The Pittsburgh Pirates are surprising the major leagues in the 2023 season. Bae Ji-hwan (24) is also contributing to the team’s upward trend.
On the 4th (Korean time), MLB.com, the official homepage of Major League Baseball, compared the lineups and pitching staff of each team that exceeded expectations during the month of April and measured the rankings. On this leaderboard, Pittsburgh’s offense ranked second and its mound ranked third.
This season, Pittsburgh announced one of the most spectacular starts in club history. With a season record of 20 wins and 9 losses in the first month, they are firmly holding the lead in the National League Central Division. In the 2021-2022 season, he recorded 101 losses and 100 losses, respectively, and cleared up his sluggish past.
Pittsburgh is clearly seeing the effects of the batting line this year. The main gun, Brian Reynolds (28), and Jack Swinsky (25) and Connor Joe (31), who are slowly showing their potential, are showing outstanding performance. Veteran Andrew McCutchen (37) is also rejuvenating the lineup by returning to his former Pittsburgh team.
Pittsburgh tied for fourth in the major leagues in wRC+ (Adjusted Run Production), the run production rate of hitters during the opening month. Infield commander O’Neill Cruz (25) missed the beginning of the season due to a fractured left ankle, but had a lot of fun with his hot scoring ability, which ranks 5th in points per game.
‘MLB.com’ explained, “Pittsburgh tied for the National League lead in team long drives. At the same time, it ranked first in the league in stolen bases, creating an impressive combination of power and speed.”
Bae Ji-hwan is at the center of Pittsburgh’s foot baseball. Bae Ji-hwan succeeded in stealing 11 bases with his quick feet. That’s one-third of the 스포츠토토 team’s 39 stolen bases. At the center of the team’s ‘running baseball’, he is clearly doing his part.
In addition, the stable starter operation is also noteworthy. The Pittsburgh starters are showing excellent pitching, recording 18 quality starts (less than 3 earned runs in 6 starting innings) and 9th in average ERA for a month after the opening. The performances of Vince Velasquez (31), Rich Hill (43), Mitch Keller (27), Roanzi Contreras (24), and Yohan Oviedo (25) are giving the team a great boost.
Pittsburgh had a fantastic April. I wonder if the momentum of Pittsburgh, which is on fire, will continue in May.