Michaels makes bench better

Pinch-hitting situations aren’t exact science, and being a pinch-hitter has been deemed by many the toughest job in baseball.

There are times when a manager uses his hitting charts, past history and scouting reports to decide which pinch-hitter he’ll use in a certain situation.

Other times, it’s as simple as a gut feeling.

In the seventh inning Monday night with the Pirates trailing 4-0, manager John Russell saw the bases loaded and needed a pinch-hitter. No scouting reports were necessary.

He had all of the usual members of his bench – Jason Michaels, Doug Mientkiewicz, Chris Gomez, Luis Rivas and Ronny Paulino – available against St. Louis starter Adam Wainwright, who had shut the Pirates down through six innings. Russell called on Michaels.

“(Monday) night we saw some guys on the bench and thought he was the right guy for the spot,” Russell said Tuesday.

Michaels swung at the first pitch he saw from Wainwright and crushed a belt-high fastball over the left field wall for a grand slam to tie the game at 4-4. The Pirates eventually won 5-4.

“He made us look like geniuses,” Russell said of Michaels.

Most of the bench has made Russell look good lately.

Michaels also had a three-run pinch-hit double last Friday and is 5-for-10 with three doubles, a home run and eight RBI in his last five games. Gomez is batting .462 in his last 12 games, Mientkiewicz is batting .313 as a pinch hitter this season and Rivas hit his first career grand slam Saturday.

“We really are pleased with the bench we have right now,” Russell said. “We’ve got some veterans on our bench with Michaels, Gomez, Mientkiewicz and Rivas. They continue to come up with big hits in big games for us.”

Michaels has really been the one who has added a dimension to the Pirates’ bench that it did not have previously – power. Though he struggled this season in Cleveland and was subsequently designated for assignment, the Pirates knew that Michaels could provide some extra pop to the lineup.

“Michaels is a guy that we picked up that we knew had that kind of leadership and power off the bench and he’s shown that,” Russell said.

After a disappointing start in Cleveland this season, Michaels just wanted a fresh start. He hit only .207 with no home runs and nine RBI before being designated.

Pirates general manager Neal Huntington knew of Michaels from his days with Cleveland and took a flyer on the 32-year-old outfielder.

Since joining the Pirates, all Michaels has done is bat .324 with a slugging percentage of .486 to go along with his home run and 11 RBI. He is also batting .250 as a pinch hitter.

Michaels said he understands his role as a bench guy with the Pirates and has taken to pinch hitting, though he said every situation is different.

“It depends on the feel,” Michaels said. “Sometimes you go up and say maybe I’ll take one, maybe I’ll see one, maybe I’ll go up and be aggressive. (Monday) I wanted to go up and be aggressive and it ended up working out.”

Michaels has made only five starts since coming to the Pirates May 8. Of course, it’s difficult to get playing time with Jason Bay, Nate McLouth and Xavier Nady all getting off to the best starts of their careers at exactly the same time.

All three are among the league leaders in just about every major offensive category, with McLouth and Nady tied for the league lead with 18 doubles heading into Tuesday’s games.
McLouth is in the top four in seven offensive categories, Nady in four and Bay in three.

“I think all three of them should have some serious All-Star consideration,” Michaels said. “If they need a day off, I’ll be more than happy to step in.”