FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The left side of the Pirates’ infield is currently in flux. Erik Gonzalez and Kevin Newman are competing for the starting shortstop job. Colin Moran is the incumbent third baseman but is being pushed during spring training by a resurgent Jung Ho Kang.
However, who the starters will be this season might be irrelevant by next season.
Ke’Bryan Hayes will play third base this year at Triple-A Indianapolis and Cole Tucker will be the shortstop. Many scouts feel both 22-year-olds will be ready to join the Pirates’ lineup in 2020.
“They are both really good-looking kids,” a scout from an American League team told me. “Hayes is the more polished of the two and I think he’d probably be ready by June if the Pirates want to push him, which they rarely do with guys in their system. Tucker is a little rawer, but he took a big step forward last season. If he improves as much as he did last year, then he’ll be ready next year. Those kids could be together a long time on the left side of the infield just like (Jordy) Mercer and (Josh) Harrison played together in the middle infield in Pittsburgh for years.”
Hayes and Tucker are baseball rats, which is easy to see by observing them during camp. Both get to the clubhouse early each day and stay late. It seems the duo is always either in the indoor batting cages working on their swings or taking extra ground balls to improve their defense.
Both are also the sons of former professional players. Hayes’ father, Charlie Hayes, was a third baseman in the major leagues for 14 seasons from 1988-2001, including spending most of 1996 with the Pirates. The elder Hayes is now a coach with the Phillies’ rookie-level farm club in the Gulf Coast League. Tucker’s father, John Tucker, was inducted into the Florida High School Baseball Hall of Fame following a standout career as a shortstop in Melbourne. John spent one season in the Cardinals’ farm system then played professionally in Italy.
When I asked both separately if they felt they were born to play baseball, they smiled and answered “yes.”
Ke'Bryan Hayes -- APHayes told the story of how he dragged a red bat around when was 2 years old.
“I don’t remember it,” he said with a smile. “But a lot of people have told me about it.”
The 22-year-old Hayes also has no recollection of watching his father play as he was 4 when Charlie played his final game. In fact, Ke’Bryan says he didn’t realize his dad played in the majors until he was 8.
“He didn’t talk about it,” Hayes said. “He wasn’t the type of father who pushed me into baseball or anything else. I played all the sports growing up – baseball, football and basketball – until it reached the point that I knew baseball was my best sport and the sport I loved the most.”
However, Ke’Bryan readily admits that having Charlie as a mentor played a major reason in him becoming a supplemental first-round draft pick in 2015 from Concordia Lutheran High School in Tomball, Texas, and becoming a top prospect. MLBPipeline rates Hayes as the 46th-best prospect in the game while Baseball America has him at No. 49 and Baseball Prospectus at No. 55.
“Of course, he’s been great help,” Ke’Bryan said of Charlie. “He’s not necessarily always going to come to me and tell me what to do. But he obviously understands the game and what goes into be a big-league player. It’s great to have someone I can always go to when I have a question or just need to talk. I’m very fortunate.”
Hayes is already a better fielder than his father as he has won the Minor League Gold Glove each of the past two seasons. Yet while he hit .293/.375/.444 last season at Double-A Altoona, he had just seven home runs. He has gone deep just 15 times in 1,499 minor-league plate appearances. However, both the Pirates and scouts from other teams believe he will develop power as his 6-foot-1 frame fills out. Hayes is listed at 210 pounds, but that was his weight when he signed his first pro contract and he has slimmed down considerably since then.
“He might not hit 30 homers a year but he could hit 20, and if he hits 20 with his defense then he’s a valuable player,” the AL scout said.
Hayes believes he is improving with each season.
“I feel like every year a different part of my game has gotten better,” he said. “I feel like the Pirates have done a great job developing us young players. From the time I came out of high school to now, it’s night and day, as far as physical, mental and everything. I’m just excited for this year.”
Hayes certainly looks like he is ready for the challenge of playing at the highest level of the minor leagues. He has gone 7-for-17 in Grapefruit League action and each of his hits have gone for extra bases – four doubles, two triples and a home run.
Tucker hasn’t been quite that impressive this spring, but he has still gone 4-for-13 (.308) with a double while playing excellent defense.
The Pirates’ first-round draft pick in 2014 from Mountain Pointe High School in Phoenix, Tucker had a big second half at Altoona last season. He was hitting just .233 with no home runs through the end of May. However, from June 1 on, he batted .273 with five homers to finish the season with a .259/.333/.356 line and 35 stolen bases in 133 games. And he followed with a strong 20-game showing in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .370/.442/.457 with six steals.
“He was one of the most impressive players out there, especially defensively,” a scout from a National League team said. “I used to have questions about his arm, but he answered those questions and he showed even better range than I thought he had.
“The question is the bat, but he’s started to figure some things out on that side of the ball. He has some upside there.”
Tucker credits much of his improvement to just staying on the field. During his career, he has had surgery to repair a torn thumb ligament and a torn labrum in his right shoulder.
“Being healthy has been really big,” Tucker said. “The only way you get better in this game is by playing and I’ve been able to play a lot the last couple of years and also get the experience of playing against some of the best prospects in baseball in the Fall League. I’ve always had confidence in myself, but it’s just been a matter of being able to play.”
What may stand out most about Tucker is his personality. He takes ebullience to an entirely different level as he always has a smile on his face and easily connects with teammates and fans. In the AFL, he won the Dernell Stenson Sportsmanship Award and considers it one of the biggest achievements of his career.
“It means a lot,” Tucker said. “I want to be known as a good guy, someone who is a good teammate and who treats people well. Ultimately, that matters as much as anything, and I was proud to be recognized for sportsmanship. It was quite an honor and I don’t take it lightly.”
