Kevin Gorman's Take 5: Ke'Bryan Hayes news overshadowed Opening Day for Pirates
Ke’Bryan Hayes dominated the news cycle on Opening Day, first for reasons the Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman was thrilled about but then for being removed before the first inning was completed.
Hayes agreed to an historic contract extension with the Pirates, renewing faith that the club has at least one player it intends to keep on a long-term basis after the front office has parted ways with All-Stars Starling Marte, Josh Bell and Adam Frazier and former Opening Day starters Joe Musgrove, Jameson Taillon and Chad Kuhl since January 2020.
The Pirates also provided a glimmer of hope that the 25-year-old Hayes can become a franchise cornerstone and a guiding light for their top prospects as they arrive in the coming years.
Let’s work in reverse order and start with what forced Hayes to exit the game in the bottom of the first of the 9-0 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday afternoon at Busch Stadium.
????Opening Day pic.twitter.com/SPHt2FNNEQ
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 7, 2022
1. Thumbs down: First, Hayes described it as a “random muscle spasm” from his left thumb down a third of his forearm, comparing it to a cramp that caused his thumb to tighten.
The good news? Hayes told reporters in St. Louis it was nothing like the sensation that shot up his left hand/wrist in the second game at the Chicago Cubs last year, which forced him to spend two months on the injured list and lingered all season.
“No, completely different,” Hayes said on AT&T SportsNet. “I’ve had no problems with the wrist since last season. Once I got home, did the six weeks of therapy, I haven’t had any problems like that at all.”
Second, Hayes said the cramp started with his left thumb when he took his glove off in-between pitches. He couldn’t get it to straighten out, which prevented him from putting his glove back on. It forced Pirates trainer Rafael Freitas to remove Hayes.
“That was one thing whenever we came in: I was like, ‘Dang, if we would’ve been on offense or something, we maybe could have ran in here and did something and got it back to where I could continue in the game,’” said Hayes, who added that soaking for a few minutes in the hot tub helped. “But we just didn’t have any time out there.”
Nice of the Cardinals to provide the Pirates something to transport all the money for Ke’Bryan Hayes’ extension. pic.twitter.com/CWSLJn95ce
— RobBiertempfel (@RobBiertempfel) April 7, 2022
2. Making history: As for the eight-year, $70 million contract that surpassed Jason Kendall’s six-year, $60 million deal in 2000 to become the richest in club history?
Hayes is honored that the Pirates made such a major commitment to a 25-year-old who has batted .280 with 27 doubles, 11 home runs and 49 RBIs in 491 plate appearances in his first 120 games but already is considered one of baseball’s best defenders at his position.
“It shows how much they believe in me, even with the little time that I have in the big leagues,” Hayes said. “It’s a confidence boost for me, with them showing they want me to be a guy who’s here for a long time and helps lead the way. To be able to break a record like that, that’s awesome. It’s just very humbling for me.”
3. Reynolds left out: That the Pirates extended Hayes without making an offer to All-Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds should serve notice as to who they are planning to build around.
It was a bad sign the Pirates chose to take Reynolds to an arbitration hearing over a $650,000 difference — he wants $4.9 million and they wouldn’t budge from $4.25 million — but his reaction to Hayes’ contract shouldn’t come as a surprise.
“It’s a great deal for Ke’Bryan and will set him up for a long time,” Reynolds told The Athletic. “It’s the biggest one here since, what, 2000? So I’m excited for him.”
The Hayes deal averages $8.75 million a year, though it’s likely to be backloaded. Still, that could be more than twice what Reynolds makes this season. Then again, at minimum, Reynolds will earn seven times what he did last year ($601,000), when he slashed .302/.390/.522 with 35 doubles, eight triples, 24 home runs and 90 RBIs and was a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger finalist.
Hayes traded three years of free agency for the guaranteed money of a team-friendly deal, which is still better than the seven-year, $35 million deal Atlanta Braves All-Star second baseman Ozzie Albies signed. Perhaps Reynolds is seeking a more player-centric contract, as he’ll be 31 when eligible for free agency in 2026.
4. Diego’s debut: When Hayes left the game, Pirates manager Derek Shelton didn’t hesitate to turn to the sensation of spring training to replace him at third base and the third spot in the batting order.
So Diego Castillo made his major league debut in a doomsday scenario, replacing the defender the Pirates could least afford to lose and then facing one of the top pitchers of his generation.
“It was great,” Castillo said, with a smile. “I had a lot of fun out there. I loved that moment.”
Shelton could have turned to Michael Chavis or Josh VanMeter at third, or moved Hoy Park there from second base. But Castillo earned his trust — and a spot on the Opening Day roster — by leading the Pirates in batting (.371), home runs (six) and RBIs (12) in 14 Grapefruit League games.
Castillo, however, was 0 for 3 in his first major league regular-season game. Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright, the crafty 40-year-old right-hander, struck Castillo out swinging on three pitches (curveball, sinker, curveball) in his first at-bat.
“I was facing one of the greatest pitchers in the history,” Castillo said. “Wainwright is the best. I was thinking about putting the ball in play but he struck me out. Wainwright is a super good pitcher. I just had fun in that moment.”
5. Bru’s clue: JT Brubaker was warming up in the bullpen for his first Opening Day start and couldn’t help but watch the pomp and circumstance with which the Cardinals celebrated the occasion.
“Walking out there and seeing a packed stadium was really cool,” Brubaker said. “All of the Cardinals Hall of Famers that are in the red coats, driving by and seeing them while I was warming up, the Clydesdales, it was everything that they advertise on TV. It was pretty awesome to see, and I got to take it in.”
As much as Brubaker admired the moment, he regretted how the game started. The first three Cardinals reached base, on a bloop single to left by Dylan Carlson, a Paul Goldschmidt walk and Tyler O’Neill’s RBI single up the middle.
Brubaker was less disgusted with giving up one run in the first inning than he was with how he pitched to Goldschmidt in the second. After working an 0-2 count, he threw four consecutive balls and walked Goldschmidt.
“O’Neill turned on a ball inside off,” Brubaker said of the three-run homer that followed, “and that walk came back to haunt me.”
Where Wainwright struck out six without giving up a walk in six scoreless innings, Brubaker gave up almost as many walks (three) as he did hits (four) in allowing four runs in three frames.
“The walks are just the one main thing that don’t sit well with me,” Brubaker said. “That’s something I can control. That’s not who I am. I’m not a guy who’s going to go out there and walk the house, three batters. That’s not me. That’s a little bit of a command issue with the slider. I was getting the movement but just couldn’t make the adjustment to keep it over the plate.”
Kevin Gorman is a TribLive reporter covering the Pirates. A Baldwin native and Penn State graduate, he joined the Trib in 1999 and has covered high school sports, Pitt football and basketball and was a sports columnist for 10 years. He can be reached at kgorman@triblive.com.
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