Pirates manager Derek Shelton's patience with top of order pays off

The Pittsburgh Pirates have a rookie manager who has mixed and matched lineups, experimented with playing a shortstop in the outfield and piggybacking pitchers, not to mention dealt with bullpen blues.

Six games into his major league managerial career, Derek Shelton will be the first to say that he doesn’t have it all figured out. He tends to overanalyze, asking for input from his coaching staff before finalizing a decision. After all, he doesn’t have any experience from which to draw.

“I don’t know because I haven’t managed in other seasons,” Shelton said. “What lessons I would take?”

When it comes to hitting, however, Shelton doesn’t lack for confidence. That’s his area of expertise after years as a hitting coach. So, Shelton wasn’t about to panic when the Pirates’ top three hitters started slow this season, combining for three hits through the first four games.

Kevin Newman got the Pirates’ first hit of the season but hasn’t had one since. Bryan Reynolds started 0 for 13. Adam Frazier had two hits in his first 19 at-bats.

“I think we were pressing a little too hard, each of us,” Frazier said. “You forget how to do something. You’re trying to do it instead of letting the pitcher come to you and being the aggressor. That’s the fine line of hitting.”

Shelton shuffled the order, using Frazier as the leadoff hitter, dropping Newman to second, Reynolds to fifth and moving Bell up to third. Other than that, Shelton shrugged it off by suggesting Reynolds is a natural hitter who was having quality at-bats, just not the results.

“I think when guys struggle out of the gate or don’t have consistent at-bats out of the gate, everybody magnifies it because it’s out of the gate,” Shelton said. “Then when it happens midway through the year, it’s, ‘Oh, he’s 1-for-10, or 1-for-12.’ But when it starts that way, everybody’s like, ‘Oh my god, what’s going on?’ It’s something that happens.”

Shelton’s patience was rewarded Tuesday night in a 8-6 win over the Milwaukee Brewers when Reynolds got a single and double in his first two at-bats and Frazier ended his funk with the winning, two-run homer in the eighth.

“Having been a hitting coach, I have a little bit of knowledge there watching guys, maybe a little finer-tuned eye of what’s going on,” Shelton said. “But with Bryan Reynolds, I mean … this kid’s been hitting since he was born. I mean, it doesn’t take someone that’s overly smart or knows hitting to realize that this guy is going to hit. And once he got the first hit, it just maybe kind of relieved a little pressure.”

Reynolds confirmed that the two-hit game did just that, and he hopes it’s the start of a streak. He hit safely in his first 11 major league games as a rookie last season, tying Gregory Polanco’s club record.

“Yeah, I was sweating it, but I still trusted that I would get another hit at some point,” Reynolds said, with a smile. “I wanted it to happen, so I’m glad it finally did.”

Shelton continued to tinker with the order Wednesday, moving hot-hitting Phillip Evans (4 for 10 with two doubles) into the second spot and giving Newman (.167) a day off. Frazier is comfortable in the leadoff role, and Reynolds remained in the fifth spot behind Josh Bell and Colin Moran, who hit three home runs in the first four games. Shelton said his lineup won’t be consistent early.

Now, it’s just a matter of the rest of the hitters finding their stride.

“Anybody that tells you hitting’s not contagious or the aura of offense getting going is not contagious, would be lying to you,” Shelton said. “It’s something that you can’t quantify, and it’s something that is real and it’s something that you can feel.”