Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Pirates Rumors

Pirates Acquire Dustin Fowler From Athletics

By | at

5:59pm: The teams have announced the trade. To make room for Fowler on their 40-man roster, the Pirates placed southpaw Austin Davis on the 60-day injured list with a left elbow sprain.

4:28pm: The Pirates have acquired outfielder Dustin Fowler from the Athletics for cash considerations, according to Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. Fowler spent a brief time in limbo after the A’s designated him for assignment Monday.

Pittsburgh will be the third big league organization for the 26-year-old Fowler, who began as an 18th-round pick of the Yankees in 2013. Fowler performed well as a minor leaguer with the Yankees and made his major league debut with the team in June 2017, but he suffered a brutal knee injury in his first game and never donned their uniform again. The Yankees wound up trading Fowler to the A’s a month later in the teams’ deal centering on right-hander Sonny Gray.

Fowler ranked as Baseball America’s 88th-best prospect in 2018, and he rebounded from his injury that year in Triple-A, where he batted .341/.364/.520 with four home runs in 13 stolen bases across 239 plate appearances. While Fowler also earned a good amount of playing time in Oakland that season, he slumped to a .224/.256/.354 line with six homers and a half-dozen steals in 203 PA and hasn’t appeared in the majors since. Fowler slashed .277/.333/.477 with 25 homers and 12 stolen bags over 606 tries during the most recent Triple-A campaign in 2019.

Although Fowler’s career hasn’t gone according to plan so far, there’s no real harm in taking a chance on his potential from the Pirates’ standpoint. Fowler may have a legitimate chance to earn a roster spot with outfielder-needy Pittsburgh, but with no minor league options remaining, the club won’t be able to send him down without potentially losing him.

Quick Hits: Braves, Rosenthal, Ohtani, Ray, Cherington

By | at

The Braves had interest in Trevor Rosenthal before the reliever signed with the A’s, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman writes (Twitter link).  With Rosenthal now off the market, Atlanta is still looking for right-handed relief help, and Heyman wonders if the Braves could turn to a familiar face in Shane Greene.  Apart from some consideration from the Twins earlier this month, there hasn’t been much buzz about Greene this offseason, despite his 2.39 ERA over 90 1/3 innings since the start of the 2019 season.  Greene doesn’t have a big fastball and his peripherals haven’t been overly impressive, however, which could explain why he still available heading into his age-32 season.  Atlanta did recently add veteran righty Nate Jones to their bullpen mix on a minor league deal.

Some more notes from around baseball…

  • Most players make changes in the wake of a rough season, but Shohei Ohtani faced the increased challenge of overhauling himself as both a hitter and a pitcher after a 2020 campaign the Angels star called “pathetic.”  Ohtani’s offseason endeavors included a trip to Driveline Baseball, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports, and Ohtani and his agent Nez Balelo told reporters that the pitcher/DH has adopted a new training regiment, a new diet, and made changes to his swing.  Ohtani’s training has been helped by the fact that he is now recovered from a flexor strain that limited him to 1 2/3 innings as a pitcher in 2020, which came after not pitching at all in 2019 due to Tommy John surgery.
  • Robbie Ray’s foray into the open market didn’t last long, as the southpaw re-signed with the Blue Jays shortly after the free agent period opened in early November.  This gave Ray more time to spend with Jays coaches on trying to correct his form following a mediocre 2020 season, Ray told reporters (including The Toronto Star’s Gregor Chisholm).  Ray made changes to his arm slot prior to the 2020 season, which may have led to such disastrous results as a 6.62 ERA and 45 walks over just 51 2/3 innings with the Diamondbacks and Blue Jays.
  • The Pirates are still in the early stages of a rebuild, and GM Ben Cherington gave an outline of the team’s basic plan to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and other reporters.  Modeled after how other clubs have undergone rebuilds, Cherington broke it down into three steps: talent accumulation, developing that talent, and then adding to that talent base through trades and free agency.  The general manager also made it clear that the Bucs are still in the first step, as “whatever improvement we’ve seen in our overall organizational talent — and I think we have seen some improvements in the last year — it’s not enough.  We’ve got to keep going.  We’ve got to be one of the stronger organizations just in terms of overall talent to give ourselves the best chance to win.”

