For as much as Derek Shelton values versatility, the Pittsburgh Pirates manager has made one thing abundantly clear: As long as Ke’Bryan Hayes is healthy, he will be starting at third base.

It’s the one position on the field where the Pirates have few question marks.

According to the analytics, Hayes has been the best defensive player at his position — if not all of baseball — for the past three years but wasn’t rewarded with his first National League Gold Glove until November.

Shelton hasn’t been shy about stumping for Hayes, even with 10-time NL Gold Glove winner Nolan Arenado of the St. Louis Cardinals in the same division. Shelton continues to be impressed by how Hayes handles the hot corner with what appears to be effortless play.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE BEST 3B IN MLB!!!

To celebrate, here’s a thread of 27 random Ke’Bryan Hayes highlights from 2023… ???? pic.twitter.com/TOw9DvnIon

— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) January 28, 2024

“I think the biggest thing is he just continues to get better,” Shelton said in September. “I don’t know if there’s a specific reason — maybe just reps, maybe learning the game, learning hitters, learning where to play out on the field would be part of it. But, I mean, this guy is so good and so elite there … that we get spoiled in Pittsburgh because of the things that he does and we just expect him to do.”

Hayes wants nothing more than to prove he can be an everyday player at the position, which has been the biggest obstacle in his first four seasons in the major leagues.

Hayes missed half of his debut season after testing positive for covid-19. He missed the first two months of 2021 with a left hand/wrist injury, which prevented him from qualifying for Rawlings’ innings requirements for the Gold Glove, and the lower back became bothersome in each of the past two seasons.

After batting .299/.335/.539 with 15 doubles, 10 home runs and 29 RBIs over the final two months of the season to lead the Pirates in batting average (.271), triples (seven) and tied for the most doubles (31) and finish with career bests in homers (15) and RBIs (61), Hayes was voted winner of the Roberto Clemente Award as team MVP by members of the Pittsburgh chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America.

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Shelton, for one, was “extremely excited” for Hayes to earn the honor, calling it “a really good choice.”

“I think we saw a healthy Ke’Bryan Hayes for an extended period of time,” Shelton said. “I know we keep saying that, but the ability to drive the ball, the ability to have consistent at-bats. Defensively, it’s well-documented how I feel about him. But, I think we’re seeing the complete player, the guy that can do so many things, that can impact the game in so many different ways.”

Now, Hayes wants to shed his reputation as injury prone and prove he can be a complete player over a full season. He played in 136 games in 2022 and 124 games last year, viewing the final two months as a sample of what he is capable of when healthy and performing at the plate.

“That’s the type of player I want to be,” Hayes said. “I want to be able to do it for a whole season.”

What gives the Pirates a sense of satisfaction is that, for the first time, Hayes enters spring training with a bona fide backup. That’s something he didn’t have the past three seasons, when Erik Gonzalez and Rodolfo Castro were needed at shortstop and second base.

Jared Triolo started 35 games at third base last season, the majority coming in July when Hayes missed all but one game with low back inflammation. And Triolo might just be the Pirates’ next-best defender, considering he won a Gold Glove at third and twice won the Bill Mazeroski Award as the organization’s best defender in the minors.

Jared Triolo stealing an RBI from Mookie Betts pic.twitter.com/cX5XDL6fOd

— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) November 8, 2023

Triolo also played 13 games at second base and seven at first as a rookie. And he also has experience in the minors at shortstop and center field, which makes him an ideal candidate to be a super-utility player for the Pirates.

That Triolo batted .298 with a .785 OPS in 54 games was a pleasant surprise for the Pirates, especially when he was optioned to the minors and flashed pop in his return to the majors by slashing .350/.458/.567 with seven doubles and two home runs over his final 18 games.

“I think coming up, debuting, getting a feel for what it was and then going back down and coming back up and having more success was really a good thing for me going forward,” Triolo said. “I have a lot of confidence in that.”

And the Pirates should have even more confidence in knowing that third base is in good hands this season.

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