who is going to be the Pirates’ center fielder next year? Who could be their center fielder of the future? I don’t think we can get by with Jarrod Dyson or whoever the next Jarrod Dyson is.
-- Don D., Pittsburgh

The Pirates brought in Dyson as a stopgap, speed-and-defense veteran who can mentor some of their younger players, so this is a fascinating question: Who’s waiting at the other end of that gap?

Cole Tucker certainly has the athleticism and instincts to play center, despite his limited experience there and the rushed nature of his transition to the outfield during Summer Camp. But the big question with Tucker remains whether he’ll hit enough to hold down an everyday job at any position.

Still, experimenting with Tucker in the outfield is understandable for the short term. The Bucs think he can handle it, they don’t have a ton of MLB-ready options out there, and they need to see him on the field.

Not having him at shortstop still feels like somewhat of a missed opportunity, though, given his defensive skills there. The Pirates have repeatedly said he’s not moving off shortstop, but it’s odd to say that while also not playing him there. Maybe he’ll move back at some point, but it’s already crowded in the middle of the infield with Kevin Newman, Adam Frazier, the suddenly hot-hitting Erik González and a bunch of prospects on the way.

So, there’s a chance Tucker could be the guy in center come Opening Day 2021 if he keeps playing there this season, continues to improve defensively and hits well enough to earn a spot in the lineup.

Aside from Tucker, the most likely internal option is prospect Jared Oliva. The 24-year-old outfielder, Pittsburgh’s No. 10 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, had a great second half in Double-A Altoona last year and likely would have begun this year in Triple-A with an outside shot of reaching the Majors in the second half.

The Pirates clearly like Oliva. They put him on their taxi squad in Cincinnati as a reward for his hard work at the alternate training site. He has the speed to play center and, some evaluators think, the kind of outstanding makeup that might allow him to rise above his raw tools.

It’s hard to say how ready Oliva will be, given the development time he’s missed due to the Minor League season being canceled, but keep an eye on him over the next month. If the Pirates call him up and play him a lot, it’s fair to think he could crack the Opening Day lineup next year. If not, we’ll see if they give Tucker an extended look in center field down the stretch.

As for long-term options in center, the most obvious answer is Travis Swaggerty, the team’s No. 6 prospect and first-round Draft pick in 2018. He’s also working out at their satellite camp in Altoona, where he probably would have played the whole season in Double-A this year after an encouraging second half with Class A Advanced Bradenton in 2019. Swaggerty is only 22, but he offers an intriguing blend of power and speed.

This is also a good reminder that some fans might have taken everything Starling Marte did -- and continues to do in Arizona -- for granted. Pittsburgh received two good prospects for Marte, but it was never going to be easy to replace his production. And the Marte trade reminds us that, as Ben Cherington continues to reshape the Pirates’ system, it’s possible their long-term answer in center isn’t currently in the organization.

What’s wrong with Josh Bell and Bryan Reynolds? I thought these were our franchise players.
-- Glenn D., Washington, Pa.

They’ve played 18 games, so it’s entirely possible both will turn it around. Some hitters have struggled to find their timing with this year’s stop-and-start schedule, and Bell and Reynolds seem to be among that group.

Bell accurately diagnosed his issues when he spoke before Thursday’s game, which we covered on Friday. Put simply, Bell is seeing fewer pitches in the strike zone than ever, yet he’s swinging more often than ever.

Among hitters who have seen at least 100 pitches this season, only Robinson Chirinos has had a lower percentage of pitches in the strike zone than Bell’s 38.6 percent. But Bell has swung at 50.7 percent of the pitches he’s seen this year, noticeably above his career average of 45.1 percent. That’s … not a great combination.

As a result, Bell’s chase rate (32.6 percent) and swing-and-miss rate (38.8 percent) are way up. The good news, relatively speaking, is that Bell has identified his issues. He just needs to fix them.

Meanwhile, Reynolds is chasing fewer pitches outside the strike zone, and his improved walk rate would seem to indicate that he’s seeing the ball fine. But he’s swinging and missing at pitches in the zone, both fastballs and breaking balls, much more often than last year.

It really does seem like his timing is just off, which is why manager Derek Shelton liked what he saw from Reynolds on Friday night.

Who do you think is traded by the Deadline? A lot of teams still have a chance to make the playoffs, but the Pirates are not a contender. They have to sell.
-- Rick, Orlando, Fla.

We have no idea how busy this Trade Deadline is going to be. Some people in the industry expect a quiet period for a variety of reasons, including the number of contending teams, the difficulty of evaluating prospects in the current environment and the challenges associated with bringing a player into the clubhouse amid the coronavirus pandemic. Others think it could become more active closer to Aug. 31.

If this turns out to be even somewhat of a normal deadline, I suspect the Pirates will find a taker for closer Keone Kela. He’ll likely be one of the better relievers available as long as he’s healthy, contenders always need bullpen help, and the cost should be reasonable considering he’s a pending free agent.

Beyond that, do the Pirates have anybody else contenders are pining for? Assuming he bounces back from the home run barrage in his last outing, pending free agent Derek Holland seems to be the most likely candidate for teams in need of back-end rotation help or a lefty out of the bullpen. Maybe someone will take Dyson for his speed and defense. But those players likely wouldn’t yield a significant return.

Perhaps Cherington could revive talks with a team that previously expressed interest in a younger player, like Frazier, but at this point he’d risk selling low on just about everyone they have.