NL Central Notes: Rodriguez, Carpenter, Farmer

By and | at

There is plenty of opportunity for hurlers to win jobs on the rebuilding Pirates’ pitching staff, and The Athletic’s Rob Biertempfel (subscription required) breaks down the full list of arms in Pittsburgh’s Spring Training camp.  This isn’t to say that the Bucs are entirely done making moves, however, as Biertempfel names Richard Rodriguez the “Pirates reliever most likely to be traded this spring.”

Since signing with Pittsburgh prior to the 2018 season, Rodriguez has posted very strong numbers — a 3.02 ERA, and an above-average 28.16K% and 7.15BB% over 158 relief innings.  Home runs have been an issue (1.3 HR/9) and Rodriguez’s hard-contact numbers were among the worst in baseball last season, though he also has some elite (96th percentile) fastball spin.  Rodriguez turns 31 in March, but he is controlled through the 2023 season via arbitration, and is set to earn a modest $1.7MM this season.  There hasn’t been any public trade speculation about Rodriguez during the offseason to date, yet considering how the Pirates are open to discussing virtually player in the organization, it seems likely some teams have already been in touch about Rodriguez.  More talks could develop as Spring Training continues and clubs get a clearer sense of their bullpen needs.

Some more items from around the NL Central…

  • Matt Carpenter will not be spending time in the outfield this season, Cardinals manager Mike Shildt told Jeff Jones of the Belleville News (Twitter link) and other reports. Now that Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt are entrenched at Carpenter’s usual corner infield positions, there has been some speculation that the Cardinals could look for other ways to get his bat in the lineup. Since the outfield is a non-starter for Carpenter and NL teams won’t have a designated hitter spot, this leaves either a second base platoon with Tommy Edman or bench duty for the 35-year-old Carpenter.  The three-time All-Star has seen a steep decline at the plate over the past two seasons, and 2021 looms as Carpenter’s final year in St. Louis — the Cardinals have an $18.5MM club option for 2022 that seems almost sure to be bought out unless Carpenter has a major rebound.
  • Kyle Farmer was keeping one eye on baseball Twitter this offseason to see if the Reds would sign a shortstop, he told the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bobby Nightengale and other reporters, since Farmer was preparing to take a shot at the position himself.  After playing just one game at shortstop over his first three seasons, Farmer made 15 appearances as a shortstop in 2020, and still remains in the mix for at least semi-regular work among a group that also includes Kyle Holder, Dee Strange-Gordon, and Max Schrock.  (Jose Garcia is one of the few pure shortstops on the roster, though he is set to begin the season in the minors.)  Farmer lost 10 pounds and overhauled his swing this offseason in his bid to prove himself worthy of regular playing time, though his multi-position versatility already makes him a strong candidate for a roster spot.

Pirates, Todd Frazier Agree To Minor League Deal

By and | at

FEB 20: The Pirates have formally announced the signing of Frazier. He has received an invite to spring training.

FEB 19: The Pirates and veteran corner infielder Todd Frazier are in agreement on a minor league contract, longtime New York Post scribe Kevin Kernan reports (via Twitter). Kevin Williams of the Shore Sports Network writes that Frazier himself confirmed the agreement to him. Frazier, a CAA Baseball client, will head to Major League camp with the Pirates as a non-roster invitee. Frazier will earn a $1.5MM salary if he makes the club, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic tweets. The deal is pending a physical.

Frazier, who turned 35 last Friday, is a 10-year veteran who has appeared with the Reds, White Sox, Yankees, Mets and Rangers since his 2011 debut. He has consistently been an above-average producer at the plate, having slashed .242/.319/.448 (108 wRC+) with 218 home runs and 73 stolen bases in 4,909 trips. Frazier has also twice hit at least 35 homers in an individual season, earned a pair of All-Star nods and been a plus defender at third, where he has put up 20 Defensive Runs Saved and a 24.6 Ultimate Zone Rating across almost 9,100 innings at the position.

