If Rajai Davis is asked by the Pirates to return to Double-A for a second consecutive season in 2006, he will need to look no further than the Bucs’ starting center fielder for inspiration
Chris Duffy, who will open the season as the Pirates’ everyday center fielder, spent two full years with Altoona in 2003 and ’04 before making the jump to Triple-A and, ultimately, the major leagues last season

Interestingly, when comparing the two, Davis actually had a more productive first Double-A season at the plate
The 25-year old, who is a member of the Pirates’ 40-man roster for the second straight season, hit .281 and tied teammate Rich Thompson for the new club-record with 45 stolen bases
By contrast, Duffy posted a .273 mark with 34 steals in his first season with the Curve
While the offensive numbers favored Rajai in his first season at the Double-A level, one stat did not
Davis committed a glaring 10 errors in center field and if there’s one main reason why the former 38th round draft pick would return to Altoona, that would be it
If there’s a moral to this story, though, it’s that a second Double-A season wouldn’t be an indictment on his status in the organization, though Duffy appears to be the clear long-term answer in the Pirates’ outfield

If Davis returns, he’ll be joined by returnee Adam Boeve, who could have a huge offensive season after getting his first taste of Double-A pitching after the All-Star Break
Boeve was the Curve’s offensive star in the five-game playoff series loss to Akron, hitting four home runs and driving in 10 runs
He will get the nod as the club’s everyday right fielder to open the season and is likely to spend all of his fourth pro season with the Curve

The starting job in left field should belong to veteran Simon Pond, who also will be able to spell Brett Roneberg at first base from time to time
Pond, a 13-year veteran who opened the 2004 season with the Toronto Blue Jays, hit 19 home runs for Bowie in the Eastern League in 2005 and would be a key bat in the middle of the Curve lineup

In the event that Pond starts the season in Triple-A, it’s possible that the speedy Rich Thompson could return again to Altoona
Thompson, who stole 58 bases last season between Altoona and Indianapolis, including 45 with the Curve, can play all three outfield positions and would be a valuable backup

Another possibility in left would be veteran Rafael Alvarez, who has spent the past five seasons playing in either independent baseball or the Mexican League
The 29-year old Venezuelan last played affiliated baseball with the Eastern League’s New Britain Rock Cats in 2000

One younger player who will be given every chance to make the Curve roster out of spring training is 25-year old Bobby Kingsbury, who some in the Pirates’ organization point to as an interesting prospect, though his career .242 average is hard to ignore
Kingsbury can play all three outfield positions and has some power, as evidenced by the 19 home runs he hit in just 100 games with Hickory in 2004

Another intriguing prospect is center fielder Nyjer Morgan, a former junior hockey player in Canada who is raw, but has tremendous speed
Morgan stole 55 bases for Hickory in 2005, but was limited to just 60 games last season at Lynchburg because of a shoulder injury
It’s likely the Pirates will want him to spend the season at Lynchburg, but if Davis is promoted to Indianapolis at mid-season, Morgan would likely replace him as the Curve’s center fielder

Also in the equation for spots on the Curve’s Opening Day roster will be returnees Vic Buttler, Chaz Lytle and Matt Meath
Buttler is the most likely to earn significant playing time, but after being inexplicably demoted from Altoona to low Class-A Hickory after hitting .313 for the Curve to open last season, the Pirates don’t seem too high on him

Roneberg, who will play first base for the Curve, also has experience in the outfield and won't hurt the club in either left or right field
It's likely that Roneberg will see the bulk of his time at first, but he provides manager Tim Leiper with the ability to play the outfield if necessary

Minor league Rule 5 draftees Jeff Cook (Diamondbacks) and Brad Correll (Phillies) were picked up to add depth to Lynchburg’s outfield, but could make appearances in Altoona at some point during the season