Buccos Cove Players of the Week: Anthony Alford and Chase De Jong
Halfway through Spring Training, the Pittsburgh Pirates are showing some fire this season. They are 7-4-1 through the first 12 games of the spring and they are getting some strong performances from key players. While Spring training games don't really have any weight when it comes to actual success, but being able to see the team being competitive in these games is a big improvement over last spring training. Over the second week of Spring action, the Pirates have gone 5-1 and have a run differential of +24. All of this success came on the back of several key players who are fighting for roster spots.
This week's Buccos Cove Players of the Week are two players who are trying to make the Pirates Opening Day roster. The Buccos Cove Hitter of the Week is outfielder Anthony Alford and the Pitcher of the Week is Chase De Jong. Both players had strong weeks and helped lead the Pirates to victory. De Jong made his first start of the spring on Friday and Alford has been swinging a hot bat while playing strong defense. Both players had successful weeks and are starting to get hot at the right time. Today, we look at the week these players had and how their success helped lead the Pirates to victory.
Hitter of the Week: Anthony Alford
As the position battle for centerfield heats up, Anthony Alford has shown that he has what it takes to be the Opening Day starting centerfielder. There were concerns about his elbow recovery early on in spring, but he has been playing the outfield daily and had been showing that he is fully recovered. So far this spring, Alford has put up good numbers hitting .417 with two home runs and four RBI in five games played. A lot of that success came from this week, even though his first game was pretty uneventful. He went 0-2 against the New York Yankees on March 6th. He struck out one time and was just his fourth strikeout of Spring Training.
After a couple of days off, Alford found himself back in the starting lineup on March 9th against the Atlanta Braves. He ended up getting a hit in both of his at-bats going 2-2 with an RBI. His first hit of the day got the scoring started in the top of the second. He came up with no outs and two on and promptly singled into left field scoring Phillip Evans. He attacked on the first pitch and came through. His second at-bat came in the fifth inning once again with a runner on base. He singled once again and gave the Pirates two on and one out. However, he would be stranded on base in his final at-bat of the season.
He would have similar success in his next start on March 11th against the Baltimore Orioles. Alford got his day started at the plate with his second home run of the season, a two-run shot that got the Pirates out to a 3-1 lead over the Orioles. It was an opposite-field home run that was a no-doubter that showed the power he has. After that at-bat, Alford's next shining moment came in the field when he ran down a fly ball and made an amazing diving catch. He picked up his final hit of the day on a double that led off the fourth inning, but he was stranded on base. Overall, Alford went 4-7 (.571) with a home run and two RBI during the week and is on his way to cementing his spot as the Opening Day centerfielder.
Pitcher of the Week: Chase De Jong
Looking at the Pittsburgh Pirates 2021 pitching staff, one of the names I don't expect to see on Opening Day is Chase De Jong. However, De Jong was the Pirate's hottest pitcher this week and earned the Pitcher of the Week award. He hadn't appeared in a game until this past week, but he has made the most of his opportunities since then. He appeared in two games, one start and threw five scoreless innings of work, and allowed two hits while walking three and striking out two. His spring debut came on March 7th against the Baltimore Orioles as he came on in relief.
He pitched two innings in that game and allowed just one hit while walking two and striking out one. He came into the game in the top of the third and walked two of the first four batters he faced. However, he got out of the inning with a double play and got out of trouble. He finished the day facing just three batters with a hit by pitch a double play and a flyout to end the inning. De Jong likes to keep the ball low in the zone, and that allows him to get a lot of groundball outs. This would be another key to his success when he made his first start of the year five days later.
It was his best outing yet as he threw three scoreless innings while allowing just one hit while walking one and striking out one. Pitching depth has been a big need for the Pirates and De Jong is trying to show he can provide that starting pitching depth. He turned in one of the best starts of the year for the Pirates and only allowed one batter to reach third base the entire game. It was a big step forward for the 27-year-old as he continues to impress Oscar Marin and his staff. The Pirates return to action today against the New York Yankees with Alford and De Jong leading the way for the surging Pirates.
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