Marcano's adjustments providing stability at SS for the Pirates

PITTSBURGH -- The Pirates’ lineup on Sunday featured the likes of Bryan Reynolds, Andrew McCutchen and Ke'Bryan Hayes, among Pittsburgh’s boppers who can generate triple-digit exit velocities with regularity. But during the picturesque afternoon at PNC Park, Tucupita Marcano manufactured the loudest swing -- the type of swing that is becoming far more common in recent weeks.

Marcano found himself down in the count, 0-2, against Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly in the fifth inning of Pittsburgh's 8-3 loss. But, after working the count full, Marcano ripped a two-run double that tied the ballgame and gave the Bucs a second wind. At 105.5 mph, Marcano’s two-bagger was tied for the hardest-hit ball of his career, a mark he set a week-and-a-half ago when he hit the farthest ball of his career, a 413-foot home run.

“He’s having better swings -- we're talking about a kid that is getting more comfortable,” said manager Derek Shelton. “Just continues to get better offensively. He’s a guy that you can do a lot with because he handles the bat really well. I really think his swing is starting to be a little bit smoother than we've seen in the past.”

Marcano’s season is still young, but across 79 plate appearances, he is consistently generating better quality contact. In 2022, Marcano had an average exit velocity of 84.7 mph, a barrel percentage of 1.6 and a hard-hit rate of 17.2. Coming into Sunday, by contrast, Marcano had an average exit velocity of 90.1 mph, a barrel % of 5.2 and a hard-hit % of 41.4.

The better contact, unsurprisingly, has led to better results. With Sunday’s double, Marcano is hitting .250/.329/.382 with a 98 wRC+, all of which are improvements compared to last season. Marcano’s plate discipline has improved as well, cutting down his strikeout rate from 24.9 to 12.7%.

A substantial part of Marcano’s success this season has to do with his modified stance. Not only is it more wide compared to last season, a change that’s especially noticeable when viewed from the side, his hands have gone from being parallel with his head to parallel with his shoulders.

Following the season, Marcano talked with hitting coach Andy Haines and the team’s hitting group about ways he can improve as a hitter. Haines and company determined that a wider base would allow Marcano to be in a stronger position to hit. During the offseason, Marcano returned to Venezuela and worked with his father, Raul Tucupita Marcano, who played baseball in Venezuela and in the Minor Leagues.

“He's in a stronger position to hit,” Shelton said. “He’s not an overly physical guy, so he's got to get in a strong position to hit. I think he's done that with what his set-up looks like.”

“I definitely feel stronger with this posture,” Marcano said. “It eliminates a lot of those ground balls to second base. It gives more air time when it comes to swinging the bat.”

Marcano’s altered stance has aided his ability to handle pitches outside the strike zone. In 2022, Marcano had a chase contact percentage of 50.6. Entering play this season, by contrast, he is at 66.7%.

“I’m making a lot better contact on pitches all over the zone,” Marcano said. “It’s putting me in a good spot to be strong in my lower half to make adjustments when it comes to hitting pitches in different locations.”

Marcano showed off his defensive capabilities during the Pirates’ series against the D-backs as well. While Marcano hasn’t graded out well defensively so far (-1 outs above average at shortstop), he made an impressive over-the-shoulder catch on the run in shallow left field on Friday, then made an athletic diving stop of a ground ball up the middle to prevent Arizona from tying Saturday’s game.

With an improved bat and solid defense, Marcano is establishing himself as the Pirates’ short-term fix at shortstop while Oneil Cruz recovers from a fractured fibula. Marcano, Rodolfo Castro, Ji Hwan Bae and Chris Owings have received starts at shortstop since Cruz went down. However, Marcano has started 11 of the Pirates’ last 18 games at short, including five of the last six.

The Pirates know there is no replacing Cruz, but after weeks of searching for a viable stopgap, Marcano is providing some stability at short.