Is Clement cemented in at 1B?

[Mister Pittsburgh]

With spring training statistics apparently being worth about as much as a pile of cow dung.....is Clement cemented in at 1B just because we traded for him?

If not, and Jones is shifted over to play 1B (anyone know if Jones has played 1B at all this spring), then who starts in RF? Delwyn Young and Bobby Crosby have been hitting well in ST.

Bandon Moss is pathetic. He has ZERO hits in 22 at bats and whiffed in 8 of those at bats. Church isn't doing much better.

Raynor has looked decent this spring.

I think I would put DY out in RF and Jones at 1B.

[Jeremy]

I think you have to go in to the season with him at first....at least for a couple of months. Once he goes down, the dominos start to fall and the things start looking a lot uglier for the Bucs.

[tocchet92]

I think you have to go in to the season with him at first....at least for a couple of months. Once he goes down, the dominos start to fall and the things start looking a lot uglier for the Bucs.

I think that's accurate. Going into spring training, the only way Clement would lose that job is if he fell on his face in the field. By all accounts, Clement has been adequate in the field so the job is his for now. If Clement fails after two or more months, Church would be next in line for RF and Jones would move to first.

[Kipper]

I think you have to go in to the season with him at first....at least for a couple of months. Once he goes down, the dominos start to fall and the things start looking a lot uglier for the Bucs.

I think that's accurate. Going into spring training, the only way Clement would lose that job is if he fell on his face in the field. By all accounts, Clement has been adequate in the field so the job is his for now. If Clement fails after two or more months, Church would be next in line for RF and Jones would move to first.

My feelings as well

[Jeremy]

I'd rather see Raynor in right.

[buccoray61]

Clement,like Hart is being given an opportunity,nothing more. Some fans are upset in that they feel that they haven't earned it,,but like anything else,it all boils down to what you do with the chance given. Both might get an extended look,but bottom line they'll have to produce at some point or they won't be in the lineup,simple as that.

[williamjpellas]

Evidently the Pirates under Russell just don't do platoons, because it would seem pretty obvious to me that a first base platoon would be called for given the current makeup of the roster. At least, that would appear to be the only way there will ever be any use for Steven Pearce, who can sort-of hit lefties but can't do much else. Garrett Jones is of course obviously far and away the best player at that position, but his own effectiveness against southpaws is in question, and in any case he'll be in right until at least the All-Star break. Once Jose Tabata comes up, it'll either be Jones at first or there could be a trade.


Meanwhile, Clement doesn't excite me, but I have to admit his minor league numbers do show considerable pop. Not necessarily raw home run power, but lots of doubles with good (though not great) home run totals. I'm curious enough to see what happens if they run him out there mostly every day for 200 or 250 at bats. That should take us into late June, at which point either Tabata or Alvarez or both will be knocking on the door and it will be decision time. I'll say that I think Clement might---might---be okay. Not great, but okay. Give him 450 AB's and I think he'd get 20 doubles and 20 homers, though probably without much of a batting average. But he's got enough sock and a good enough attitude that I'm willing to take a look. Now, Kevin Hart---ehhh, that's another story (and also another thread!).

[exNCite]

I just get the feeling that Clement isn't going to "fail" at 1B. Someone may force their way into the lineup (OF) which forces Jones to 1st. A scenario that is totally foreign to Pirate fans of late.

Well, heck. In the grand scheme of things, 17 years is still "of late".

[Mister Pittsburgh]

Not trying to compare the 2 players, so don't take it that way, but Brad Eldred hit 40 homers between AA, AAA, and MLB one season. Showing pop in the minors shouldn't get you handed a starting gig in the pros.

[cocktailsfor2]

DY will make the squad, but only as a bench bat, and occasional 2B & RF replacement (and I don't mean late-innings defensive replacement, since his defensive capabilities are somewhere around the level of my Grandma, who died sometime around 1982).

Raynor is not going to make the trip north without some kind of trade happening.

[Kipper]

Not trying to compare the 2 players, so don't take it that way, but Brad Eldred hit 40 homers between AA, AAA, and MLB one season. Showing pop in the minors shouldn't get you handed a starting gig in the pros.

Brad Eldred also had some killer Spring Trainings as well... the very things you and some others are saying should be a "reward".

[Mister Pittsburgh]

Brad Eldred also had some killer Spring Trainings as well... the very things you and some others are saying should be a "reward".

Can you point out where I say that Kipper?

[Kipper]

[HIGH-LIGHT]Evidently the Pirates under Russell just don't do platoons[/HIGH-LIGHT],

I've *****ed slightly about this before but I try not to do it too much but Russell doesn't really do much of anything that would be considered "managing". It's one reason why I tried to deny whoever it was saying that we needed to play small ball. There's very little hope in that actually happening with Russell. In his 2 seasons he's not played a platoon at all, he's not really shown much in the way of playing other aspects of small ball etc...

What Russell is, is a teacher and instructor. He's what Jim Tracy wasn't and had no interest in being. Unfortunately there needs to be a balance with a young and inexperienced team/ There needs to be a lot of instruction and teaching but there needs to be an emphasis on doing every small thing from a managerial to generate wins which generates confidence

[Kipper]

Can you point out where I say that Kipper?

Most of your entire opening post in this thread was about rewarding players based on what they've done in spring Training. You spent most of it talking about what Moss, Young and Raynor have done in Spring Training and formulated a lineup you prefer for opening day based on it

[CROSSBONES]

I have seen many spring training stars fail in the regular season with a bat. Delwyn Young is doing it with his glove this spring, also. Clement sounds like he's doing fine with his glove, too. Young, Crosby and the back up catcher(s) are a good bench. If the starters stay healthy and play up to expectations (not great), the Pirates could field a good team this year.

This year the "what if's" have room for improvement, instead of regaining something they never really had (free agents). I'm looking for a team that improves greatly as the year progresses. Where that takes them is anybodies guess.