Pirates Rumors

Pirates Move Steven Brault To Bullpen

By Steve Adams | April 30, 2018 at 3:58pm CDT

The Pirates are moving left-hander Steven Brault to the bullpen, tweets Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. For the time being, that means that righty Nick Kingham will remain in the rotation and get another start on Friday on the heels of yesterday’s historic debut, during which he took a perfect game into the seventh inning.

Manager Clint Hurdle told reporters, however, that there are no guarantees for Kingham beyond his second start. The club has a number of off-days on the horizon, and righty Joe Musgrove is expected to return later this month. Of course, Kingham already bought himself a second start after what looked to be a spot start Sunday, and it stands to reason that another strong performance could further force the Pirates’ hand. Ivan Nova, Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams and Chad Kuhl will continue to hold down the top four spots in the Pittsburgh rotation, with either of Kingham or Musgrove now looking to be the leading candidates for the final spot.

[Related: Updated Pittsburgh Pirates depth chart]

Brault, meanwhile, will give the Pirates a much-needed lefty in a bullpen where closer Felipe Vazquez is the lone southpaw. Josh Smoker opened the season in the ’pen but has since been optioned to Triple-A, leaving Hurdle with a heavily right-handed relief corps.

Even if Kingham is in the Majors to stay, he’s spent enough time in the minor leagues this season to fall shy of a full year of MLB service time. He’ll be controlled through the 2024 season at the very least, though he’s currently on track to qualify as a Super Two player, meaning he’d be eligible for arbitration four times rather than the standard three.

Central Notes: Moustakas, Kang, Matheny, Brewers

By Mark Polishuk | April 29, 2018 at 8:54pm CDT

Some rumblings from around both the AL and NL Central….

Mike Moustakas looks like a prime candidate for a deadline trade, though in a video for FOX Sports (Twitter link), Ken Rosenthal cautions that the Royals could face some difficulties in finding a trade partner. For one, there aren’t any contenders with an obvious need at third base, though injuries can certainly change that equation. One rival executive tells Rosenthal that it can be hard to trade a single-position rental player like Moustakas at the deadline.
Jung Ho Kang’s impending return to the Pirates “is probably his last chance with us,” GM Neal Huntington said on his weekly radio show with Joe Block (hat tip to MLB.com’s Adam Berry). Kang received a work visa earlier this week and is preparing to rejoin the Pirates organization after spending all of 2017 on the restricted list following a DUI conviction in South Korea. Should the infielder face any more off-the-field issues, things “are not going to go well for” Kang with the team, Huntington said. It isn’t any surprise that Kang is on a very short leash given his past history, and he very well could be entering his last few months with the Bucs regardless of how he might perform if and when he returns to the majors. It doesn’t seem likely that the Pirates will exercise their $5.5MM club option on Kang’s services for 2019, barring a major turn-around.
While closer Corey Knebel has been on the DL, the Brewers’ adoption of a fully situational bullpen has been a big success, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes. Manager Craig Counsell has been deploying his pitchers simply as “out-getters,” in his words, and not worrying about using specific arms in specific roles. Entering today’s play, Brewers relievers had a cumulative 2.50 ERA (third-best in baseball) despite heavy usage, as the team has the fourth-most bullpen innings of any club in the league. This outstanding relief effort has helped the Brewers offset some pretty middling numbers from the starting rotation.
With Mike Matheny set to manage his 1000th game on Tuesday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch looks at how Matheny has handled the pressure and expectations of his six-plus seasons running the Cardinals’ dugout. Despite Matheny’s 559-440 record, he has faced criticism from some corners of the St. Louis fanbase for not having either the consistent success (particularly after consecutive non-playoff seasons) or the openness to publicly discuss decisions as former skipper Tony La Russa. Behind closed doors, however, Matheny has been praised for his leadership and teaching skills. “He’s got a lot of talents….He has it all covered,” Michael Wacha said. “Whenever he talks in front of a group of people that group of people is leaning in, listening to what he’s saying. He carries that confidence that he knows he belongs where he is.”

