Power back on: Chavis, Alford homer in win

PITTSBURGH -- The Pirates got two crucial home runs on Tuesday night from a pair of young players they hope to see continued development from as the season wraps up.

Michael Chavis and Anthony Alford each went deep for Pittsburgh to fuel a 4-2 win over the D-backs at PNC Park, securing a second straight series win for the Pirates.

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The 26-year-old Chavis got the scoring started, and it was a sight for sore eyes. The newly acquired infielder has a lot of raw power, as he showed with 18 homers in 95 games in his rookie season with the Red Sox in 2019. At that time, Alford was on the Blue Jays, and he remembered watching Chavis go head to head with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (15 homers in 123 games) as two of the premier slugging prospects.

But Chavis hasn't tapped into it this season en route to a .523 OPS entering Tuesday’s game. Batting in the leadoff spot for the first time with the Bucs, Chavis saw a first-pitch cutter down the middle from left-hander Madison Bumgarner in the third inning and cranked it a Statcast-projected 429 feet to left-center field.

Beyond having consistent playing time, one of the biggest things Chavis said he has had to get back to is trusting his natural power vs. selling out for power, which he did a lot in 2019 with 127 strikeouts. It ended up proving unsustainable, and now he’s getting back to a focus on good contact while still taking advantage of mistakes like a middle-zone cutter on Tuesday.

“I know that I have power,” Chavis said. “And through the Minors and up until this point, one thing I was working on was just letting it happen naturally and stop trying to produce the power, stop trying to force home runs and just let them happen. I think I’ve made some progress this year.”

In the fourth inning, Alford bucked his trend of strikeouts by hitting his first home run of the season, a Statcast-projected 369 feet to the corner in left field to score two runs. It showcased the left fielder’s raw power; Alford launched it 46 degrees into the Pittsburgh sky, and the ball just kept carrying and carrying. Only five home runs this season have had a higher launch angle.

“Just the fact that he got that was impressive, and then seeing how far it went,” Chavis said. “The dude is strong. The dude is simply strong.”

The Pirates have been trying to get Alford -- like Chavis -- back to squaring up the ball more often and striking out less. Alford began the season with 16 strikeouts in 24 at-bats before being designated for assignment, then he struck out 10 times in 17 at-bats after being selected from Triple-A Indianapolis on Aug. 7.

Alford, 27, believes he found something to build on in his time in the Minors, after posting a 1.013 OPS with 12 doubles and 14 homers in 56 games. Even if there is an above-average strikeout rate in his profile, the outfielder can make it work when he turns a few foul balls into balls like the one on Tuesday that he gave a unique ride to.

Both Alford and Chavis will need to find ways to prove their value in the final weeks of the season, as a wave of top prospects lie in waiting at Double-A Altoona to make the claims next season. They believe they’re in a spot to make strides and show their potential.

“This is a game of failure, and there are going to be some ups and downs for a lot of people,” Alford said. “I’ve just got to find a way to persevere.”