Colin Moran has plenty of important subjects on his mind, but pierogi races wouldn’t seem to be one of them.

While chatting with reporters Monday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman was asked if he watches the races at PNC Park (after previously referring to them as “that race they do in the outfield”).

He said, “Yeah, I’m locked in.”

Sarcasm? Doesn’t matter. It’s back to business, in any case.

Moran, 27, is hanging onto the third-base job on the strength of an 80-RBI effort last season, giving him 138 in his first two years in the majors.

Is he the long-term answer at the hot corner? Can he hold off the challenge from Ke’Bryan Hayes, 23, the No. 2 prospect in the Pirates’ system, according to mlb.com?

Hayes has, perhaps, the slickest glove in the organization, which could be his quick ticket to the majors, but he is currently absent from spring training 2.0. That has left most of the playing time at third base the past two weeks to Moran, Erik Gonzalez and Phillip Evans.

Moran is also spelling Josh Bell at first base and will be in manager Derek Shelton’s crowded mix as a designated hitter.

“Wherever they need me,” Moran said.

Moran is no stranger to the DH, having manned that spot in the minors. In 11 big-league at-bats, he has two singles, one RBI and four strikeouts.

“It definitely is different,” he said. “It’s kind of like four or five pinch-hits. It just feels like you have a ton of time between at-bats. Anything to be in the lineup and help the team would be great.”

Moran hopes to benefit from a second season with hitting coach Rick Eckstein.

“It’s great to work with him,” he said. “It’s the first time I’ve had a hitting coach two years in a row, the same one.

“Seems like every year in pro ball you’re always kind of shuffling through different hitting coaches at different stops. You don’t always run into the same one multiple years in a row, and I’m really excited to work with him for another year.”

Moran, who slashed .277/.340/.407 and .277/.322/.429 in his first two seasons, is using analytics in the batter’s box, “just paying attention to what the league did to me.”

“Trying to fight back against that, where I maybe chased some pitches,” he said. “Working on seeing those pitches.

“Not worrying about my swing. I trust my swing at this point.”

The sixth overall choice in the 2013 draft by the Miami Marlins, Moran might not be able to compete with Hayes’ glove, but more reliability would help. He committed 14 errors for a .938 fielding percentage at third base last season.

Analytics are at work in the field, too.

Moran said the Pirates arm their fielders with cards that contain information on hitters and matchups.

“Positioning is up to analytics for the most part,” he said. “They put us in position where they think the ball is going to be hit the most.

“Our job is to anticipate things. If you see things on the field, you make adjustments.”

Shelton hasn’t revealed any concern for Moran’s defense.

“We’ve talked throughout the quarantine about working on our positioning, putting him in the right spot,” Shelton said. “I feel very confident that, when they hit the ball to Colin Moran, he’s going to catch it and throw it across the diamond. Spectacular plays are stuff that make SportsCenter and everybody talks about, but making the routine play, he’s going to do that and I have full confidence in it.”

Moran said he shades toward the shortstop hole “because a lot of guys hit there when they mishit it.”

That means more work on his backhand to stop the balls from going down the third-base line. He’s also been doing drills to improve his first-step quickness.

He said the “new faces” in the coaching staff have been helpful.

“Just picking their brains on different things,” he said. “Just doing the little things that help you win the game. Catching the ball, throwing, getting the guy out, being consistent, being somebody the pitchers rely on.”

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