Pirates Place Enny Romero On DL

By Connor Byrne | April 29, 2018 at 4:08pm CDT

4:08pm: Pittsburgh intended to designate Romero, but it instead placed on him on the disabled list with a left shoulder impingement, according to a team announcement (via Adam Berry of MLB.com).

10:33am: The Pirates have designated left-hander Enny Romero for assignment, per a team announcement. Romero’s roster spot will go righty Nick Kingham, who will make his first career start Sunday.

It may go down as a short stay in the Pittsburgh organization for Romero, who joined the team off waivers two weeks ago after the Nationals designated him. The 27-year-old Romero’s shining moment with the Pirates has actually come with the bat, as he smacked a double – his first career hit – in an appearance against the Rockies on April 18.

Unfortunately for Romero and the Bucs, his time on the mound with the club hasn’t been as memorable. Prior to Sunday’s designation, he struggled somewhat across four innings, yielding five runs (two earned) on seven hits and three walks, with five strikeouts. Overall, Romero has combined for 142 MLB frames with a 4.69 ERA/4.06 FIP, 9.7 K/9 against 4.56 BB/9 and a 40.4 percent grounder rate with the Rays, Nats and Pirates.

NL Notes: Panik, D-backs, Cards, Pirates

By Connor Byrne | April 29, 2018 at 8:36am CDT

Giants second baseman Joe Panik has a torn ligament in his left thumb that could require surgery, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Panik, who went on the disabled list Saturday, will go for a second opinion to determine whether he’ll go under the knife or rehab the injury without surgery, per Schulman. Panik got off to a solid start in his first 100 plate appearances of the year before landing on the shelf, with a .267/.323/.389 line (102 wRC+) and as many walks as strikeouts (six). Kelby Tomlinson has been San Francisco’s top second base option in Panik’s absence.

NL Notes: Bruce, Kang, Stratton, Panik, Gohara, Pennington

By Kyle Downing | April 28, 2018 at 1:30pm CDT

Mets outfielder Jay Bruce has been taking ground balls at first base, James Wagner of the New York Times reports. Wagner adds that the Mets may consider playing him there in order to open up room for Brandon Nimmo to receive everyday playing time again. First base incumbent Adrian Gonzalez has struggled mightily thus far, with just a .203/.300/.320 batting line on the season. It’s still only April, but in light of his struggles last year with the Dodgers, Gonzalez’s leash might be fairly short. That’s particularly true since Nimmo reached base in half of his 38 MLB plate appearances this season. It’s fair to think that the Mets are looking hard for ways to lock Nimmo into an everyday role.

Other news out of the NL…

Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang won’t receive any discipline from MLB, nor will the team dole out any punishment, Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on Twitter. Kang was denied a U.S. visa for all of last year due to multiple DUI-related arrests. He’s finally able to return to the Pirates as of Thursday.
Today, the Giants reinstated Chris Stratton from the paternity list, optioning outfielder Austin Slater to Triple-A Sacramento in a corresponding move. Within hours, however, the club reversed its reported stance on Mac Williamson’s status, placing him on the seven-day concussion DL. The move allowed the Giants to recall Slater, who’s directly replacing Williamson. Stratton sports an impressive 2.32 ERA and 2.69 FIP across five starts this season, though the fact that he hasn’t allowed any homers despite a 37.8% hard contact rate suggests he might have been a bit lucky in that regard. Stratton will take his scheduled turn through the rotation today against the Dodgers.
In other Giants news, second baseman Joe Panik has been placed on the disabled list with a sprained left thumb. The club correspondingly purchased the contract of second baseman/outfielder Alen Hanson, who leads the Triple-A Pacific Coast League with a .403 batting average. The club moved Mark Melancon to the 60-day DL in order to clear room on the 40-man roster for Hanson.
The Braves have reinstated left-hander Luiz Gohara from the disabled list and optioned him to Triple-A Gwinnett, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Gohara suffered a sprained ankle during a spring training outing, and had exhausted the maximum amount of time allotted for rehab starts. He’ll likely make a couple more starts in the minors before returning to help the Braves at the major league level. Gohara had figured to be a prominent part of Atlanta’s rotation before the season began.
The Reds announced that infielder Cliff Pennington has cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Louisville. Pennington, who signed a minors deal in the offseason, made the club out of spring training camp as a bench player. However, he’s struck out in nearly 40 percent of his plate appearances thus far and has yet to sock an extra-base hit.

