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Interview with Chase d’Arnaud
Chase d’Arnaud 2009 Hitting and Fielding Video Recap

WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES

2008
A-:  286/333/423,168 AB, 10 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 11 BB, 30 K, 14-16 SB 

D’Arnaud and third rounder Mercer, also a shortstop, were assigned initially to State College.  The Pirates decided soon afterward to separate the two so both could remain at SS, so they moved Mercer up to Hickory.  The team is determined to develop prospects as long as possible at most challenging position they can handle.  D’Arnaud started slowly, posting a .517 OPS in brief June action, then missed most of July with ankle problem.  He got hot in August, hitting 343/393/490.  He had a strong platoon split, with an OPS of .910 against LHPs and .717 against RHPs.  He played a little at short but mainly at third.

2009
A:  291/394/427, 213 AB, 14 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 30 BB, 31 K, 17-20 SB
A+:  295/402/481, 210 AB, 19 2B, 4 3B, 4 HR, 30 BB, 41 K, 14-19 SB 

Opened at West Virginia, playing short exclusively.  He had a solid first half, showing impressive plate discipline and more base stealing ability than expected.  The Pirates moved him up to Lynchburg in late June.  He hit even better there, despite missing time in July with a wrist injury.  He showed more power than he had previously, and continued to draw walks and steal bases effectively.  He hammered LHPs all year, with an OPS against them well over 1.000 at both stops.  Of course, that means he didn’t hit RHPs very well.  With Lynchburg, d’Arnaud split time between the two middle infield positions, sharing short with Mercer and second with trade acquisition Josh Harrison.  Oddly, he had a .975 fielding percentage at short and .920 at second.  In the long run, according to BA and Baseball Prospectus, scouts think d’Arnaud will end up at second because his range may not be quite good enough for short.

2010
AA:  247/331/377, 530 AB, 33 2B, 9 3B, 6 HR, 56 BB, 102 K, 33-40 SB 

Went into the season as one of the Pirates’ top prospects, but had a disappointing year.  He spent most of the year as the starting shortstop for Altoona, but struggled defensively, with 28 errors.  Late in the season, the Pirates moved him to second and put Mercer at short.  Of the two, Mercer appears to me to have the better range and arm.  D’Arnaud struggled even more at the plate.  He had only one good (June, with an .883 OPS) and one decent (August, .720) month.  In April, May and July, he hit .205, .211 and .218, respectively.  D’Arnaud was recovering from pneumonia at the beginning of the season and, according to some people who saw him, looked terrible, so that may have contributed to the bad start.  His secondary skills remained good, as he drew enough walks to have a respectable OBP, hit for good gap power, and did very well at stealing bases.  He continued to have a strong platoon split, posting an .805 OPS against LHPs and .670 against RHPs.

2011
A+:  333/385/667, 12 AB, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 BB, 2-2 SB
AAA:  264/328/389, 288 AB, 12 2B, 6 3B, 4 HR, 23 BB, 53 K, 20-24 SB
MLB:  217/242/287, 143 AB, 6 2B, 2 3B, 4 BB, 36 K, 12-14 SB 

Surprisingly, the Pirates sent d’Arnaud to Indianapolis to start the season and left Mercer, who’d had a little better 2010 season, at Altoona.  He started off slowly, with an OPS of .696 in April, but he got hot in May and posted an OPS of .813 that month and .793 in June.  He played short until Pedro Alvarez got hurt, when he started playing some at third.  When Ronny Cedeno went out with a concussion in late June, the Pirates called d’Arnaud up and he became the starter at short.  When Cedeno came back, d’Arnaud stayed on as a utility player and got some starts at third.  In late July, however, he went on the disabled list with a broken finger.  He went on rehab, but the finger was still swollen and he hit just .184 at Indianapolis.  His plate discipline dropped off, but he continued to steal bases well in the minors.  He also had a huge platoon split, with an OPS of .945 against LHPs and .609 against RHPs.  He had just four errors in 47 games at short and none in 22 games at second.  His time in the majors was a different story, as he appeared to be out of his depth.  He struggled to hit, with terrible walk and K rates.  Defensively, he struggled at short, committing six errors, leading to a fielding percentage of .936.  The defensive stats show his range wasn’t good, either, although the sample sizes are very small.  The one positive was his baserunning, as he showed excellent speed, aggressiveness and judgment, and did well stealing bases.

The Pirates will send d’Arnaud back to AAA, as they still regard him potentially as their future shortstop.  He’ll be the primary shortstop, with Mercer mostly playing second.