The Pirates face one contractual option after the season. For closer Octavio Dotel, they can choose a $4.5MM salary or a $500K buyout. Dotel's strikeout and walk rates have been typical so far, but he's allowed 15 hits and three home runs in 9.3 innings.
Akinori Iwamura, Brendan Donnelly, and Bobby Crosby will also be eligible for free agency after the season. They're earning a total of $7.2MM this year. If Dotel's option is declined, the Pirates will have $11.2MM coming off the books.
Increases to players under contract are light, with a total of $2.8MM. The Pirates have a big arbitration class though. First-time candidates include Joel Hanrahan, Lastings Milledge, Andy LaRoche, Delwyn Young, and possibly Ross Ohlendorf. D.J. Carrasco and Jack Taschner could be second-timers. Zach Duke and Ronny Cedeno are third-time candidates, while Ryan Church and Javier Lopez fit into the fourth-time class. There will be non-tenders in the mix, but it appears that the Pirates will have to raise payroll to retain all their key players. That shouldn't be a problem, since their Opening Day payroll was only $39MM.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
It’s funny how they get on the Marlins for not spending, but not the Pirates. Is there something I am missing, because I don’t understand why the Pirates don’t have to spend more.
I really don’t know, but perhaps because: The Pirates have relatively spent a lot on scouting and player development? Making big plays for international youngsters and investing in their ‘future’? 18 years of losing gets you a free pass?
The Pirates have and have had lots of young talent. The problem is keeping them together. Similar to the Reds, they always seem to be a season or two away from competing.
The Pirates low payroll is really due to the fact that they traded away a lot of mature talent in order to re-rebuild, I guess. They aren’t contenders, they’re trying to build something. The Marlins have been contenders yet they never sign anyone expensive and they trade away talent when it gets expensive. They really are different animals. The Pirates have spent in the past, rightly or wrongly, but the Marlins just don’t unless they are made to.
The difference is the way the Marlins see-sawed from a $60M payroll in 2005 to $14M in 2006. The Pirates meanwhile never dropped below $30 this decade. That and the Pirates tend to spend money on guys like Burnitz or trading for Matt Morris…
The other thing is the Marlins have for the last few years only been one or 2 solid players away from a serious contending team. The Pirates on the other hand were never close to contending.
The pirates have been rebuilding forever, Theyre the best minor league team in the majors. The owner is a joke. He loves it. He sells out half the stadium on a gimmick every other night (fireworks night, cap night, bat night, shirt night, free hot dog night, etc..).. He doesnt want to spend cause hes pocketing millions a year this way.
Over the last 2-3 seasons pirates gave up – Mclouth, Bay, Nyjer morgan, Nady, capps, just to name a few.. I bet you mccutchen doesnt last 2 more seasons when he’s due for a contract before he gets traded for another stud prospect…
Pirates ownership needs to change for them to ever become a major league ball club… And what an awesome field they get to play in. What a waste…
How many of those players that the Pirates have traded off went on to play well for other teams? Nate McLouth is hitting under .160 and has become a platoon player hitting out of the 8 spot. I think I’d rather have McCutchen in CF, thank you. Jason Bay is hitting .269 with 1 home run on the year. Andy LaRoche – 1 of the 4 players returned in the trade – is hitting .380 with 2 home runs on the year. Xavier Nady is a bench player for the Cubs, hitting .200 this year. Nyjer Morgan still can’t hit against left handed pitchers. John Grabow is 0-2 with a 7.04 ERA. Ian Snell is 0-2 with 11 walks in 19 innings. Jack Wilson is hitting .250 and already has 3 errors on the year. Freddy Sanchez still hasn’t taken an at bat in 2010. Sean Burnett has given up 2 runs and 3 walks in 4 innings. Tom Gorzelanny is 0-3 in 4 starts.
Clearly, Pirates management was insane for letting all that talent get away – especially when you consider how successful the team was when they were all in Pittsburgh.
You cant give me numbers 3 weeks into a season. Arod’s batting .260, Teixeira is batting a whopping .133, Sizemore’s batting .192, Beckett, Hamels, and Verlander all have shoe size era’s..
Bay is Bay, his power numbers and low-mediocre avg will be there by the end of the season. Morgan is batting .280 with 12 runs and 6 stolen bases even with being forced to go feet first (which is practically as good as a stand up stolen base), Capps has been lights out. As far as the most of the others you mentioned, not everyone they traded is great or turned out to be great, but my point is theyre notorious for giving up their talent.
Enjoy McCutchen in CF for a season or 2, I GUARANTEE he will not last 2 years on the pirates before he’s given away, and the rebuilding will begin again.
They are notorious for not HAVING talent. THAT is what the new front office and ownership has been trying to change by getting rid of the overpriced crap they had on the major league roster and building through the draft and farm system.
When have the Pirates ever traded away a star player 4 years before they were eligible for free agency? Seems like you’re going out of your way to sound bitter and ignorant.
Youre absolutely right, he’ll probably be on the team till its time for a contract.
It’s a possibility. If they keep drafting they way they have the past two years and continue to develop the farm system, McCutchen might not be the best option 6 years from now.
What about Oliver Perez? 😉 he is another great pitcher outta pittsburgh doing great isnt he
No team has spent more on the draft the past 2 years then the pirates
The Pirates spend a similar percentage of their revenue as most major league teams. They just have much less revenue. They get on the Marlins because they spend a much smaller percentage of their revenue.
joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/2010/04/19/forbes-and-yan…
If you look at total payroll over the last ten years the Pirates have spent WAY more than the Marlins.
Most of those players will be traded off or not retained anyway
Ahh you got my hopes up.. I thought the post was about contracting the pirates..