Kovacevic: If not totally floored by offer to trade Frazier, then don't

SAN FRANCISCO -- Adam Frazier tapped his cap.

"Only one I've ever worn."

It's an hour before first pitch. The sun's setting. The trademark Bay chill's settling in, too. The National League's best team's about to host arguably the league's worst -- easy argument to make after being swept in Phoenix, anyway -- and the guy who leads Major League Baseball in hits just wrapped up batting practice and was headed off for the clubhouse.

Before taking the first step down, he noticed Gregory Polanco signing autographs by a railing. Then more autographs. Then still more, as those with pens and balls came flooding that way.

So Frazier, with trademark chill of his own, set down his bat, then his glove, and walked over to assist a teammate.

"ADAM FRAZIER!" one of the younger fans squealed, despite the SF on her hat.

"Can you sign mine 'First-time All-Star?' " came another.

And gradually, they peeled off Polanco and came Frazier's way. Until, a few minutes later, every request had been fulfilled with a smile.

He didn't have to do that.

____________________

It's nighttime now. Seventh inning. Frazier's up with bases loaded, nobody out. The National League's best team had just tied arguably the league's worst, but this bode well. Because the guy who leads Major League Baseball in hits was at the plate.

He'd work a full-count walk.

But the best -- or the worst, depending on the perspective -- was about to come.

Meaning this:

A couple outs later, Ben Gamel had bounced softly right to the first baseman. Should've easily ended the inning. But LaMonte Wade Jr.'s bumbling resulted in two runs that sent the Pirates to a 6-4 spilling of the Giants on this Friday night at Oracle Park.

Wait, did I say two runs?

Yep, watch it again, but this time take special note of the runner at second bolting as if he'd been set ablaze. After Gamel had bounced softly right to the first baseman. Which should've easily ended the inning.

Freeze-frame it:

If Frazier doesn't take off there, he's got zero chance at the plate. But because he did, and because he'd put himself in the strongest position to help the team succeed, he was able -- barely -- to slide under Buster Posey's tag once the throw arrived.

This, my friends, is not a player dreaming of greener grass elsewhere.

It's certainly not a player clamoring to be elsewhere. 

Nope. It's the player who pointed to the 'P' on his cap when he and I engaged in our first good one-on-one chat in far too long, right after that autograph session.

I asked Frazier, knowing after a half-decade around him he's anything but the B.S.-ing type, how much the team, the city, the uniform's meant to him.

"It means a lot to me. It really does," he began. "This was the team that drafted me, that gave my dream opportunity, and to make it into the majors with that team ... I guess, what, it's been 5 1/2 years since I've been up, right?"

It was June 24, 2016. Against the Dodgers. Had his first hit that day, too.

"It means a lot," he continued. "You get to represent an organization with so much history, so that's pretty cool, too. And my dad's favorite team growing up was the Pirates because of Roberto Clemente. I feel fortunate to have been part of this team for this long. I really do. And I'm just going to try to keep it going one day at a time."

Look, he knows. This is no dummy. He sees, hears and reads the same report that baseball fans back in Pittsburgh are finding. The Mariners are interested. Or the White Sox. Or the Mets. Or pretty much any contender anywhere that could use more offense. Which, realistically, is everyone in The Year Of the Strikeout.

He acknowledged upon the opening of spring training in Bradenton that he'd been paying attention, and he's no different now. But, now as then, it's not stealing any focus.

Clearly.

"We'll see what happens," he reiterated for maybe the millionth time in recent months. "I haven't been able to control any of that. We'll see what happens."

With that, he bounded down the steps.

____________________

Frazier actually has been able to control one component: He's made himself into the guy who leads Major League Baseball in hits. In fact, he's become so proficient that he added a hit on this Friday despite going 0 for 4 in the game. Earlier in the day, the league's scoring committee reversed an error charged to the Mets' Pete Alonso July 17, thus raising his total to 123 and his average to .330, a notch above the Reds' Nick Castellanos for the league lead.

Batting champ?

Wasn't it David Freese who once predicted Frazier would be that?

Sure was, in May of 2017: "If he gets enough at bats, he's going to win a batting title someday."

All that'd been missing from Frazier's arsenal, all along, was consistency. He could look like this for a week, maybe two, and then he'd revert to rolling over for 4-3 groundouts for a month or so. It never seemed to come together. And in the shortened 2020 season, it flat-out fell apart. He batted a career-low .230.

So when his name first surfaced in trade speculation at the most recent Winter Meetings, there can't be any doubt that other teams would view Frazier at his lowest possible value. Assuming they'd view him at all. Which might explain why, a week into spring training, Ben Cherington and others in the organization began to send clear signals that Frazier was staying put, at least for the time being. Obviously in hopes that his stock would rise.

Well, ding all the bells at the Dow Jones, it's risen.

