Pirates A to Z: Despite a dominant season at Triple-A, Miguel Andujar likely the odd man out

During the offseason, the Tribune-Review will offer Pirates A to Z, an alphabetical, player-by-player look at the 40-man roster.

Player: Miguel Andujar

Position: Outfielder/Designated hitter

Throws: Right

Bats: Right

Age: 28

Height: 6 foot

Weight: 211 pounds

2023 MLB statistics: Batted .250/.300/.476 with seven doubles, four home runs and 18 RBIs in 30 games.

Contract: Enters second year of arbitration eligibility.

Acquired: Claimed off waivers from New York Yankees in September 2022.

This past season: After avoiding arbitration by signing a one-year deal for $1.525 million, Andujar was the odd man out for the final spot in the outfield on the Opening Day roster.

Despite Andujar’s guaranteed contract, the Pirates chose Canaan Smith-Njigba to be their fourth outfielder. General manager Ben Cherington expressed no concerns about how Andujar would respond to starting the season in the minor leagues, citing his professionalism after spending parts of seven seasons in the majors. Cherington also praised Andujar’s willingness to add another position by taking repetitions at first base.

“He’s a real quiet pro (who) goes about his business,” Cherington said. “He’s been successful as a major league player in the past, and our staff really likes him. He’s increased his versatility in our eyes this spring. When we got him last year, we didn’t really get a chance to get him over to first base in any kind of meaningful way, but he’s been able to do that this spring and I think build some trust there with our with our staff. So add that to the corner outfield and just gives him another feather in his cap.”

The Pirates selected Andujar’s contract April 29, making room by optioning Drew Maggi to Double-A Altoona after making his made-for-movies MLB debut at age 33. With inconsistent playing time, Andujar sputtered to a .161/.212/.387 slash line with one double, two home runs and six RBIs in 13 games.

Andujar was designated for assignment May 19 and after clearing waivers accepted an outright to Triple-A Indianapolis. It was a humbling moment for Andujar, who responded as Cherington predicted.

That’s when his season took a dramatic turn.

Andujar had a 20-game hit streak, batting .427 (35 for 82) with 15 extra-base hits, 19 RBIs and a 1.228 OPS from May 24 until June 18. He became the first Indian in their Victory Field history to be named player of the month in consecutive months in June and July, when he had 38 hits, but remained in the minors even as the Pirates struggled.

Not only did Andujar thrive at the plate, but he led Indianapolis with eight assists in the outfield and committed only one error in 207 chances over 34 games (29 starts) at first base.

Finally, Andujar earned his promotion when major league rosters expanded to 28 players in September, as Cherington called him their “best and most consistent performer all year long” at Indianapolis.

The Indians agreed, naming him their MVP after he batted .338/.404/.536 with 30 doubles, 16 homers and 86 RBIs, ranking second in the International League in RBIs, third in batting average and hits (140), fourth in OPS (.940) and total bases (222) and fifth in slugging.

A season for the ages, courtesy of El Capitán. pic.twitter.com/zuBY63O5aj

— Indianapolis Indians (@indyindians) November 1, 2023

Andujar batted .302/.351/.528 with six doubles, two homers and 12 RBIs in 17 games with the Pirates over the final month of the season, showing that his bat still played in the majors, as well.

“I’m just making good contact,” Andujar said. “I go to the plate and try to hit the ball hard and see what happens.”

Andujar batted .368 (14 for 38) with four doubles and 10 RBIs in his first dozen games. Perhaps his biggest highlight was hitting a solo home run off Carlos Rodon in the fourth inning of a 3-2 win over the New York Yankees on Sept. 17, going deep against the team with which Andujar spent his first six seasons. Andujar also went 3 for 4 with three RBIs in an 8-6 win over the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Sept. 21.

If you wanted the Miguel Andújar Revenge Game, you got it.

Immediately after Carlos Rodón records his 1000th career strikeout, Andújar goes to the opposite field and hits one off the foul pole. Pirates lead, 2-0.

Home Run: 4
Distance: 370 feet
Exit Velocity: 99.0 mph pic.twitter.com/Y65CDr2o6i

— Justice delos Santos (@justdelossantos) September 17, 2023

“He’s come back up and it just looks like he’s in a good spot,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. “He’s super aggressive. That’s the big thing. He’s aggressive and he hits the ball hard.”

Andujar hit until the Pirates couldn’t ignore his bat any longer.

“I just controlled what I can control. I just played hard and did the best I can there and tried to be here,” Andujar said. “I’m super happy to be here with the team. I’ve enjoyed my time with the Bucs.”

The future: Andujar’s time with the Pirates is in peril, as he was one of five players placed on waivers Thursday. If he clears, Andujar can elect free agency. He’s more likely a non-roster invitee to spring training because of the price tag that comes with his arbitration eligibility.

Andujar could stay with the Pirates as a depth piece but they have a crowded outfield with Bryan Reynolds, Jack Suwinski, Connor Joe, Josh Palacios and Henry Davis returning and prospects waiting in the wings.

Although Andujar showed that he can dominate Triple-A pitching and still hit for average and power in the majors, he’s considered a below-average defender and is a fastball hitter who struggles against breaking pitches. That showed true last season, as he hit fastballs for a .273 average but batted .172 against breaking balls. Andujar made drastic improvement against off-speed pitches, however, going from .222 in 2022 to .364 last season.

In 39 games with the Pirates over two seasons, Andujar has a .250/.292/.450 slash line with 10 doubles, four homers and 27 RBIs. That would project to 42 doubles, 17 homers and 77 RBIs over a 162-game season, which would require Andujar to be an everyday player. That’s been his goal since finishing second to Shohei Ohtani in AL rookie of the year voting in 2018, when Andujar had 47 doubles, 27 homers and 92 RBIs in 149 games.

The scouting report on Andujar is that he needs to be an everyday player to produce, but he isn’t likely to get that opportunity with the Pirates next season.