Pirates Spring Training Update: Who's Hot and Who's Not?

The second week of Spring Training has come to an end. As the week has come along, the Pirates have been going back and forth in terms of pitching and hitting effectiveness. However, these six guys, specifically, have been the most eye-catching, both positively and negatively. Baron and Tyler share their hot and cold pitchers from this week of Spring Training

Hot Hitter: Jake Lamb

Jake Lamb is a familiar name to many baseball fans. This offseason, the Pirates signed him to a minor league contract to serve as depth in AAA. He is battling for a spot on the roster, but with the way the team is structured, he will more than likely land in Indianapolis. That hasn’t stopped Lamb from swinging a hot bat in Spring Training as this week he had a .500 batting average with a home run and four runs batted in. He also had a double and only struck out once. Lamb should be someone we keep an eye on if Tellez or Joe get injured.

Hot Hitter: Ke'Bryan Hayes

Ke'Bryan Hayes has slowly become a fan favorite in Pittsburgh after getting called up in 2020 and finally broke out as a hitter in 2023. He also won his first gold glove which dethroned Nolan Arenado who won ten straight gold glove awards. In 2022, Hayes signed an eight-year, $70 million contract extension which was big for this organization. So far this spring, Hayes has swung a hot bat which did not slowdown in this second week. This week, Hayes had a batting average of .545 with a home run and a run batted in. Most of these singles have been hit over a hundred miles per hour. Having Hayes hitting this well in the season will be huge for the Pirates success.

Hot Pitcher: Hunter Stratton

Hunter Stratton has continued to make a name for himself this spring for the Pirates. Stratton has been arguably the hottest pitcher alongside Jared Jones since the first game. A week one selection has maintained his hot start throughout the second week. Stratton finished week two of Spring Training, pitching 3 innings, allowing just two hits, while striking out 4. His best outing was March 10th against the Phillies were struck out 4 batters in 1.1IP. Stratton's fastball/slider combo has been deadly for opposing hitters and he has been pushing the needle to force his way onto the Opening Day roster.

Hot Pitcher: Martin Perez

Martin Perez, who was acquired this off-season following his stint with Texas, has been very appealing. Perez, who is not known for his strikeouts, has struck out five batters in 7 innings pitched this spring. This week, Perez faced off against Minnesota where he went four innings, allowing just one hit. Perez’s biggest question was his ability to limit hard contact, and this spring he has done just that. Perez has located all of his pitches well throughout the strike zone giving the batters zero help when they come up to the plate. If Perez can continue this hot spring into the regular season, the Pirates could very well have two All-Star caliber pitchers in the top of their rotation.

Cold Hitter: Jack Suwinski

Jack Suwinski is a name a lot of fans were paying attention to this spring to see if he would continue to develop into a good major league hitter. So far through spring, Suwinski has struggled. I am not worried about him because he has a lot of power upside, and his glove is solid. In this last week, Suwinski has a batting average of .083 with a home run and a run batted in. His bat has been disappointing so far this spring, but don’t give up on him as he has shown his talent in the regular season.

Cold Pitcher: Colin Holderman

Colin Holderman only appeared in just one game this week, but overall his spring has been very disappointing. In a spring where David Bednar has not appeared, and Moreta getting injured, Holderman has shown very little promise in stepping up for the Pirates. Holderman continues to struggle with his command. During his recent outing against the Detroit Tigers, he pitched just one inning, however, during that sole inning, Holderman gave up 3 runs off of three hits. Holderman was able to strike out a few batters, however, he gave up a lot of hard contact. Holdermans week has left a lot of potential to be desired for the rising reliever.