While Frazier has enjoyed an impressive career thus far, he had to settle for a minors deal with the bottom-feeding Pirates because of subpar production between the Mets and Rangers in 2020. Frazier hit a mere .236/.302/.382 (89 wRC+) with four HRs and a career-worst .146 ISO in 172 PA. Frazier also notched rather ugly Statcast numbers, evidenced in part by a .295 expected weighted on-base average that ranked in the league’s 15th percentile and barely outpaced his real wOBA of .281.

Although his production fell off last year, there’s no harm in taking a low-risk chance on Frazier from the Pirates’ perspective. Frazier could at least be a bench option for the team behind the projected third-first tandem of Ke’Bryan Hayes and Colin Moran if he earns a roster spot. If Frazier performs well in that role, the Pirates may be able to flip him elsewhere prior to the trade deadline.

Pirates Sign Tyler Anderson

By and | at

It’s been an offseason focused on stockpiling prospects and shedding payroll for the Pirates, but the club on Wednesday announced its first Major League free-agent signing of the winter. Left-hander Tyler Anderson has signed a one-year contract for the 2021 season, while Rule 5 righty Jose Soriano has been placed on the 60-day IL to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Anderson, a client of Beverly Hills Sports Council, is reportedly guaranteed $2.5MM on the deal.

Tyler Anderson | Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Anderson became a free agent when the Giants non-tendered him at the Dec. 2 deadline. The 31-year-old appeared in 13 of their games last season, started 11, and notched a 4.37 ERA in 59 2/3 innings. Those numbers look OK, but Anderson survived despite below-average strikeout, walk and groundball percentages of 15.8, 9.6 and 28.5, respectively. Anderson also only managed a 5.69 SIERA, which ranked next to last among 81 pitchers who amassed at least 50 innings in 2020.

Before he joined the Giants, Anderson spent 2016-19 as a member of the Rockies, with whom he largely posted acceptable production. Overall, Anderson has a 4.65 ERA/4.36 SIERA with a 21.0 percent strikeout rate and a 7.7 percent walk rate across 456 2/3 innings. The former Oregon star and first-round pick has seen his time on the mound interrupted by a series of knee injuries, by Anderson’s elbow and shoulder have held up throughout his pro career.

Anderson should fill a rotation spot this year with the non-contending Pirates, who don’t have anything resembling a front-line starter at the moment after trading away both Joe Musgrove and Jameson Taillon this winter as part of their ongoing rebuild. Anderson will join Steven Brault and Chad Kuhl as the most experienced starters on the 40-man roster in Pittsburgh, while younger arms like Mitch Keller, JT Brubaker, Wil Crowe and Miguel Yajure will vie for opportunities to prove themselves at the MLB level.

Any of Anderson, Brault or Kuhl could emerge as summer trade chips if they’re throwing well this year, and it’s still plausible that either Brault or Kuhl could be moved between now and Opening Day.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported the agreement (via Twitter). Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported the terms (Twitter link).

Pirates, Brian Goodwin Agree To Minor League Deal

By | at

The Pirates have agreed to a minor league deal with outfielder Brian Goodwin, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter). He’ll be invited to Major League Spring Training. Goodwin will earn a $1.6MM salary with up to $900K in bonuses if he earns a roster spot, according to Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic (on Twitter).

Goodwin, 30, was the No. 34 overall pick in the 2011 draft but never cemented himself with his original organization, the Nationals, despite a few productive stints. He was eventually traded to the Royals and later claimed by the Angels off waivers — enjoying a fair bit of success in both spots. The Angels traded him to the Reds at last summer’s deadline, however, and Goodwin’s bat cratered in Cincinnati, where he batted just .163/.236/.357 in a tiny sample of 55 plate appearances. The Reds non-tendered him in December.

