Pirates' Isiah Kiner-Falefa producing on offense but seeks defensive improvement at shortstop

Nearly two-thirds of a year has passed since Oneil Cruz’s move from shortstop to center field last August.

That seismic organizational decision by the Pittsburgh Pirates now transcends parts of the 2024 and 2025 campaigns.

Yet even with Cruz an increasingly familiar sight in center field, a double-take is still required at times because of the contrast in physique with his primary replacement at shortstop: Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

At 6-foot-7, Cruz towers over Kiner-Falefa, who is 5-10.

In terms of comparative arm strength, Cruz’s howitzer vastly overpowers Kiner-Falefa’s ability to get the ball across the diamond. But despite their different presences, Pirates management has found Kiner-Falefa’s defense to be satisfactory this season.

“I think he’s been good,” manager Derek Shelton said. “Infield defense-wise, we’ve been pretty consistent. I know there’s a couple balls that I wish we would have played differently, but I think IKF’s played well.

“I think IKF is probably one of the most self-critical guys himself, so anything that doesn’t go exactly perfect for him, he’s going to continue to work on it. But there hasn’t been anything that’s really stood out. I think he’s done a nice job.”

After Friday’s series opener in Los Angeles against the Dodgers, Kiner-Falefa had played 25 games at shortstop (219 1/3) innings. The only other Pirates to start there this year are Tsung-Che Cheng (two) and Jared Triolo (one).

Over that span, Kiner-Falefa has produced a fielding percentage of .956, ranking 20th among qualifying shortstops.

Of that group, Kiner-Falefa’s four errors are tied for third in baseball. Analytically, he has one defensive run saved this season per FanGraphs, ranking seventh.

Kiner-Falefa, a 2020 Gold Glove winner with the Texas Rangers in a season spent primarily at third base, had crafted a reputation as one of baseball’s premier utilitymen when he was acquired from Toronto last summer.

And for good reason — over his eight-year career, Kiner-Falefa has seen action at every position.

His first two years in the league, with the Rangers in 2018 and 2019, Kiner-Falefa averaged about 35 games per season at catcher.

He has 177 career starts at third base, 61 at second and a combined 43 at the three outfield positions.

Serving as the Pirates’ full-time shortstop, the position where he has played the most (365 career starts), comes as welcomed duty for Kiner-Falefa, even if he does miss elements of moving around in a utility role.

“Getting another chance to play shortstop, my whole thing is, whatever the team needs me to do — it doesn’t matter what team I’m on,” Kiner-Falefa said. “Pittsburgh needs me to play shortstop, and that’s part of my value, being able to fill in a hole at a high level. I take pride in that, and I really enjoy playing shortstop and doing what the team needs me to do in general.”

That said, Kiner-Falefa’s self-evaluation placed shortstop as his third-best position, following second and third base.

Continuing to better himself at shortstop remains a priority.

“I just gotta keep getting better at shortstop,” he said. “I’m really, really good at second and third. Shortstop, I want to take it to a different level — elite. I feel like I’m a little above average there, but I want to get better there. It’s a good challenge for me.”

Offensively, Kiner-Falefa is looking more like the player the Pirates thought they traded for last July.

When the Blue Jays shipped him to Pittsburgh, Kiner-Falefa (then on the injured list) had been slashing .292/.338/.420 with eight homers and 43 RBIs.

Upon regaining full health and debuting with the Pirates, Kiner-Falefa was unable to match those numbers, batting only .240 with a .265 on-base percentage, one home run and 11 RBIs in 50 games.

But so far this season, Kiner-Falefa has been one of the bright spots within a Pirates offense that’s largely struggled.

Heading into the Dodgers series, he ranked first on the team in batting average (.279), second in on-base percentage (.340), hits (24) and stolen bases (five) and third in OPS (.677).

While Thursday brought a six-game hitting streak to an end, Kiner-Falefa had recorded hits in nine of his last 11 games entering Saturday’s matchup against the Dodgers.

Whereas Shelton has thus far utilized varying batting orders, Kiner-Falefa represents one of the few constants.

Behind Bryan Reynolds’ 25 appearances hitting second, no player has hit out of one spot more than Kiner-Falefa, who has batted ninth 19 times.

That comes in contrast to last season, when Shelton plugged him in at leadoff for 40 of his 50 games with the club.

As he looks to maintain his current offensive pace, batting last is a role he embraces and understands.

“Just trying to hit for a high average and not try to slug it,” Kiner-Falefa said. “I’m enjoying spraying the ball around right now. I think that’s the biggest thing. Just understanding my game, playing that bottom-of-the-lineup role of moving guys over, doing what the game asks, doing the little things and doing the dirty work for the top of the lineup. … Just take my knocks and try to be a tough out.”