STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Cole Tucker headed back to Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday after the Pirates optioned him to make room for Jung Ho Kang. This makes for a natural point at which we can assess his performance during his first taste of big league action. How did he fare over the first 38 major league games of his career?
It's a loaded question, to be sure. Tucker's time with the big league club was filled with nearly as many low points as high, with none being higher than his first MLB hit, a de-facto walkoff home run:
If we were to set aside the inherent emotion in seeing an enthusiastic young player do well, what would we see? Let's find out as we walk through an honest assessment of Tucker after his first 120 MLB plate appearances.
THE BASELINE
First, the basics:
That's....not particularly awe-inspiring, to say nothing of boosting confidence in Tucker's future. With that said, it must absolutely be pointed out that Tucker was having a much better go of things at the time of his departure:
Tucker's play in the field was generally thought of as above average during his first stint with the big league club, yet advanced defensive statistics were a bit unkind with a -2 defensive runs saved rating and a 7.6 UZR (ultimate zone rating)/150 game rating. Don't fret, my advanced primer on fielding statistics drops later this week.
Perhaps these "bad" fielding metrics are simply a case of small sample size mixed in with an absence of practicality. For one, only 13 qualified shortstops put up a positive DRS rating in 2018. Tucker only had 116 chances at the position before being sent down. He simply did not have time to compile a full body of work in the field by which to judge.
THE FATAL FLAW...FIXED?
Mound Visit enthusiasts will recall a recent piece wherein I found the fatal flaws in each Pirates hitter. Tucker's appearance in that piece was fueled by the utter lack of a two-strike approach. Teetering on the precipice of a strikeout is undesirable for any hitter of any ilk, with overwhelming numbers to prove it. All told, MLB hitters can only muster a .236 wOBA against a two-strike count. Before May 24, when his fortunes started to turn, Tucker was well below the league rate at .167. From that date to his demotion, Tucker carried a mark of .228. Still below average but markedly better.
It wasn't only the end results that got better for Tucker at two-strikes. His patience increased greatly over his last two weeks in the majors, with his whiff rate dropping form 54.1 percent to just 32.7 percent. This is still rather high -- the MLB wide rate is 25.1 percent -- but shows great improvement over his first few weeks.
THE BUILDING BLOCKS
So what can Tucker take with him as he returns to Indianapolis to build upon, or perhaps just to feel good about? For starters, who about his performance on breaking balls from the left-hand side?
I interviewed Tucker right before he got the call up on my podcast -- you can hear the episode below in case you missed it -- and he described switch hitting to me as "having two children." Clearly, the LHB child is the better behaved among the two when it comes to breaking balls. Tucker hits them and hits them well, with three of his six hits going for extra bases. He's not too easily fooled against them either, which bodes well for someone who will be batting from the left-hand side more often than not.
Tucker got better against fastballs, too. During the month of May, he sported an xwOBA against them of .321, a solid degree better than his .197 mark in April. Perhaps it was a slight adjustment that spurned this?
Notice how Tucker stays a tad more upright in the box on the right. What this does is allow him to start his load at a time much more conducive to barreling up the ball. The leg kick is a bit more pronounced as well, providing more drive. Make no mistake, the pitch on the left was a good pitch, worshiping at the altar of high heat. The offering from Rodney was more or less center-cut. Yet without this small change, it's entirely conceivable that Tucker might not have been able to push it through the infield, because his timing would not have allowed him to. This example of Tucker's ability to make small adjustments with success speaks well to his future.
So much of the Pirates' future is resting on Tucker's shoulders. As the club's starting shortstop of the future, many were waiting to see how he would adjust to major league pitching, not to mention the rigors of his position.
While he didn't blow the doors off of the barn, there is plenty here for fans of the PBC to get excited about.
HEAR TUCKER ON THE BUCCOCAST
MORE MOUND VISIT
June 11: Marte's partay rages once more
June 10: Colin Moran barreling toward consistency