He's got the hits, only the most precious commodity in the sport at the moment. He's got the .390 on-base percentage. He's got the 27 doubles, tied for fourth in the majors. He's got the 34 walks against 45 strikeouts, by far the best such ratio of his career. And get this: He's had at least one hit in 60 of the Pirates' 97 games, an astronomical show of consistency.

Why?

I asked Derek Shelton before this game to unleash his old inner hitting coach.

"The one thing is the shortness of the swing," the manager began. "He takes everything that's given to him. I think last year, at times, we saw him get big and get rotational. Just his move initial move to the ball has stayed really consistent all year long. Last year, at times, he got away from his body and the barrel got away from his body and it caused him to be around the ball. This year, we're seeing him take that same short swing and, because of it, at times, it looks like he gets cheap hits. They're not cheap hits. He ends up taking tough pitches with two strikes and hits them into the outfield and they land in the grass. That’s what good hitters do."

Makes perfect sense. To draw a semi-recent parallel, Nate McLouth was much the same when he burst onto the scene a decade ago, it was his compact, predictable, repeatable swing that had everyone associated with the Pirates glowing. To go way back, I'll cite another: Warren Morris. Both had exceptional early success, but both strayed from the zone and, in turn, from their swing path. And never fully recovered.

Frazier did. He and Rick Eckstein worked relentlessly on maintaining discipline. If he wasn't going to see his pitch in his hot zone, he wouldn't budge.

"This really wasn't mechanical," as Frazier explained. "It was about approach."

That's another selling point. Along with his attitude. Along with his Gold Glove finalist-level defense the past two summer.

Or, upon further reflection, maybe we shouldn't be talking about selling at all.

____________________

No, seriously, this was always going to be an important decision for the franchise, even back in the spring when the asking price was infinitely lower than what's currently making the rounds.

But now?

In the same way Frazier's elevated his performance, so, too, should Cherington and his staff be elevating the dialogue taking place.

Let me be blunt here: If the Pirates aren't floored -- and I mean floored like a Sherman tank plowed through 115 Federal -- by a trade offer, then they'd be guilty of gross asset mismanagement if they don't keep this player.

Yes, I'm aware I've written that I'd encourage soliciting trade offers, and I've praised the virtues of Cherington's general plan and specific execution to date. The pursuit of high-ceiling prospects in volume is the smartest plan I've seen associated in a lifetime of following the Pittsburgh Baseball Club, and the early returns have been richly encouraging in the minor-league system. Older assets have been moved, and the younger assets have rocketed the system to consensus top-five status. That's to the credit of all concerned.

But there isn't a need to move Frazier, and I feel that's got to be underscored.

The recent draft heist in landing four of Baseball America's top 32 picks will further bolster the system with or without a Frazier trade. And though even more talent is needed, particularly pitching, arms can be acquired for the older likes of Tyler Anderson, Richard Rodriguez or others. So go that route. Make those veterans the ones who bring whatever they happen to bring.

Not Frazier.

For Frazier, I'm demanding at least a top-100 prospect and a legitimately projectable arm. And even if I hear that a week out from the July 31 deadline, I'm hanging on to see if it's topped.

I don't think that'll be met. I really don't. And if it isn't, fine, so be it.

The Pirates don't determine the market. Cherington doesn't determine the market. Only the market itself does that. And if the market doesn't align with what the team should see as Frazier's value, then, again, there's no justification to move him. 

None. 

Zero.

I feel this should be expressed, too, even if ends up boomeranging in my face: I'm not of the mindset that the Pirates' overarching process is going to take all that long. To me, the window that most everyone loves to debate was thrown wide open when Bryan Reynolds and Ke'Bryan Hayes showed the baseball world what kind of players they'll be -- no -- what kind of players they already are. Those two, plus Frazier's ascent, plus Jacob Stallings' maturity into the game's premier defensive catcher, already set up half of an everyday eight.

Does Cherington think it'll be critical to keep pouring prospect on top of prospect to fill up the other half of an everyday eight?

Will the pitching, for that matter, be all that scarce once Roansy Contreras and Miguel Yajure arrive from Class AAA Indianapolis?

These are positive factors that've thrown this big curve, and they can't be disregarded. Management can't kick the can further down the road just because this was the point in the build where the can was supposed to be kicked to the next block.

Look, I'm not being an idiot here. I know where this team is right now, and I know where Indianapolis is right now. But I also know that nothing about the rest of the Pirates' machinations needs to be paused while working to graft onto the roster of players who are already in Pittsburgh, already contributing ... and not leaving.

____________________

Frazier's 29. He might never have another season like this and, per historical precedent, the odds are against him. But he doesn't need to be an All-Star to be part of this. He only needs to be more valuable than the potential impact of this trade return, both now and into the near-term future.

Anyone care to be against the guy who leads Major League Baseball in hits?

Anyone?

Hello?