Pirates May Dabble In Free Agency

Dejan Kovacevic spoke to Pirates GM Neal Huntington, who said the Pirates do plan to participate in free agency this winter.  They’re looking for a power bat, a veteran starter, and a righthanded setup man.

We learned a couple of weeks ago that the Pirates might have $10-15MM to spend.  The power bat might fit best in right field, where Steve Pearce is penciled in.  Pearce slugged .579 this month, but just .417 in Triple A.  Casey Blake could make sense, or maybe Wily Mo Pena if he declines his $2MM player option.  There’s no obvious fit though.

Veteran starters such as Paul Byrd, Mike Hampton, Pedro Martinez, Odalis Perez, or Kenny Rogers could help tutor young Pirate pitchers.  Randy Johnson could be an interesting signing as well.  The righthanded setup man market includes Juan Cruz, Rudy Seanez, LaTroy Hawkins, Chan Ho Park, David Weathers, Bob Howry, and Kyle Farnsworth.