Anthony Alford wins center field competition, as Pirates reassign Brian Goodwin in camp cuts
The center field competition has come to a close for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and Anthony Alford appears to be the winner after they reassigned veteran Brian Goodwin on Monday morning.
The Pirates also optioned right-handed reliever Geoff Hartlieb and reassigned infielder Wilmer Difo and right-handed knuckleballer Steven Wright to trim the number of players in big league camp to 31. They have to reduce their roster to 26 players by Opening Day on Thursday at the Chicago Cubs.
Goodwin, 30, entered spring training as the frontrunner after signing a minor-league contract and receiving a non-roster invite to Pirate City. If he made the team, Goodwin’s contract called for him to be paid $1.6 million with an additional $900,000 in incentives.
In 14 Grapefruit League games, however, Goodwin batted .229 (8 for 35) with two doubles, one home run — a game-tying grand slam in a 6-5 loss to the New York Yankees on March 10 — with seven runs scored and six RBIs. Goodwin also scuffled in the outfield, committing several errors.
Alford got off to a slow start while recovering from elbow surgery late last summer after crashing into the center field wall at PNC Park, then batted .281 (9 for 32) with two doubles, two homers and four RBIs in 12 games and made a pair of spectacular diving catches in center field.
The Pirates also acquired Dustin Fowler from the Oakland A’s in a trade, and his versatility made Goodwin expendable in the battle for the fourth outfielder spot. Fowler can play all three outfield positions and has even played a few innings at first base this spring.
Difo batted .275 with two doubles and three RBIs in 15 games, and showed his versatility by playing shortstop, second and third base and even in the outfield. But Erik Gonzalez appears to have the edge as the super utility player, and added value by starting at first base Monday against the Minnesota Twins.
Hartlieb was 0-1 with a 7.11 ERA and 2.05 WHIP in 6 1/3 innings over seven outings this spring, allowing six runs (five earned) on eight hits, with five walks and eight strikeouts. He gave up six runs (five earned) on five hits in one-third of an inning on Saturday in a 7-4 loss to Boston.
The Pirates signed the 36-year-old Wright to a minor-league deal on March 21.
Kevin Gorman is a TribLive reporter covering the Pirates. A Baldwin native and Penn State graduate, he joined the Trib in 1999 and has covered high school sports, Pitt football and basketball and was a sports columnist for 10 years. He can be reached at kgorman@triblive.com.
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