BRADENTON, Fla. — Ke’Bryan Hayes can turn to one side and see not only Andrew McCutchen but also Yasmani Grandal, Martin Perez, Aroldis Chapman and Marco Gonzales, the veterans’ lockers stationed against one of the far walls at Pirate City.
On the other side of the clubhouse, across a small hallway, are Liover Peguero, Nick Gonzales, Jared Triolo and more. In many ways, both physical and metaphorical, the soft-spoken 27-year-old serves as a bridge between the two demographics.
Hayes isn’t old. He’s also not particularly young. More than anything, Hayes is talented, defensively spectacular and a key part of whether this team will win games in 2024.
“We’re really young, so I’m one of the older guys,” Hayes said. “At the same time, I’m still learning. I want to give [younger players] as much knowledge as I can. I’ve also been here my whole career, so that helps also.”
It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? The Tomball, Texas, native is now entering his fourth opening day as a big leaguer.
Hayes made his MLB debut in September 2020 and was nothing short of spectacular, hitting .376 and producing a 1.124 OPS in 24 games.
The next two years were obviously a struggle. Hayes got hurt a bunch and didn’t finish with an OPS over .689. Criticism bubbled to the surface when Hayes missed first base on a home run and ate sunflower seeds during a play.
After Hayes signed an eight-year, $70 million extension at the start of 2022 — the largest contact in club history until Bryan Reynolds signed a bigger one the following year — doubts lingered about the quality of that deal.
Not anymore.
If Hayes is indeed the player he was for the final two months of 2023, the Pirates will have an absolute steal, a Gold Glove-winning and Platinum Glove-deserving defender who has now tapped into All-Star-caliber offense.
“It was great to be able to finish how I did,” said Hayes, who hit .299 with an .874 OPS over his final 49 games, tallying 10 homers, 29 extra-base hits, 29 RBIs and 31 runs scored.
“The last couple years have been a rollercoaster with health and all that,” Hayes said. “I’ve found a good routine to help with that. It’s also been about simplifying in the box and finding a good setup.”
The challenge with Hayes in past years hasn’t necessarily been hitting the ball hard; his average exit velocity the previous three seasons was no lower than 90.2 mph, which is well above the MLB average.
But he hasn’t been able to consistently elevate the ball and drive fastballs into gaps. Whether it was good health or mechanical adjustments — probably both — Hayes finally found that additional gear at the plate, allowing him to relax while simultaneously reacting quickly.
It was the type of not-thinking-too-much approach he displayed in September 2020.
“Last year, I was able to get back on the right track,” Hayes said. “This year, I want to be able to do it for a whole season.”
The on-field impact there is obvious. Hayes’ defense isn’t going anywhere. If he produces an .874 OPS over 145-150 games, he’ll wind up in Arlington, Texas, for the MLB All-Star Game.
Inside the Pirates clubhouse, that would be a huge development. Whether he’s hitting third or occupying another run-producing spot, the Pirates need Hayes to hit. They also need him to connect various parts of their team.
“Everyone knows I’m an easygoing person,” Hayes said. “I talk to everybody. I try to meet new players right away so everyone is comfortable. That’s how everyone gets better. That’s just how I’ve always wanted to be.”
Hayes cited Starling Marte, Jameson Taillon and Josh Bell as important leaders and people he looked up to around here when he was younger. It’s been fun to see Hayes spread his wings in that regard, looking after younger players and trying to pay it forward a bit, even if he’s still very young.
“It’s really important because a lot of these guys coming to the big leagues, he played with them in the minor leagues,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “They see the success he has and the way he’s gone about it.
“Leaders don’t have to be people who are outward all the time. We’ve seen some of the best leaders in the game be guys who just do that by example. If people are going to follow him based on [how hard] he works, I think we’re in a pretty good spot.”
Broadcast announcements
SportsNet Pittsburgh announced its broadcast team for the 2024 season, and there are some subtle changes, the majority having been previously and first reported by the Post-Gazette.
Greg Brown and Joe Block continue to share play-by-play duties. Bob Walk, John Wehner, Kevin Young, Matt Capps and Neil Walker will return as analysts.
The most noticeable change is at sideline reporter, with Latrobe native Hannah Mears replacing Robby Incmikoski, who was not retained.
Rob King will work in studio for the majority of games. He’ll be joined by Michael McKenry, Steven Brault, Jordy Mercer and Alex Presley — all but McKenry making their first and most consistent forays into TV. Young, Capps and Walker will also appear some in this setting, while Dan Potash and Mears will rotate between the anchor desk and reporting.
SportsNet Pittsburgh also announced it will televise four additional spring training games: Feb. 26 at Blue Jays; March 13 at Blue Jays; March 15 at Yankees; and March 20 at Yankees. Fans will get Rogers and YES Network feeds, bringing to 17 the number of spring training games that will be available on TV.