Pirates To Promote Nick Kingham

By Steve Adams | April 27, 2018 at 9:42am CDT

The Pirates will promote right-hander Nick Kingham to make his Major League debut and start Sunday’s game, reports Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter).

Now 26 years old, Kingham was widely regarded as one of the game’s top 100 overall prospects back in 2014-15 and looked to be on the precipice of the Major Leagues when a torn ulnar collateral ligament torpedoed his 2015-16 seasons. Kingham underwent Tommy John surgery in 2015, tossing just 31 1/3 innings that season and just 46 frames late in the 2016 season upon completing his rehab.

The 2017 season marked his first healthy season since 2014, and while he didn’t dominate, the 2010 fourth-rounder did turn in a solid 3.95 ERA with 7.1 K/9 against 2.2 BB/9 with a 45 percent ground-ball rate. He’s off to a torrid start to the 2018 season — as MLBTR’s Jason Martinez noted when including Kingham in the first 2018 edition of Knocking Down The Door — having logged a microscopic 1.59 ERA with a 27-to-7 K/BB ratio and a 49.1 percent grounder rate in 22 2/3 innings. He’s yet to allow a home run this year and allowed only eight in 2017.

[Related: Pittsburgh Pirates depth chart]

It could very well prove to be a spot start for Kingham — MLB.com’s Adam Berry suggested as much, on Twitter — though it would seem as though there’s at least one possible starting job that Kingham could eventually seize. The rotation jobs of Ivan Nova, Jameson Taillon, Trevor Williams and Chad Kuhl all seem safe, even with Taillon’s struggles in his past two outings, though southpaw Steven Brault’s spot is less solidified. In four starts this year, Brault has posted a 5.06 ERA with a 12-to-11 K/BB ratio in 21 1/3 innings. He did open the year with three innings of scoreless relief work, but his overall body of work has not been especially impressive to date.

Regardless of whether Kingham arrives for a day or for the rest of the season, he’ll fall shy of a full year of Major League service time, so the Pirates will be able to control him through at least 2024. It’s worth noting that the 2018 season represents Kingham’s final option year, despite the fact that he’s never pitched in the Majors. The Buccos had to add him to the 40-man roster two offseasons ago in order to protect from being selected in the Rule 5 Draft (which he quite likely would have been). That’ll make it all the more important for Kingham to establish himself, to an extent, in the Majors this season. He’ll be out of options next spring and have to make the Opening Day roster, be exposed to waivers or traded to a team willing to carry him.

Minor MLB Transactions: 4/26/18

By Steve Adams | April 26, 2018 at 4:56pm CDT

Here are Thursday’s minor moves from around the game…

The Pirates have traded minor league outfielder Todd Cunningham to the White Sox, per a club announcement. John Dreker of PiratesProspects.com first broke news of the trade (via Twitter). The Bucs will receive a player to be named later in return. The 29-year-old Cunningham spent parts of three seasons in the Majors with the Braves (2013, 2015) and Angels (2016) but struggled to a .207/.256/.264 slash through 130 plate appearances. He’s off to a rough start in Triple-A this season but turned in an excellent .284/.404/.414 batting line in 358 plate appearances between the Cardinals’ and Dodgers’ top affiliates in 2017. In all, the 2010 second-round pick is a career .274/.356/.372 hitter in nearly 2200 Triple-A plate appearances.