Setting aside that ugly stint in Cincinnati, though, Goodwin has been a productive big league hitter more often than not. He’s a .250/.317/.455 hitter overall, and as recently as 2019 he slashed .262/.326/.470 in near-regular playing time with the Angels (136 games, 458 plate appearances).

Goodwin doesn’t have particularly strong defensive ratings and probably won’t be seeing much (if any) time in center field with the Bucs. He’s best deployed in a corner, which the Bucs can certainly accommodate. Bryan Reynolds, Anthony Alford, Cole Tucker and Gregory Polanco are the likeliest names to vie for outfield time in Pittsburgh at the moment, though the Pirates will jump at any chance they’re provided to shed the remainder of Gregory Polanco’s contract. Alford has yet to establish himself at the MLB level, while Reynolds will be seeking a rebound after a disastrous follow-up to his brilliant rookie showing. Tucker, meanwhile is a converted shortstop who’ll need to earn a job as himself.

Based on his track record and the dearth of established outfield talent on the rebuilding Pirates’ roster, Goodwin seems to have a good chance at both cracking the roster and earning a fair bit of playing time. If he does indeed make the roster, the Pirates would be able to control him through the 2022 season via arbitration. Of course, if he makes the team and rebounds at the plate, he’ll immediately become a potential summer trade piece for a Pirates club that will be looking to move any and all short-term assets for additional prospect depth.

Pirates Sign Tony Wolters

By | at

The Pirates announced Thursday morning that they’ve signed catcher Tony Wolters to a minor league contract. The longtime Rockies backstop and VC Sports Group client will be in camp as a non-roster invitee this spring. His deal comes with a $1.4MM salary if he makes the Pirates, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic tweets.

Wolters, 28, has been the primary catcher in Colorado for the past five seasons due entirely to his glovework. He’s a career .238/.323/.319 hitter in 1232 plate appearances — a line that checks in at 43 percent below league-average (57 wRC+) when weighting for his hitter-friendly home park. Wolters does have a career 9.9 percent walk rate, although that’s at least partially a function of the fact that 75 percent of his plate appearances have come when batting eighth ahead of the pitcher.

Defensively, Wolters’ track record is quite strong. His career 31 percent caught-stealing rate is above the league average, and he regularly grades out as an above-average to excellent pitch framer. His defensive grades all took a collective step back in 2020, but it’d be a bit rash to judge him harshly on 283 innings in a pandemic-shortened season when his previous 2400 innings behind the dish all suggest him to be capable of top-notch glovework.

Notably, the Rockies thought enough of Wolters’ glove and athleticism to also give him brief looks at second base, shortstop, third base and in left field. If the Pirates also believe that Wolters, who was drafted by the Indians as a shortstop back in 2010, can move around the diamond in that capacity, then he could potentially emerge as a versatile super-utility piece off the bench. Jacob Stallings, a strong defender in his own right, seems likely to get the bulk of the work behind the dish to begin the 2021 season, however.

NL Notes: Turner, Mets, Cubs, Reds, Pirates

By | at

The Mets are interested in free-agent third baseman Justin Turner, though the two sides aren’t seeing eye to eye on either contract length or value, per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. It’s quite unlikely the two will bridge the gap, according to Andy Martino of SNY. Turner has at least four teams after him, but as Rosenthal notes, the Dodgers – his longtime club – remain the favorites to sign him. A Mets deal would be interesting, though, as they let Turner go after he spent 2011-13 with them. The 36-year-old has since blossomed into a star with the Dodgers.

