Kevin Gorman: Can Joe Musgrove become the leader the Pirates need? Maybe he already has

Joe Musgrove wasn’t showing a gap-toothed smile when he talked about “taking it in the teeth” and how the Pittsburgh Pirates’ season went south amid clubhouse chaos.

But Musgrove knew what was missing.

“We had a lot of internal problems going and some issues getting things together on the field,” Musgrove said last month at PiratesFest at PNC Park. “I think we lacked a little leadership amongst the players. No one was really ready to step up and take that role. Kind of taking it in the teeth last year gave us some fire for us to step up and fill those roles that need to be filled.”

The Pirates have to hope Musgrove can become that player. They no longer can lean on veterans such as Francisco Cervelli, Francisco Liriano, Melky Cabrera or Starling Marte — all gone — or even Jameson Taillon, who will spend this summer rehabilitating his right arm.

Musgrove can be a powerful presence for the Pirates if he’s willing to embrace the role. The 6-foot-5, 230-pound right-hander is an imposing figure who is respected by his teammates for his passion and willingness to speak up.

“Joe is an important part of this team,” new Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “He’s a leader, a guy that people look up to on this squad.”

Musgrove also carries some clout, considering he is coming off a season in which he led Pirates starting pitchers in wins and losses (11-12), ERA (4.44), WHIP (1.215), FIP (3.72), games started (31) and innings pitched (170 1/3).

Problem is, at 27 years old and entering his fifth major league season, Musgrove remains reluctant to take on the responsibility. Maybe it’s that he is entering only his third season with the Pirates. But he won a World Series ring with the Houston Astros, and that should mean something to a 93-loss team.

Can Musgrove become the leader the Pirates desperately need?

“I plan on it,” Musgrove said, “but I don’t think it’s one guy that you’re looking to fix the culture of what’s going on here, to fix the momentum and the energy. It’s going to take a combination of everyone pulling their own weight and everyone holding each other accountable and speaking up when things need to be said.”

No one was willing to do that last season, especially after the Pirates lost 24 of 28 games after the All-Star break. Cervelli was out with a concussion. Taillon was out with a right arm injury that would require a second Tommy John surgery. And there was fighting, both between players and between players and coaches.

It was a clubhouse out of control.

What’s worse, no one took command to change the direction.

“I feel like at a point last year everyone was looking for somebody to help,” Musgrove said. “None of us really had the answer to pull us out of the funk we were in. I feel like everyone was looking to their right and to their left for help. We didn’t have many people that were able to step up, myself included, and grab the reins of the team and get things back on track.

“A lot of it is, guys don’t feel, especially when we’re in a clubhouse with Cervelli and Liriano and Melky — guys that have had three times as much time as we do — sometimes you don’t want to feel like you’re overstepping your boundaries or like you’re stepping on toes. Maybe you don’t feel like it’s your place to speak. We’ve made that very clear this offseason and at the end of last year that if we want to get it right, it’s going to take help from everyone, everyone pulling in the same direction.”

Now, there’s no room for excuses. Musgrove talked about how much he loves the energy on a team with young talent, but the Pirates are projected to lose 102 games. Musgrove might be their most outspoken player, even if he believes there’s more to being a leader than speaking up. If that comes across as contradictory, allow him to explain.

“I don’t think a leader is defined a certain way. I think everyone is capable in that clubhouse of leading in a certain way,” Musgrove said. “I’ve always thought that actions are stronger than words. If you do things the right way and you carry yourself and you’re professional, those are the things that everyone sees.

“The leadership thing, I feel like, comes from how you perform and carry yourself on the field. That’s ultimately what people admire and what people want to be like, so I’m not trying to come into this year with the title or label of being the leader, being the head of the clubhouse. I’m just trying to encourage my teammates and push them to take the next step and for us all to hold each other accountable and have one big unity as opposed to feeling like there’s a leader in the clubhouse and a head guy you’ve got to be careful around. It’s a lot easier said than done, too.”

That sounds exactly like the type of leader the Pirates need.

Maybe Musgrove has become one without even realizing it.

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