Sports fans can be very impatient when it comes to team performance and this often happens in baseball. One example of this would be the gossip and speculation that the Pittsburgh Pirates are actively trying to trade first baseman Pedro Alvarez. After a year of horrendous woes at third base, many thought the Pirates moving Alvarez to first base would be a great move and he would instantly improve from last year. Unfortunately for Alvarez and the Pirates, that has not been the case this season.
In 2015, Alvarez is hitting .232 with 13 homers and 45 RBI's, to go along with a .726 OPS. While these numbers are not great, they still are not awful for Alvarez, but it seems people would like to see more consistency from Alvarez. Unfortunately, a lot of those people do not understand that is not going to happen with Alvarez. Alvarez is not one of those power hitters to be feared every single time to the plate, but he does have the ability to change the game with one swing of the bat at any time. Should he be feared? No, not necessarily. But he should definitely not be taken lightly.
In fact, fans should take it easier on Alvarez because he can be a key guy in a key month for the Pirates. People can say what they may about Alvarez but when it comes to postseason batting, Alvarez is one of the best on the whole team. No disrespect to Neil Walker or Jordy Mercer, but Walker is a career .071 hitter in the playoffs and Mercer is below .200. In fact, Alvarez's career playoff numbers are so good that his average is even better than Pirates star Andrew McCutchen. Alvarez is a career .300 hitter in the playoffs with three homers, seven RBI and an OPS of 1.148. The problem with fans is they have a mentality of, "What have you done for me lately?" That is not a good way of looking at things, and when it comes to baseball is not very reasonable.
Alvarez is struggling in the field this year and this is not to suggest he does not deserve criticism. In fact, living in Pittsburgh, it feels that people are either on his side or against him when talking about trading him. He may not be what people want to see at first base but his offensive production is amongst the best on the team. Alvarez is tied with Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte in the home run department, with all three players having hit 13 each to this point. Oh, and if anyone is thinking, "So what?" Keep in mind Alvarez has seen 276 at-bats in 2015, whereas Marte has had 340 at-bats and McCutchen has had 335 at-bats. Alvarez is also third on the team in RBI in 2015. Alvarez does not have the good, quality bat, but he does have the power and when he gets hot, he's very dangerous.
This defense of Alvarez was mainly influenced by the reports of the Pirates, "actively looking to trade Alvarez," according to Yahoo Sports. Neil Huntington denied the reports, as just about any general manager would do, but it appears as if the Pirates have had enough of Alvarez. That's fair enough, especially because Alvarez leads all first baseman in errors, but the numbers in the postseason do not lie. In fact, Alvarez is the only player in MLB history to have an RBI in each of his first six playoff games.
Speaking of Neil Huntington, he should be praised for the work he has done with the Pirates. While he should seriously consider slowing down talks of trading Alvarez, if those reports are true, he has done a lot to get the Pirates to where they are. Huntington gets way too much criticism, espeically for the offseason trade of Travis Snider. A lot of people have said that Snider being gone is part of the problem, but that's not the case. McCutchen and Marte have been excellent offensively and Gregory Polanco has not been what the Pirates have wanted, but he's gotten some very clutch hits of late. If one thinks Travis Snider not being in Pittsburgh is a problem then take a moment to look at what Neil Huntington has done. For example, he went out and acquired third baseman Aramis Ramirez from the Milwaukee Brewers to add a quality veteran bat to a team that has lost two infielders to injury recently. Trading Alvarez is not what the Pirates should do unless they have the replacement for Alvarez coming to Pittsburgh in the trade.
To those who do want Alvarez to be traded, there's just one question to ask and that is, "Who replaces Alvarez?" If these people want him gone, that's all well and good. However, trades are complicated for many reasons but mainly because of things like contract numbers and baseball is a business off the field. The criticism on Alvarez is fair, but practically having a parade for him to leave town is absurd. Alvarez is not a Prince Fielder or a Paul Goldschmidt, but speaking of Goldschmidt, Alvarez did tie him in 2013 for the most homers in the National League. Call him a one tool player but that one tool is hitting homers. At the pace Alvarez leaves the yard is a deadly tool to have in the toolbox. So be careful what you wish for.