Pirate hitting, May 19 to June 8

It’s an off day, so let’s look at some numbers. I like three-week splits. In the habit of looking at them, they mean something to me. FWIW, I last did this on May 16.

In this three-week period of May 19 to June 8, the Bucs went 11-9 (and 2-5 in one-run games). They outscored their opponents 95-78 in that period. Much is made of the fact that the Bucs have played one of the league’s weakest schedules. Teams go up and down over the course of the season. During the last three-week stretch, the Bucs played Colorado, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Florida, Atlanta, and Baltimore. The Reds have made themselves a laughingstock with swaggering, stupid “shake-up” moves that only look good in the newspaper. But the Bucs caught them (and split a series) in the middle of the 7-for-11 streak that some hailed as evidence the Reds had turned it all around. The Cardinals swept the Pirates, but the Pirates played pretty well against them. If Reds played better than their record, the Braves were pouty and underperforming when they came to town. And so were the Orioles, who all know their franchise has the league’s worst interleague record. None of this should diminish the fact that the Pirates played .550 ball against a schedule that must rate average at least. Their play has been crisp and inspired the past three weeks. You have to play well to make another team look bad. I don't recall one game in this period that the Pirates just handed to the opponents -- something we often saw last year (and this past April). The Bucs are surely heading in the right direction.

• Rob Mackowiak paced the team with a torrid 61 plate appearances. His rates, .404 / .500 / .750, are obviously unsustainable and luck-aided. Let's not talk about luck, actually. Since fortune favors the brave, let's call it bravery. A guy who strikes out 15% of the time, as Mack did the last three weeks, should not be hitting .404. So what, all signs point to real and continued improvement. Last year he struck out 23% of the time; in the late April to mid-May period, he struck out 17% of the time. Even better is the walk rate. He walked in roughly 9% of his PA last year. In the past three weeks, he collected nine walks for a 15% rate. On May 16, I wondered where the power went; Mackowiak went upstairs and found it in the closet. His 21 hits included four doubles, one triple, and four home runs. To make a long story short, Rob Mackowiak is The Man. He's proof that anyone can make themselves into big-league superstar through pluck and ... er ... bravery. The clichés fail me. The man has made himself into a better player, year after year. If he can maintain this performance consistently, he's a bona fide superstar.
• Matt Lawton had some days off and has been studly. He's made great contact and his K and BB numbers suggest to me that the BA and OBP for this period are not bravery-related. The most impressive part of the stretch for him has been the power: six doubles, one triple, and four home runs.
• Jason Bay whiffed 20 times in his last 85 PA, which represents better contact for the free-swinging Canadian. He continues to drive half of his hits for extra bases, evidence to me that he's moving into the ranks of the elite hitters in the National League. Bay's batting average is pretty irrelevant considering his power and ability to work the count and draw walks.
• Daryle Ward continues to have the year I hoped from him. He's been consistently good. Don't let the recent, conspicuous struggles with men in scoring position mislead you. His fielding abilities are rough, sure, but he has done what a first baseman should do.
• Nothing is wrong with Jack Wilson. He's a star and he's back at the level he achieved in 2004. I'm proud to say I saw this coming.
• Tike Redman has been a singles machine. As a fourth outfielder, he's an asset. He's not going to hit .417 for a year but he's a much better bet to build an 800 OPS on singles than the high strikeout guys. Tike has four strikeouts and three walks in his last 51 plate appearances.
• Jose Castillo has cooled off considerably. In mid-May I guessed he'd finish the year around .275 / .325 / .440. He's now at .285 / .319 / .392. Have opposing pitchers made adjustments?
• Freddy Sanchez showed unusual power and/or speed and/or bravery with six doubles. They ran his line to .333 / .348 / .467. Expect Tike Redman numbers from Freddy; they are similar hitters. That will sound like heresy or foolishness to some of the team's critics, but it's true. Sanchez had three strikeouts and no walks in the last three weeks.
• David Ross has been David Ross; Humberto Cota has not shown his usual power; Ryan Doumit has barely got his feet wet.
• Wigginton's numbers are deceiving, as I wrote earlier this week. The argument that the Bucs sent him down "just as he found his stroke" is bullshit, the kind of thing someone would write if he did not have actual game-watching experience to contextualize them. I don't blame Wigginton for making that case himself. I'm sure he sees it that way.
• Restovich and Bobby Hill haven't played much. Both guys give us some good depth in case we lose another player to injury.

.NAME .TM .G PA ..BA. .OBP. .SLG. R+RBI
Mckwk PIT 17 61 0.404 0.500 0.750 32
Lawtn PIT 18 78 0.313 0.438 0.625 24
BayJa PIT 20 85 0.261 0.395 0.493 21
WardD PIT 18 73 0.279 0.397 0.508 22
WlsnJ PIT 20 77 0.329 0.342 0.500 12
Redmn PIT 17 51 0.417 0.442 0.542 15
Cstlo PIT 20 82 0.263 0.313 0.316 16
Snchz PIT 13 45 0.333 0.348 0.467 12
CotaH PIT 16 54 0.275 0.327 0.373 14
Wiggn PIT 08 24 0.273 0.333 0.727 10
Resto PIT 10 27 0.160 0.222 0.320 03
RossD PIT 10 26 0.200 0.259 0.240 03
HillB PIT 14 14 0.231 0.333 0.231 01
Doumt PIT 03 06 0.167 0.167 0.333 00