Josh Harrison batting second, playing third base for Pirates Wednesday
Pittsburgh Pirates infielder Josh Harrison is batting second and playing third base in Wednesday's National League Wild Card tilt against the Chicago Cubs.
This pushes Aramis Ramirez out of the lineup as the Pirates also have Sean Rodriguez at first base. This move is clearly to improve the team's infield defense as Pedro Alvarez joins Ramirez on the bench.
Over 326 2/3 innings at first base, Rodriguez has a 4.4 UZR/150, compared to Alvarez's mark of -26.4. The discrepancy isn't quite as large at third base, though Harrison does edge Ramirez in UZR/150, -1.9 to -6.1. With starter Gerrit Cole sporting a 48.0 ground-ball rate, the gravitation toward defense makes sense, though it will put a damper on the Pirates' offensive expectations.
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