Don Kelly Has Pirates Hitters Ready Off The Bench

On a Major League Baseball coaching staff, you always hear about the jobs of the Manager, Pitching Coach, and Hitting Coach. However, one job you don't hear much about is the Bench Coach, and it is a role that Don Kelly is thriving in for the Pirates.

When looking at the 2021 Pittsburgh Pirates, many fans are encouraged by the team performing above expectations early in the year. Manager Derek Shelton and Pitching Coach Oscar Marin have been getting a lot of the praise on the coaching staff for the turnaround, but that praise may also be due to another coach. Don Kelly, a Pittsburgh native and standout at Point Park University, joined Shelton's staff as Bench Coach in November of 2019, and has played a big role behind the scenes with the Pirates. Not only does he manage day-to-day operations around the team and help organize the entire Spring Training schedule, but he is also a part of another essential part of the game.

Kelly is responsible for keeping the guys on the bench ready to go if their number is called to go in the game. So far this season, Pirates pinch hitters have been ready for that challenge. They currently rank sixth in all of Major League Baseball with a .261 batting average and are tied for seventh with four pinch-hit RBI. Pinch-hitting is a big part of the National League game that Pirates Manager Derek Shelton has never experienced before, and Kelly has done a good job of keeping his guys on the bench ready to go. In conjunction with hitting coach Rick Eckstein, Kelly talks to these guys about their approach and makes and gives out scouting reports on the pitchers they will face. Today, we look at some of the top Pirates pinch hitters and how they get ready to go out on a nightly basis.

Pirates Top Pinch Hitting

Being a good pinch hitter at the Major League level is a very hard thing to do consistently. There aren't many opportunities to go around, so when your number gets called you have to be ready to take advantage. For the Pirates, the guy who leads the way in the pinch-hitting department happens to be a veteran infielder who didn't make the Opening Day roster. Wilder Difo has led the way in the pinch-hitting department for the Pirates, hitting .313 with a home run and three RBI in those situations. A lot of that success came in a stretch from April 10th to April 13th when he had a pinch-hit home run and a pinch-hit triple in the same week. The bat is not something you usually talk about with Difo, but as a pinch hitter, he has been solid at the plate.

Another guy who has done very well as a Pirates pinch hitter is a guy who doesn't normally get many days off during the season. Colin Moran has had limited pinch-hitting opportunities, two to be exact, but is 1-2 with an RBI double in those situations. While you don't want to see Moran doing a lot of pinch-hitting because he is a starter, it is good to know that on off days, the Pirates can still rely on him to come off the bench and help the club when they need him. Moran's new approach has brought him more consistent offensive success, and he has been able to hit the ball to all fields. This new approach allows him to hit the ball where it is pitched rather than looking for a specific pitch in a specific spot, and this helps when you are coming into a game cold to be able to just get on base.

Other than those two guys, the Pirates have used their other bench players sparingly in pinch-hitting roles throughout the year. Guys like Michael Perez, Todd Frazier, and Erik Gonzalez have all seen time pinch hitting but haven't been very consistent. When these guys come into the game, it is Kelly's job to relay them the information they need to be successful at the plate. Without Kelly relaying the scouting report to the Pirate's pinch-hitters, they wouldn't know what to look for at the plate and wouldn't be as prepared when they step in the box. There is a lot of pre-planning that goes into pinch-hitting before the batter steps into the box, and it is Kelly working behind the scenes to make sure that the batters are ready to take their swings.

Readying Rookies For The Major Leagues

Aside from working with the team's pinch hitters during the game, one of the other essential duties of Don Kelly's job is ushering the Minor Leaguers into Major League ball. He coordinates all the travel that gets the players to the Big League club, and once they are here he helps prep them on what to expect for that night's game. Since taking over in November of 2019, Kelly has been responsible for helping guys like Ke'Bryan Hayes and Mitch Keller make the transition from full-time Minor Leaguer to star Major League player. The process doesn't always go smoothly, and current Pirates young guys are proof both on how the process has been successful and how the process still has some bumps to work through.

In Hayes's case, the early transition to the Big Leagues has been a pretty easy one, as he has stepped right in and performed. Over his first 26 Big League games, Hayes has performed at the plate hitting .367 with six home runs and 13 RBI over his first 90 at-bats. He has never looked rattled at the plate, and he has shown an ability to handle Big League pitching. On the other hand, a guy like Mitch Keller has not had an easy transition to the Big Leagues, struggling consistently on the mound. He has a career 5.94 ERA in his first 22 Big League games, including a 2-3 mark this season with a 6.29 ERA. These guys are both faces of the future for this rebuild and Kelly has helped usher both players into their roles at the Major League level.

As always, the praise when the team wins and the criticism when they lose is going to end up on Manager Derek Shelton's shoulders. However, a lot of the good that you see surrounding this team, and their ability to perform above expectations come because of work done behind the scenes. Kelly is one of the guys who work tirelessly to get the team ready night in and night out, and he rarely gets the praise he deserves for the job he does. Shelton praises Kelly left and right for his work, but he is a guy who the city of Pittsburgh could really get behind and root for. We love our hometown people, just look at Mars native David Bednar out of the bullpen, and Kelly is a Pittsburgh hometown kid, helping to lead the Bucs through these rebuilding years.

The Pittsburgh Pirates (13-18) and Chicago Cubs (16-16) continue their three-game weekend set with more afternoon baseball tomorrow at 2:20 pm at Wrigley Field. Wil Crowe (0-1, 4.66) will make his third Pirate start as he looks to continue to lower that ERA going against former Pirate and current Chicago Cub Trevor Williams (2-2, 6.00). You can watch the game on AT&T Sportsnet, listen on 93.7 The Fan, or follow along with us on Twitter by following @Buccos_Cove.