Headlines

  • Braves Designate Craig Kimbrel For Assignment
  • Corbin Burnes To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
  • Braves Select Craig Kimbrel
  • Jerry Reinsdorf, Justin Ishbia Reach Agreement For Ishbia To Obtain Future Majority Stake In White Sox
  • White Sox To Promote Kyle Teel
  • Sign Up For Trade Rumors Front Office Now And Lock In Savings!
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Oakland Athletics
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2024-25 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2024-25 Top 50 MLB Free Agents With Predictions
    • Projected Arbitration Salaries For 2025
    • Free Agent Contest Leaderboard
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates

By Zachary Links | March 30, 2013 at 1:08pm CDT

The Pirates were far from the most active team in baseball this winter, but they did make a few significant moves.

Major League Signings

  • Francisco Liriano, SP: one year, $1MM. $8MM Vesting option for 2014.
  • Jeff Karstens, P: one year, $2.5MM. 
  • Jason Grilli, RP: two years, $6.75MM.
  • Russell Martin, C: two years, $17MM.
  • Pedro Alvarez, 3B: one year, $700K. Club option exercised.
  • Total Spend: $27.95MM.

Notable Minor League Signings

  • Brandon Inge, Felix Pie, Jose Contreras, Philippe Valiquette, Kyle Waldrop, Jeff Larish.

Trades and Claims

  • Acquired P Jeanmar Gomez from Indians for OF Quincy Latimore.
  • Acquired OF Jerry Sands, RP Mark Melancon, IF Ivan de Jesus Jr. and P Stolmy Pimentel from Red Sox for RP Joel Hanrahan and IF Brock Holt.
  • Acquired P Andrew Oliver from Tigers for C Ramon Cabrera.
  • Acquired P Jhondaniel Medina from Orioles for IF Yamaico Navarro.
  • Acquired P Zach Thornton from Athletics for P Chris Resop.
  • Acquired P Vin Mazzaro and 1B Clint Robinson from Royals for P Luis Rico and P Luis Santos.
  • Acquired P Zach Stewart from Red Sox for P Kyle Kaminska.
  • Claimed P Chad Beck off waivers from Blue Jays.
  • Claimed C Ali Solis off waivers from Padres. 

Notable Losses

  • Rod Barajas, Joel Hanrahan, Zach Stewart, Ramon Cabrera, Brock Holt, Quincy Latimore, Kevin Correia, Chad Qualls, Chris Resop, Luis Santos.

Needs Addressed

Last season, Rod Barajas started 98 games behind the plate for the Pirates, hitting .206/.283/.343 and posting his worst OPS in nearly a decade.  His defensive play wasn't particularly strong either and one has to assume that Pittsburgh didn't spend too much time deliberating over his $3.5MM option for 2013.  Instead, the Bucs got a significant upgrade behind the plate in Russell Martin.  Martin's two-year, $17MM deal is the largest free agent contract signed during GM Neal Huntington's tenure in Pittsburgh and the Pirates expect to get their money's worth out of the three-time All-Star.  Two years ago, the Dodgers non-tendered Martin after an underwhelming couple of years and replaced him with the cheaper Barajas.  Since then, the 30-year-old has gotten back on track with the Yankees, posting a .224/.317/.405 slash line with 39 homers across two seasons.

Martin

It took a while to get everything hammered out but the Pirates ultimately inked Francisco Liriano to help fortify the rotation.  The two sides originally agreed to a two-year deal in mid-December, but the Pirates backed out after Liriano broke his non-pitching arm at his home in the Dominican Republic.  Everything finally got wrapped up in February, with language in the new deal that protects the team in case Liriano's arm puts him on the DL again.  

The Pirates are highly unlikely to get the 2006 version of the left-hander, but they'll be doing cartwheels if Liriano can give them something in the neighborhood of his 2010 campaign.  Liriano posted a 3.62 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in that season, but it's the only year out of the last four that he's had a sub-5.00 ERA.  Thanks to the arm injury, Liriano's season won't get underway until May.

The club's other needs were taken care of with more affordable contracts.  The Pirates signed Jonathan Sanchez to a minor league deal in February and he's now penciled in as the club's No. 4 starter due to Gerrit Cole being in Triple-A, Liriano's aforementioned injury, and Jeff Karstens' shoulder issues.  Huntington also added some name players on non-guaranteed deals, including Brandon Inge, who will break camp with the club.  Inge, 36 in May, can provide support off the bench for Pedro Alvarez at third and overall infield depth.

