The Pirates officially announced that they have agreed to terms with Joe Beimel on a minor league deal. The contract will be worth $1.75MM in the major leagues plus up to $300K in incentives, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter). Biertempfel notes that the Red Sox and Orioles offered the left-hander deals. Beimel's deal with the Pirates includes an out-clause that allows him to become a free agent if he doesn't make the team's Opening Day roster, but he's expected to make the club.
Beimel, who went to Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and has ties to the area, was originally drafted by the Bucs in 1998 and made his big-league debut with them in 2001.
After breaking into the Majors in a swing role, Beimel has evolved into a well-travelled lefty specialist (limiting LHB to .259/.320/.400 in 929 career PA), having spent time with the Dodgers, Nationals and Rockies over the past three seasons. Beimel, who will turn 34 in April, has a 4.16 career ERA over 562 1/3 innings.
Troy Renck of the Denver Post first reported the agreement and MLBTR's Tim Dierkes learned that the left-hander had Major League offers and a two-year offer.
Wow.
YA,I KNOW. WOW. Not really, but by adding BEIMEL, JOSE VERAS, FERNANDO NIEVE, & AARON THOMPSON to HANRAHAN, MEEK, RESOP they should have at least a decent bullpen this coming season.
I just said wow because I’m suprised they actually signed a good reliever.
He probably likes Clint Hurdle. Thats why!!
they signed javy lopez, octavio dotel and dj carrassco last offseason; signing good relievers is actually one of our strengths
Why?
because money talks,
I can see why he would sign with the Pirates if they offered him the most $$$. I just don’t see why the Pirates would be after him. It’s not like they have much chance at a world series this year.
Pittsburgh were looking for a left-handed reliever after Toronto got Wil Ledezma off waivers this off-season.
O’s had some interest in him and if I was Joe I would have gone to Baltimore over Pittsburgh.
Why would he pick Baltimre, its not like they’re going to compete either. An also-ran is an also-ran.
Haha, signing a guy like Joe Beimel would increase the odds of any team making the World Series by .05%. He’s just a left handed reliever, their bullpen has potential but a ton of question marks and scrubs aside from Hanny, Meek, and Resop. Nothing wrong with bringing in a veteran arm. It doesn’t mean they are going “all in”.
Probably a better signing than Correia and Overbay.
After signing their biggest signing was Correia, do you think the Pirates are trying to win the World Series? The obvious answer is no, they’re trying to get out of the basement in the NL Central.
Still Beimel was one of the best lefties on the market.
Regardless of their status, I doubt Joe Beimel is that one piece that puts them over the top! C’mon Man!
Money had nothing to do with it, all he got were minor league deals.
Its called Scott Rolen disease or the Bobby Abreu syndrome. Its a plaque that causes players just to be content playing the game and not striving to win it all.
John Perrotto Tweeted it first,,,
Hearing there is a very good chance that LHP Joe Beimel, the pride of Elk County and Duquesne, will sign with the #Pirates as a free agent.
Saint Mary, Pa’s Finest!
The final piece of the 2011 Championship puzzle
Yeah, they have a shot to beat a few AA teams now.
Lol
Yeah if Charlie Morton and Paul Maholm, and Kevin Correia all pitch like Pedro Martinez circa. 1999, I think they can win the 2012 series. 🙂
Relieved to see the Red Sox didn’t bite on this one.
Why? WEEI reported the other day the Red Sox were done with major league signings, so Beimel would have been a minor league deal, invite to spring training – i.e. low risk.
Doubt it. The Sox probably offered him a 1-year deal for probably something similar to what the Pirates offered. But, between Miller, Hill, and Okajima there’s gonna be someone who can catch on to the Sox pen and hold the position down for a while.
the Pirates also offered a minor league deal, as did the O’s. I’m sure the Red Sox offer was for a minor league deal.
He’s most likely gone by the deadline, but it will be fun to root for him. Wanna make another deal Ned?
Joe Beimel for Xavier Paul and Scott Elbert.
Pittsburgh is where failed Dodger prospects go to die, after all…
James McDonald has some of the best stuff of any starter in all of baseball, when he wins a Cy Young, you will take that back!
I don’t know about best stuff, but I think he’s good enough to be a #2 or #3 starter
Some of the best stuff of any starter in all of baseball? Cy Young? Hahaha.
McDonald has some talent and may put it together in Pittsburgh, but you guys are going to be mightily disappointed if you are expecting him to turn into an ace or ever even be involved in Cy Young voting…
How’s Octavio working out for you?
The same as Andy LaRoche and Delwyn Young are working out for you, I guess.
…so not quite as well as Bryan Morris, then? C’mon – everybody knows the Dodgers are the easiest team to fleece. When even the Pirates can rob them blind, you know it’s bad.
As a Dodger fan, I take zero issue with your post unfortunately. How about a Colletti + Dee Gordon for Neal Huntington deal?
I’m certainly no fan or defender of Ned Colletti… but I’d also point out that he didn’t just take on $85m for Vernon Wells. There are worse GMs out there.
The Dotel deal was absolutely terrible. The Casey Blake/Carlos Santana deal was equally bad. Colletti did, however, manage to turn Milton Bradley into Andre Ethier and acquired Manny while only giving up LaRoche and Morris (who was only promoted to AA last season and was less than spectacular once he got there). He also managed to get something in return for Ryan Theriot, which I consider impressive. I’m more concerned with ownership than Colletti.
Why are you guys like that, they have a small payroll and they cant hold on to their players. Its not their fans fault, and they are the ones who have to read these comments about their team.
I still have his bobble head with the dodgers. But my most memorable moment of beimel was when ethier hit a walk off off of him with the Rockies.
Hmm, I could see him being this year’s Will Ohman. If he pitches well enough, The Pirates could trade him at the deadline for a prospect or two.
It wouldn’t be the first time they did that.
Those are certainly decent, but not outstanding numbers versus lefties. I would have expected a little better.
If he had decent stats against left-handed batters a major league team would have signed him.
Makes sense. Of the available options, I imagine the Pirates are the ones he’s most likely to break camp with.
WELCOME HOME JOE! GO PIRATES!
Great signing! Exactly the kind of reliever the Pirates need.
Troy from West Virginia should be thrilled.
His videos are a chilling mix of funny and creepy.
Beimel turned down a two-year major league offer to sign a minor league deal with the Pirates? Gotta be more to it than that…
I know Beimel has Pittsburgh ties, but I think he really signed there for the solid bars they have around PNC Park.
I thought the Phillies should have signed Beimel….I’d rather him as a lefty in the pen than J.C. “can’t throw strikes” Romero.
As long as the Pirates keep thinking guys like Maholm and Ohlendorf are any good they’ll keep finishing where they have been. Finally got rid of a bum like Maholm, but the Pirates just need to get a talent infusion.
If you think Ohlendorf is horrible, you obviously don’t know much about baseball. He was absolutely the Bucs best starter over the last two years when healthy. He had the worst run support in baseball and still kept the Bucs in almost every game he pitched.
I realize his numbers were rough after the break, but I don’t know how the Rockies are confident that Reynolds and Morales can carry the load from the left side of the ‘pen…I think they should have brought Beimel back..
Deserves a major league deal but i guess he didn’t have much of an option at this point
Why is it that no team is willing to hold onto this guy?
Man, for that price the Dodgers would have lost nothing if thy signed him. He woulda given us some setup/left handed insurance in case Kuo went down.