Now for a few items from around the National League Central…

  • The Cubs are planning on discussing contract extensions with some of their important veterans during spring training, president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer revealed (via Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago). It’s “almost” certain they’ll talk new deals with first baseman Anthony Rizzo and shortstop Javier Baez, Wittenmyer reports, though it’s unclear whether the Cubs will make a spirited effort to retain third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant for the long haul. All three players are only under team for one more season. Bryant has been part of plenty rumors in recent weeks, so he seems the most likely of the trio to be part of a trade.
  • Reds general manager Nick Krall said right-hander Lucas Sims would be “delayed” heading into 2021 because of elbow tightness, per C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic. However, Sims tweeted Monday that he’ll be ready for opening day. That’s welcome news for the Reds, as the 26-year-old Sims turned in a quality season out of their bullpen in 2020. He threw 25 2/3 innings of 2.45 ERA/3.34 SIERA ball with a well-above-average strikeout rate of 33 percent. Sims also averaged a career-best 94 mph on his fastball.
  • Although he was involved in a car crash that took three lives in his native Dominican Republic in September, Pirates infield prospect Oneil Cruz should be with the club for the start of spring training, according to Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. “We are not aware of anything that should prevent him from being on time at this point,” a team spokesperson said.

Pirates Sign Chasen Shreve To Minor-League Deal

By | at

The Pirates are in agreement with left-hander Chasen Shreve on a minor-league contract, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal will guarantee him $1.5MM if he makes Pittsburgh’s MLB roster, per Passan. The Pirates have since announced the move.

Shreve, 30, is coming off a decent 2020 season with the Mets, where he pitched to a 3.96 ERA/3.45 SIERA across 25 relief innings. Impressively, Shreve struck out a third of the batters he faced, a career-best mark that tied for twentieth among the 141 relievers with at least 20 innings pitched. Relatedly, Shreve’s 17.1% swinging strike rate tied for thirteenth among that group.

It’s a bit surprising a left-hander with that kind of swing-and-miss stuff wound up settling for a minor-league deal, but Shreve has proven susceptible to both walks and home runs over the course of his career. That continued last season, as he allowed four home runs (1.44 HR/9) while walking a higher-than-average 11.8% of opposing hitters.

Control issues notwithstanding, it’d still register as a bit of a surprise if Shreve doesn’t earn a spot on Pittsburgh’s big league roster out of spring training. At present, only Austin Davis and Sam Howard occupy left-handed relief roles on Pittsburgh’s 40-man roster.

Brewers Interested In Shin-Soo Choo At First Base

By | at

It’s been a few seasons since Shin-Soo Choo had an opportunity for impact at-bats, but the southpaw swinger has maintained his control of the strike zone with solid bat-to-ball skills. His 10.2 walk percentage in 2020 remains solidly above-average, and though a 26.0 strikeout rate isn’t ideal, he did enough damage when he did make contact to produce a 97 wRC+. His exit velocity (90 mph), 10.1 percent barrel rate and below-average .284 BABIP suggest Choo might have gotten that wRC+ number back above average had there been a full season in 2020. Instead, that number fell below 100 for the first time since 2007.

While the 38-year-old seems to have enough left in the tank to contribute offensively, he’s long been considered a subpar defender in the outfield, a perception that’s born out in -25 career defensive runs saved across 1,722 career innings in left, and -26 DRS over 8,109 2/3 career innings in right. But Choo has been working out at first base this offseason to provide teams with another avenue for getting his bat in the lineup, per Robert Murray of FanSided (via Twitter).

That’s enough for the Brewers to give him a look, notes Murray. Presumably, the Brewers also like Choo as a potential contributor at the designated hitter spot, should it eventually find its way into the 2021 rule book. Otherwise, Choo would join a rotating collection of position players at manager Craig Counsell’s disposal. With the recent addition of Kolten Wong at second, Keston Hiura is expected to slide over to first full-time. There are at-bats to be had at third base for Hiura, as well, with Luis Urias being relatively unproven at the hot corner. All in all, it’s not hard to imagine Choo getting regular work in Milwaukee between first base and right field, where Avisail Garcia’s career splits suggest he might be best suited in a short-side platoon.

The Pirates have also expressed some interest in Choo at first base, per the Athletic’s Rob Biertempfel (via Twitter), though not much progress was made towards a deal. The Phillies are another of Choo’s known suitors.

Show all

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

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top