This story was excerpted from Aiden Stepansky's Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
PITTSBURGH -- The modern art of baseball favors offensive productivity over defensive consistency. No player has exemplified the difference for the Pirates this season more than Nick Gonzales.
The 27-year-old third baseman leads Pittsburgh in batting average (.306) and hits (133). But he is also its worst defender, earning a minus-6 fielding run value, per Baseball Savant, after a switch from his usual home at second base to the hot corner in 2026. Gonzales’ defense continues to be a work in progress, while his offense is reaching new heights.
“I'm super convicted in my approach, and the stuff that we've been working on a little bit of last year just didn't really show up as well,” he said. “It showed up in spurts, a little sporadically, and [I'm] just working on hammering it and ironing it out so I can be consistent throughout the entire year.”
Gonzales doesn’t pinpoint any specific statistics to calculate his success. He knows his batting average is high -- fourth best in the National League entering Tuesday -- but he focuses mainly on quality at-bats and hitting the ball hard. A key to success in 2026 has been swinging at more middle-middle pitches and laying off pitches near the edges of the plate.
After all, this is who Gonzales was supposed to be. The No. 7 overall pick in 2020 was drafted for his bat after hitting .399 with a 1.249 OPS over three seasons at New Mexico State. Gonzales said his high batting averages in college prepared him for how to deal with hitting in the Majors. So did his success in the premier summer collegiate baseball league.
Gonzales’ time with the Cotuit Kettleers in the Cape Cod League helped his Draft stock soar. He felt that before going to the Cape, he wasn’t well-known by many scouts. Then, an MVP season at the Cape, with seven homers and a .351 average in 42 games, put him into the early first round. It took some time at the professional level to get going, but now Gonzales is performing well at the plate and expecting to do more.
“I think there's still a ton of room for improvement and a ton of places where I feel like I've scuffled and been able to be better,” Gonzales said. “So I think to continue the path I'm going, the consistency and staying convicted with the stuff I'm doing pregame, stuff I'm doing in the cage throughout the offseason, everything will only help me.”
On the other side of the field, success has been harder to come by. The lifelong second baseman didn’t have much time to prepare for the position change, after Brandon Lowe came over in the offseason to play second and with Gonzales playing for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic this spring.
Gonzales practiced at all infield positions and found out for sure he’d play the year at third on Opening Day. Pirates manager Don Kelly, who bounced around positions throughout his MLB career, explained that Gonzales is forced to learn how to go back on the ball many times rather than attacking as he did at second.
“I've probably played 99% of my games over at second,” Gonzales said. “So not a ton of time over there on the left side, but comfortable doing it.”
Gonzales feels the difference in the small details when he returns sparingly to second base once a week to give Lowe a day off his feet. At second, Gonzales watches the pitcher’s delivery and tracks the ball to the plate. At third, he locks in on the plate, with no time to track the pitch out of the hand.
Gonzales admits it’s been tough to adjust. He leans on teammates and fielding coach Chris Truby to find his way.
“It's a completely different feel and completely different reaction in terms of the ball, the swings, and everything,” Gonzales said.
Gonzales also has played a few games at designated hitter, as Gold Glover Jared Triolo can fill in at third base at times. Late in games when the Pirates are leading, expect Triolo to enter for Gonzales. Even into August, Pittsburgh is still finding the right combinations to get the best out of Gonzales.
“It's always a balancing act,” Kelly said. “And Nick has been so good offensively for us, and has played well at third base. There's been some plays that I know that you could say that he should have made too, and we’re continuing to work with him on that, continuing to help him get better.”