31-year old lefty swinging Akinori Iwamura was brought over in a trade with the Rays over the winter and he will take over as the new starting 2B for the Pirates in 2010. He played in 69 games for the Rays last season and he was 67 for 231 (.290 avg, .745 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 1 homer, 22 RBIs and 9 stolen bases. Iwamura is a solid top of the order hitter who gets on base a lot. He played in 67 games at 2B for the Rays last season and he made 6 errors while showing poor range. Iwamura is a converted 3B but he is a lot better than he showed defensively last year for the Rays. He hustles all of the time and that will rub off on some of the younger players as Iwamura is a winner.

27-year old righty swinging Ronny Cedeno will battle for the starting job at SS with Bobby Crosby this spring. He also can play some 2B if the Pirates need him to. He played in 13 games at 2B last season and he made 1 error while showing slightly below average range.

33-year old lefty swinging Ramon Vazquez is back for another year for the Pirates as a backup infielder. He played in 22 error-free games for the Pirates at 2B last season while showing slightly below average range. He, like Cedeno, is a natural shortstop.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2010: C+