The reason for cutting Alvarez and Tabata so soon: today is the deadline to option players who had not played in the majors the previous season. If Tabata and Alvarez were to stay with the team through today, and somehow got hurt, this season would have counted as a full year of service time. And a few extra spring training at-bats are definitely not worth that price.
Both Tabata and Alvarez had nice springs and I am pretty excited to get a few chances to see the two together for the Indians (Don't worry, I'll have video of it). Both players were also given a lot of opportunities and playing time this spring. Tabata currently has the 2nd most AB by any player and Alvarez has the 4th most.
What do the two players need to work on? Here's what Neal Huntington had to say:
"Both showed some things to really be excited about this spring, but both also showed there's some development left. In Pedro's case, he's going to get everybody's lefty situational guy, so the left-on-left approach is going to be really important for his big-picture, future success. ... In Jose's case, it's just continued maturation. The focus from pitch to pitch, a challenge for a 21-year-old. But we're excited about their development, and we'll see how quickly they're ready to go."Hitting against lefties will be the thing we need to look at this season for Alvarez. In the few games I watched this spring, it was apparent that when he faced a lefty, especially a seasoned one, he was outmatched. In AAA, he will see better pitching and more experienced pitching from lefties and will have plenty of opportunities to refine his approach before getting the call to the majors.
UPDATE - 10:41 AM:
The Pirates also assigned Craig Hansen, Neal Cotts, Tyler Yates, and Jimmy Barthmaier to minor league camp. All four are rehabbing from injuries. That leaves the roster at 45. Only 20 more to go.