Jung Ho Kang Receives Visa, Set To Rejoin Pirates

By Jeff Todd | April 26, 2018 at 2:29pm CDT

Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang has received a work visa and is expected to resume his career with the team, according to a report from Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic. Kang had not been able to secure a visa for quite some time after being convicted of a DUI in his native South Korea.

Kang ended up missing the entire 2017 season. He did play briefly in the Dominican Winter League recently, but that stint was cut short when he failed to perform with his new team. The Bucs control him for the 2019 season via club option, valued at $5.5MM, and he’ll play the remainder of the 2018 season on a pro-rated $3MM salary. While there was some question as to how the Pirates would handle the situation if Kang were to receive a visa, it appears as though the team is willing to welcome him back into the fold without issuing any discipline of its own.

“We are encouraged by the steps that Jung Ho has taken to date and are hopeful that having the game he loves taken away from him for more than a year has driven home the reality that he must make better life decisions as we move forward together,” Pirates president Frank Coonelly said in a statement issued via press release. “As we have communicated to him throughout this process, we will work to provide Jung Ho with the resources and support necessary for him to meet the high expectations that we have for him as a member of our organization and our community.”

For the time being, Kang will remain on the restricted list as he works his way toward MLB readiness with in extended Spring Training at the Pirates’ complex in Bradenton, Fla. There’s no indication from the team as to how long he’ll spend ramping up in Florida.

A healthy and effective Kang would be an unexpected boost to the Pirates, as the former KBO superstar was quite productive in his first two big league campaigns prior to his legal troubles. In 837 MLB plate appearances, Kang has slashed .273/.355/.483 with 36 homers, 43 doubles and a pair of triples. He’ll give the Pirates an option at multiple infield positions, as he’s seen action third base and shortstop in his two seasons and can also be entrusted to handle second base duties.

Josh Harrison Out Six Weeks With Fractured Hand

By Steve Adams | April 16, 2018 at 12:29pm CDT

The Pirates announced on Monday that second baseman Josh Harrison sustained a fractured fifth metacarpal in his left hand when he was hit by a Jose Urena fastball in yesterday’s game. He’s expected to return to game action in about six weeks, per the team.

Harrison, 30, has gotten off to a .263/.328/.351 slash with a homer, two doubles and a stolen base through his first 14 games (64 plate appearances). With the veteran infielder headed to the disabled list, the 11-4 Pirates can turn to Adam Frazier or Sean Rodriguez at second base, though the team’s depth around the infield will be a bit thinned out. Max Moroff and Christopher Bostick could conceivably come up to fill in an infield spot on the bench, though it seems likely that multiple roster moves are on the horizon; the Pirates are also still in need of a 25-man move to accommodate the claim of out-of-options lefty Enny Romero from the Nats.

Harrison is earning $10MM this season as part of the four-year, $27.3MM deal he signed three years ago. Had the Pirates gotten off to a sluggish start, there’d likely have been trade chatter surrounding Harrison this summer, though so long as they can maintain some of the momentum they’ve built up, that no longer seems likely. Harrison’s deal contains club options for $10.5MM in 2019 and $11.5MM in 2020.

NL Central Notes: Nottingham, Senzel, Harrison

By Steve Adams | April 16, 2018 at 11:12am CDT

The Brewers will recall catcher Jacob Nottingham from Triple-A Colorado Springs before tonight’s game, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports. It’ll be the first taste of the Majors for Nottingham, who was acquired by Milwaukee in the trade that sent Khris Davis to Oakland. The 23-year-old Nottingham has had two rough seasons in Milwaukee’s system, posting a sub-.700 OPS at Double-A in both 2016 and 2017. He’s off to a fast start this year, however, hitting .296/.345/.519 through a tiny sample of 29 plate appearances. The corresponding 25-man move for Milwaukee isn’t yet clear, though primary catcher Manny Pina is day-to-day at the moment, as are Eric Thames and Ryan Braun, McCalvy notes. Nottingham doesn’t figure to be a long-term add for the time being, as Pina, Jett Bandy and Stephen Vogt (who is working his way back from a shoulder injury) all come with more experience.

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