Seven games remain in the shortened MLB regular season and the Pittsburgh Pirates currently sit at 15 wins on the year. That figure is 12 behind the fourth place team in their division and 16 off the division lead. It hasn’t been too exciting to say the least. However, with Mitch Keller and Ke’Bryan Hayes, the Pirates are getting a glimpse into two pieces of their future core.

With such a short season, the Pirates needed to catch lightning in a bottle. An extensive winning streak could’ve vaulted them into playoff contention. They’ve won two or more straight games on only three occasions all season long. A sweep of Milwaukee in late August is the only three game winning streak they’ve had. They beat the St. Louis Cardinals in both ends of a doubleheader on August 27th. It is safe to say it has been a taxing season.

“Young Hayes” providing plenty of excitement

As expected, the Pirates’ season has been nothing short of hard to watch. Our coverage here at Pittsburgh Sports Castle lacked mainly because of a lack of interest in the overall team from the reading public.

However, in the past 10 days, the Pirates’ two most prized young players have been performing at rather high levels.

It has been a taxing road to the big leagues for Hayes. He was inexplicably passed over for a September call up in 2019 because of a perceived lack of offense. The Pirates didn’t want to give him MLB time over the last month in fear it would ruin his development.

Hayes has won multiple minor league Gold Gloves during his time in the farm system. He might be the best defensive prospect in baseball. Ironically, the perceived hitting deficiencies in Hayes’ game have been few and far between in his first few weeks.

Every time he steps to the plate, Hayes pounds the ball. Whether it lands over the fence or is a ground ball to short, Hayes has been leading the league in exit velocity since his call-up. Every time he makes contact, Hayes is squaring up the ball.

In 17 games, Hayes is slashing .310/.385/.988 with three home runs. He’s also shown the patience to take walks. With six free passes in 65 plate appearances, Hayes is an outlier in an otherwise impatient lineup.

“Young Hayes” – a nickname given to him by his father and adopted by Pittsburgh fans – is hitting the ball better and with more regularity than expected. Obviously, the league will catch up to him next season and he’ll have to adjust. But his first month of MLB action proves Hayes can be a fixture at the hot corner for a decade.

Final. pic.twitter.com/SjOuadGiUV

— Pirates (@Pirates) September 20, 2020

Is Keller the ace in 2021?

The Pirates went into 2020 assuming they would have a semi-competitive pitching staff. Prior to the first edition of spring training, Chris Archer went down with an injury and would go on to miss the season.

Joe Musgrove, the de facto staff ace, has been a nightmare outside of Sunday afternoon. Trevor Williams has been much of the same. A myriad of other pitchers have tried and subsequently failed.

Keller has only made four starts this season. His ERA is at 3.24 after six controversial no-hit innings on Saturday. Manager Derek Shelton removed Keller after the sixth inning and 84 pitches. His reasoning was that Keller wasn’t going to efficiently get through three more innings at that pitch count. Also, considering that it was only Keller’s second start since returning after a month and a half layoff, it wasn’t worth pushing him to his limits.

So the manager rightfully erred on the side of caution. Keller is more important to the 2021-and-beyond Pirates than he is this awful edition of them. A full offseason with full health is wildly important to the continued development of Keller if he is the future ace.

Archer won’t be returning next year. Jameson Taillon is uncertain after coming off a second Tommy John surgery. Musgrove, Williams, Chad Kuhl, Steven Brault, JT Brubaker and others make up a beaten and battered rotation. They need Keller going forward.

Both Keller and Hayes represent hope. Neal Huntington didn’t do a great job drafting. These are two of his big hits. They may represent two cornerstones of the future, one that current general manager Ben Cherington hopes to build into a contender.

Outside of Blake Cederlind, who is a relief pitcher anyway, there isn’t much in the way of exciting prospects that are close to ready. If you consider guys like Will Craig and Oneil Cruz building blocks, then the Pirates’ future isn’t anymore exciting than their current state is.

Hopefully Cherington continues to supplement the farm system through good drafting and maximizing the return on his trade assets. If he can do that, maybe Keller and Hayes can be part of a winning solution in Pittsburgh. They may never reach a World Series, but the 2013-2015 Pirates are still viewed as superhero’s in these parts. Based on Keller and Hayes’ personalities, I hope they get the chance to be that level of respected in Pittsburgh too.

When you know, you know. #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/UQzNImftDE

— Pirates (@Pirates) September 19, 2020

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