5 big 2020 Pirates questions: What should be done with Cole Tucker?

The Pirates are ramping up to their 60-game sprint of a season at PNC Park’s “Spring Training 2.0.”

The Major League Baseball schedule starts for the Pirates on Friday, July 24 in St. Louis.

So each day this week at “Breakfast With Benz,” we will be examining the five most pressing questions facing the team.

Monday’s question: Can the Pirates hit their way to relevance?

Tuesday’s question: What should the Pirates do with Cole Tucker?

Tuesday’s answer: Play him. Whenever a logical opportunity presents itself.

Let’s not confuse the situation when it comes to the Pirates middle infield.

Yes, it’s crowded.

Indeed, manager Derek Shelton has options.

It’s true, the Pirates actually have depth there.

But it’s not foolproof.

Certainly not to the point that in a 60-game hybrid season, with a first-time manager and a franchise in a perpetual rebuild, that at-bats can’t be found for a former first-round draft choice who had time at the major league level last year.

Shelton seems pretty committed to Adam Frazier as his second baseman and Kevin Newman as his shortstop to start 2020. Newman hit .308 last year. Frazier was a Gold Glove finalist in 2019, while exhibiting top-six-of-the-lineup hitting ability and speed.

Meanwhile, despite Tucker’s athleticism and occasional timely flash at the plate in 2019, he only hit .211 with two home runs in 147 at-bats during his first big league season. He reached base via hits and walks 41 times. He struck out 40 times.

Clearly, there’s a lot of development that needs to be done.

Where is he going to do that this year, though? Altoona in a modified camp? C’mon. That’s just wasting a year of a first-round draft choice’s career.

Granted, it’s that or burn a year of service time for Tucker even if he is only a backup this season. But I’d rather sacrifice the service time and inch him closer to being ready for 2021.

Especially if Frazier plays well enough that some team wants him in a trade.

Plus, who knows? Maybe Tucker will find what Newman found in 2019. Newman was also a first-round pick who struggled in his first stint in the big leagues.

Don’t forget, for as good as Newman was in his sophomore season, his rookie campaign was dreadful, going 3-for-30 to start his career. He hit .209 in 91 at bats.

“It’s exciting to start taking what we’ve been doing in the cage or in BP onto the field in a competitive at-bat,” Tucker said last week. “That’s going to show up. I feel really confident about that. I’m really excited to see it play and see how it plays out.”

Beyond the two guys in front of him, there’s no reason why Shelton or general manager Ben Cherington needs to prioritize Erik Gonzalez. His injury-aborted 53-game season last year was part of the Neal Huntington swan song. And JT Riddle is just a guy to round out the roster.

By the way, Tucker just turned 24 last week. He started playing minor league ball in 2014. This wouldn’t exactly be a rush job to get him on the 30-man active roster this year as a bench player.

Make Tucker the third middle infielder. On days when Frazier is the designated hitter, let Tucker play shortstop and move Newman to second base. Or give Newman a break from time to time.

Players will be hurt. Some will get quarantined with the coronavirus. Have Tucker at the ready and get him some time. Somewhere. There’s been talk of center field, although Shelton downplayed that idea early in the PNC Park workout period.

Maybe they should consider it more. If Jarrod Dyson is hurt — or doesn’t work out — the team is left with the option of moving Bryan Reynolds to center or relying on Guillermo Heredia as a full-time starter.

“I’m here to help the team win in whatever capacity that is,” Tucker said. “If they want me to play center field, I’ll play center field. If they want me to be the bat boy, I’ll be the bat boy.”

Come to think of it, are bat boys allowed in stadiums this year? And if the Pirates have one, might they trade him to a bigger-market club before the end of his bat-boy arbitration years? Tucker may be onto something!

I’d prefer center field, though. Or just a utility role.

However you slice it, this is a burned year for both him and third base prospect Ke’Bryan Hayes. I’d rather see Tucker — if not both — up in Pittsburgh as opposed to the Altoona taxi squad for the duration of this abbreviated season.

Tucker brings speed, a glove, energy, potential and a personality. I have no idea what Gonzalez and Riddle bring.

It’s a year to let loose. Tucker seems plenty comfortable letting loose himself. Let’s take a look at how it goes and have some fun with it.