2015 Spotlight: Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pirates finally made it back into the realm of relevance over the past two years, with two straight seasons of heading to the postseason. The Bucs will look to make a third consecutive trip to the playoffs, with a few effective headliners and some new faces from both the free agent market and their stock of young prospects. Outfielder Andrew McCutchen, now a household name (well, at least in baseball houses like mine), is certainly in the discussion for best position player in the game. He will lead a group of young sluggers including fist baseman Pedro Avarez and hometown favorite, second baseman Neil Walker.

Cole was the No. 1 pick in the 2011 draft.

As far as the rotation goes, Gerrit Cole will try to finally establish himself as the club's' ace. Still only 24 years old, Cole has already shown success in parts of two seasons at the major league level (3.45 ERA, 2.5 WAR). If he can stay healthy and log a full season's worth of innings, he could find himself meriting an All-Star bid and even a few Cy Young votes. A.J. Burnett is ready to make his swan song after turning down far more money to pitch for the Phillies. If he and fellow-hurler Francisco Liriano can find their success from 2013, then this rotation can be pretty scary. Overall, the Pirates are one of the most well-rounded teams in the game thanks to their headlining players (McCutchen, Cole) and the versatility and depth in their system (ahem, Josh Harrison). Look for some fireworks at PNC park this season.

Who to watch: Like I said, McCutchen is one of the premier players in the game and he just keeps getting better. If it weren't for somebody name Mike Trout, I would say that he has the best tools in the game.

McCutchen is a local celebrity in Pittsburgh.

He is lethal at the plate (25 home runs, .314 batting average in 2014), dangerous when he gets on base (143 career stolen bases) and a spectacular representative of the game (regularly buys lunch for every table when he eats at a restaurant). To put it simply, this guy is just really fun to watch and he is good for the game of baseball.

Sleeper: Newly-signed infielder Jung-ho Kang, of the the top-billed players throughout his career in Japan, has awesome potential. Doubters may be hesitant about any hitter coming over from Japan, but I think Kang's raw power will turn some heads.

Kang brings power and bat-flips to Pittsburgh.

I think he will start out on the bench but will eventually be a mainstay at shortstop. I'm not saying he's going to be MVP or anything like that, but I expect him to turn in a quietly successful rookie season.

Bust: I'm not a huge fan of outfielder Starling Marte. Let me rephrase that, I am rooting for Marte, but I don't have a ton of faith in him. He has shown decent progress in his first three years in the bigs, but so many people are saying the Pirates outfield will be one of the best for a long time to come.

Dancing with the Starling

I just don't think he has warranted that praise quite yet. Call me when he drives in more runs and gets on base more.

Bold prediction: The Pirates will lead all teams in home runs in 2015. Even with other teams having more prototypical power hitters such as the Dodgers, White Sox and Tigers, the Bucs somehow find a way to have at least six players with double-digit home run totals. McCutchen could reach 30, as can Alvarez, with newer players such as Kang and top-prospect Gregory Polanco hitting 15-20. This well-rounded team could bring some fun back to Pittsburgh.

Pops. 

They will make Willie "Pops" Stargell proud.