Pittsburgh Pirates: Grading the 2013 outfielders
By Matt Shetler
Marlon Byrd- .318 AVG/ .357 OBP/ .486 SLG, 3 HR, 17 RBI
Sep 24, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Marlon Byrd scores in the fifth inning of their game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
Byrd did a lot of good things in his 30 games as a Pirate, putting up a solid slash line along the way. He added a big bat in the middle of the Pirates batting order that helped legitimize their lineup for the stretch run.
As a Pirate he put up a solid .843 OPS, played some decent right field and had some big moments the final month of the season.
Who knows if Byrd will be back in 2014, but I would like to see what he has in store for an encore. Grade: B+
Travis Snider– .215 AVG/ .281 OBP/ .333 SLG, 5 HR, 25 RBI
Snider got a long look this season at the beginning of the year and unfortunately he didn’t do much with the opportunity.
The power we heard so much about after the trade from Toronto never materialized and at the end of the day all the Bucs got was a .215 hitter and a lowly .614 OPS.
He had a couple big moments during the season which included a walk-off hit in extra innings to beat the Cincinnati Reds and a big pinch hit homer to beat the Milwaukee Brewers, but the good moments were too far in between for Snider.
It’s all but certain the Bucs will non-tender him this offseason, so if Snider eventually realizes his potential, it will likely be with another franchise. Grade: D
Jose Tabata– .282 AVG/ .342 OBP/ .429 SLG, 6 HR, 33 RBI
The 2013 season was a make or break year for Tabata and I think he represented himself quite well as the Pirates fourth outfielder.
Tabata had problems staying healthy and still isn’t a great defender or base runner, but he had a solid year with the bat.
A 1.1 WAR and .77 OPS aren’t bad numbers at all to see from a bench guy. Tabata made the most out of the 308 at bats he received and should be a valuable part of the bench going forward. Grade: C+
Guys like Alex Presley, Brandon Inge, Felix Pie, Andrew Lambo and others also saw time in the outfield but didn’t enough at bats to consider grading.