NL Central Notes: Cervelli, Pirates, Molina, Davis

Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli tells Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that there haven’t been any extension talks between the team and his camp. “I haven’t talked to the Pirates since the playoff last year,” said Cervelli. “…We haven’t talked to the Pirates. My agent, or me, nothing.” Cervelli, who is represented by the Beverly Hills Sports Council, is eligible for free agency following the 2016 season, though Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review recently reported Cervelli’s asking price in an extension to forgo his first opportunity at the open market. That $39MM asking price might seem steep to some, though if Cervelli replicates his 2015 production — .295/.370/.401, seven homers, elite receiving skills — he could be in line for a larger sum on the open market.

More from the NL Central…

• Pirates GM Neal Huntington explained to Sawchik earlier this week that the team’s constant pursuit is to improve its lineup’s on-base percentage.“We’d rather have a lineup of eight guys that get on base (opposed to) eight guys that get on base rarely but 30 times a year drive a ball into the seats,” said Huntington. “It’s a philosophy we have.” The Bucs unquestionably lost some power with the departures of Pedro Alvarez and Neil Walker, who look to be replaced by newcomer John Jaso and an in-house option in Josh Harrison, respectively. Harrison’s .338 OBP over the past two seasons matches the career mark of Walker, whereas Jaso’s career .361 OBP dwarfs Alvarez’s .309 mark.
• Yadier Molina spoke to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about his disappointment earlier this offseason after seeing the Cardinals trade away Tony Cruz and Jon Jay, stating that Cruz is a “little brother” to him. “And Jon Jay,” he continued. “When you see guys like that go — teammates that care about winning — you’re always disappointed. But it’s a business. You’ve got understand that. At the moment, I was disappointed. But I understand it.” Molina offered some praise for his club’s acquisition of Mike Leake and also added, perhaps unsurprisingly, that he’d like to remain with the Cardinals for his entire career. Molina is the longest-tenured player on a National League team, having debuted with the Cardinals more than 11 years ago to fill in for injured catcher Mike Matheny — now his manager. Molina is guaranteed $30MM over the next two seasons, though two of that is in the form of a $2MM buyout on a $15MM mutual option for the 2018 campaign.
• Khris Davis was sitting in Los Angeles traffic when his agent called him to inform him of his trade from the Brewers to the Athletics, he tells Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Davis, a California native, expressed excitement over the trade but also a profound fondness for Milwaukee, even going so far as to say he’d love to return later in his career. “In my dream scenario world, I come back and finish my career in Milwaukee,” said Davis. “The back end of my career. That’s kind of my home. I was raised by a lot of those staff members.” Davis tells Rosiak that the trade wasn’t completely unexpected, as he began to consider it a possibility once former GM Doug Melvin announced his transition to an advisory role. Davis says he’s looking forward to earning a job with the A’s: “There’s going to be a learning curve, but I’m excited to just go there and start and see the West Coast and be a basher and just crush it.”