If the Pirates are happy with what they see in Pedro Alvarez this coming spring, he could make his way to Pittsburgh much faster than originally planned. "If Pedro's ready to go, we're going to be aggressive with him," director of player development Kyle Stark said. "It depends on what we see from him, how he adjusts to the game, what kind of shape he's in, a lot of factors. But I can tell you we're not going to rush him just to make up for lost time." The team has been very impressed with his offensive and defensive abilities at third base. "As advertised," Stark said. "He projects to be a middle-of-the-order bat, and that's exactly what he looked like."