Alvarez Off To Slow Start

Alvarez grabbed his first hit on Saturday – a double off the Indians’ David Huff – but he’s off to a slow start overall, as he’s now 1-for-13 with six strikeouts after five games, including 0-for-3 with an RBI today.

A quick start would have been better, of course, but this is nothing to worry about. Alvarez was slow out of the gate in both Class A and Class AAA as well. His first month or two might be rough, but he’s shown he’s capable of making adjustments.

Pirates Didn't Ask For Physical Before Iwamura Trade

The AP reports. More at Bucs Dugout.

Pirates Designate Akinori Iwamura For Assignment

To make way for Alvarez on the 25-man roster, the Pirates have designated Akinori Iwamura for assignment, meaning he’s very unlikely to be back with the Pirates this year. This was a no-brainer, as the Bucs had to get rid of an infielder and Iwamura has hit .182 this year and has no future with the team.

Pirates Promote Alvarez

The Pirates have promoted Pedro Alvarez, Colin Dunlap reports, and he should join the team Wednesday. As I mentioned in the Bucs Dugout post yesterday, Alvarez isn’t a complete player yet—he still strikes out too much, and he probably won’t hit for a high average, at least not at first, but it will be exciting to see him begin to deliver on his amazing power potential. Andy LaRoche will almost certainly see less playing time as a result of Alvarez’s arrival.

Alvarez is the latest in a string of young players arriving from Indianapolis--Jose Tabata and Brad Lincoln joined the team just a few days ago, and Neil Walker came only a few days before that.

Alvarez Could Be Promoted Saturday

The Post-Gazette reports that Alvarez could be promoted Saturday, but not before then.

Pedromania Hits Pittsburgh

I reflect on the clamor for Alvarez to be promoted over at Bucs Dugout.

With Pedro Alvarez's Arrival Imminent, Andy LaRoche To Move To Utility Role

The Post-Gazette suggests today that Andy LaRoche will transition into a utility role:

"Right now, the way I've been playing, I don't deserve to be starting at third," he said before the Pirates' game Friday night, when Neil Walker took his starting place at third base. "I'm feeling good, but..."...

While Russell sees signs of progress lately both in the field and in LaRoche's plate approaches, LaRoche is starting to take pregame work at other infield spots: He toiled at second base in Washington, and expects to take grounders soon at shortstop and first -- where he played a 2008 game with Los Angeles.

The main thrust behind what Russell described as an attempt to make LaRoche more versatile: the impending arrival of top-prospect Pedro Alvarez at third base.

"The obvious reason for me to move is to get him up here," LaRoche said. "Hey, I'm all for it if that's going to help our lineup, which I'm sure it will. If he's playing great, and, obviously, I've been scuffling a little bit lately, he deserves to be up here."

The idea here is that Pedro Alvarez will soon be promoted from Class AAA, and will obviously be a higher priority than either LaRoche or Walker. So Alvarez will be the starter at third base. However, the implosion of Akinori Iwamura, who has already lost his starting job at second base, opens an opportunity for either LaRoche or Walker to stay in the starting lineup at second base. 

After bumbling around in Class AAA for almost two years, Walker has turned his career around, never cooling down after starting a hot streak at the end of last season in Indianapolis. His glove has always been solid, but he struggled in the minors with his on-base percentage. That problem appears to be behind him, and if it is, his combination of defense and power makes him a valuable player.

LaRoche played well at the start of the season but has been awful since the beginning of May. His chronic back problems may have something to do with that, but he has also appeared to struggle with the mental aspects of the game, occasionally missing easy plays at third despite obviously possessing the tools to be a plus defensive player. Whatever the reasons for his struggles, though, he has now played in parts of four big-league seasons, and he has a career OPS of .661, which is awful for a third baseman. He should still get his fair share of at bats in a utility role, but there's no reason to think he should continue to be a starter.

Alvarez currently has an excellent .929 OPS at Indianapolis, and he's batting .425 in June. He should indeed be promoted soon. His usual pattern in the minors is that he takes a month or two to adjust after being promoted, so expect him to struggle a little in his first few weeks in the majors, but he should emerge as one of the Pirates' best hitters late this year or early next year.