Previewing the Pirates: Versatility the key to competition for starting spots in middle infield

As the Pittsburgh Pirates prepare for the start of spring training next week in Bradenton, Fla., the Tribune-Review takes a look at players in every position grouping.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will start spring training with a handful of candidates who can play shortstop. Whether they have one who can separate himself as the starter this season is another story.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton isn’t making any promises, either.

Erik Gonzalez started at third before supplanting Kevin Newman at shortstop last year. Newman switched from short to second base. Cole Tucker spent the season playing the outfield for the first time in his career. None of them have a lock on the starting job.

So, Shelton is prepared for the position battle at shortstop to be a spring training storyline, one that will overshadow the Pirates’ versatility.

“I think that is going to be a place where we are going to have some competition,” Shelton said. “The one thing about that is it’s going to be over-focused on we have competition there but all three of those guys can play other positions, too, which functionally makes us better.”

While it’s true that Gonzalez, Newman and Tucker all are capable of playing multiple positions, the middle infield was a mix-and-match last season and could be more of the same this summer.

Gonzalez was a defensive upgrade but his bat was streaky, as he hit .282 in August and .184 in September. Newman struggled in committing eight errors, including five at short. Despite being a Gold Glove finalist at second base for the second consecutive season, Adam Frazier played 14 games in left field. And Tucker played only one game in the infield, at second base. None of them hit higher than .230.

“The fact of the matter is, yes, there’s going to be competition there. I expect all of those guys to in some way get at-bats,” Shelton said. “That’s going to be something that, as we go through spring training and get into the season, we’re going to have to figure out. But the fact that there’s flexibility for all of those guys to play other positions helps our situation out.”

Frazier, who avoided arbitration by signing for $4.3 million, could be a trade candidate now the free agent market is clearing up. If not, Frazier could play left field, allowing Bryan Reynolds to move to center. Then again, Tucker could make a permanent switch to center.

The Pirates have many options, and some of the best involve the top prospects in their minor league system. They have extended spring training invites to add Nick Gonzales, Oneil Cruz, Liover Peguero and Ji-Hwan Bae to the middle infield mix.

Gonzales was the No. 7 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, and is ranked the Pirates’ top prospect by MLB Pipeline and No. 3 by Baseball America. Cruz and Peguero are both regarded as top-five prospects, while Bae is ranked in the top 15 by both publications. Gonzalez spent last summer splitting time at second base with Bae while Cruz and Peguero shared reps at shortstop at the alternate training site in Altoona.

The 22-year-old Cruz could be the wild card, as he faces charges for an offseason auto accident that killed three people in his native Dominican Republic but is expected to participate in spring training. The 6-foot-7 shortstop has power potential, and Shelton said he expects to “see him play multiple positions, for multiple reasons” this spring.

“No. 1 is his ability to swing the bat, No. 2 is his athleticism and, No. 3, the ability to play multiple positions is extremely important, especially for a National League club,” Shelton said. “The ability to play multiple positions, not only for Oneil Cruz but for a wide variety of guys, especially guys that play in the middle, it’s too important to a club to not explore that at some point.”