Questions Remaining

If all of the Pirates starters were healthy, they'd be entering the 2013 season with a rotation of A.J. Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez, James McDonald, Karstens, and Liriano.  However, the back of the rotation will instead feature Sanchez (8.07 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 7.4 BB/9 in 2012) and Kyle McPherson/Jeff Locke in the No. 5 spot.  Burnett and Rodriguez are both solid, but the rest of the rotation will be chock full of question marks until the summer when they're back at full strength.  They could use some reinforcements to help tide them over and they're keeping a close eye on the Dodgers' Chris Capuano as the season nears.

The PIrates were a lackluster defensive team in 2012 and were ranked in the lower-third of the majors.  Substituting Barajas' arm with Martin's (24% of runners caught stealing vs. 6%) should help keep everyone honest but they'll need more improvement than that to make signficant strides.

Deal of Note

The Pirates have a great deal of confidence in Jason Grilli so it only made sense for them to flip Joel Hanrahan to the Red Sox in December.  The swap allowed Pittsburgh to deal from an area of strength and add first baseman/outfielder Jerry Sands, infielder Ivan De Jesus Jr., reliever Mark Melancon, and right-hander Stolmy Pimentel to the organization.  Sands, who was a prized prospect in the Dodgers system before being shipped to Boston in the blockbuster deal, has impressive power and the PIrates obviously believe that the 25-year-old has a high ceiling.

Over the last two years with the PIrates, Grilli has looked like a brand new pitcher, posting a 2.76 ERA with 12.5 K/9 and 3.6 BB/9.  The 36-year-old was one of the better available relievers this winter and figures to slot in nicely as the Bucs' closer.  Unlike other closing options, Grilli didn't require a three-year pact and his two-year, $6.75MM deal amounts to less than Hanrahan will earn in 2013 alone.  However, it's worth noting that Grilli has limited experience in the role, finishing just 15 games across the last two seasons.  

Overview

The Pirates certainly have promise for the future with the likes of Cole, Jameson Taillon, Alen Hanson, Gregory Polanco, and Luis Heredia in the fold.  However, the 2013 Bucs don't appear to be world beaters.  However, they do have the talent to win 82 games and snap their 20 year losing streak.  After all, they came just three games shy of hitting that mark even after their late season collapse in 2012.

Manager Clint Hurdle believes that his club has improved across the board, even if most of that improvement comes in the way of the younger players having another year of experience under their belt.  It's hard to see the Pirates finding their way into the playoffs, but they can certainly crack the .500 mark.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Share 2 Retweet 23 Send via email0

Offseason In Review Pittsburgh Pirates

Diamondbacks Extend Paul Goldschmidt
Main
NL Central Notes: Lohse, Brewers, Wainwright, Willis
View Comments (0)
Post a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

ad: 300x250_1_MLB

    Top Stories

    Braves Designate Craig Kimbrel For Assignment

    Corbin Burnes To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

    Braves Select Craig Kimbrel

    Jerry Reinsdorf, Justin Ishbia Reach Agreement For Ishbia To Obtain Future Majority Stake In White Sox

    White Sox To Promote Kyle Teel

    Sign Up For Trade Rumors Front Office Now And Lock In Savings!

    Pablo Lopez To Miss Multiple Months With Teres Major Strain

    MLB To Propose Automatic Ball-Strike Challenge System For 2026

    Giants Designate LaMonte Wade Jr., Sign Dominic Smith

    Reds Sign Wade Miley, Place Hunter Greene On Injured List

    Padres Interested In Jarren Duran

    Royals Promote Jac Caglianone

    Mariners Promote Cole Young, Activate Bryce Miller

    2025-26 MLB Free Agent Power Rankings: May Edition

    Evan Phillips To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

    AJ Smith-Shawver Diagnosed With Torn UCL

    Reds Trade Alexis Díaz To Dodgers

    Rockies Sign Orlando Arcia

    Ronel Blanco To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

    Joc Pederson Suffers Right Hand Fracture

    Recent

    Brewers Claim Drew Avans

    Phillies Claim Ryan Cusick, Designate Kyle Tyler

    White Sox Sign Tyler Alexander, Place Jared Shuster On 15-Day IL

    Orioles Designate Matt Bowman For Assignment

    Diamondbacks Select Kyle Backhus, Designate Aramis Garcia

    Athletics Acquire Austin Wynns

    Julio Rodriguez Helped Off Field Following Apparent Injury

    Astros Designate Forrest Whitley For Assignment

    Twins Place Zebby Matthews On 15-Day IL, Reinstate Danny Coulombe

    Rays Promote Ian Seymour

    ad: 300x250_5_side_mlb

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • 2024-25 Top 50 MLB Free Agents With Predictions
    • Nolan Arenado Rumors
    • Dylan Cease Rumors
    • Luis Robert Rumors
    • Marcus Stroman Rumors

     

    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • 2024-25 Offseason Outlook Series
    • 2025 Arbitration Projections
    • 2024-25 MLB Free Agent List
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    ad: 160x600_MLB

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version