Pirates Rumors

NL Central Notes: Bailey, Smith, Jones, Braun, Victorino, Luebke

By Jeff Todd | March 25, 2016 at 6:01pm CDT

Reds righty Homer Bailey is progressing rapidly in his effort to return from Tommy John surgery, MLB.com’s Barry Bloom writes. The club is targeting a May 1 return, which would be less than a year from the date of his procedure. Manager Bryan Price actually suggested that Bailey could have been ready for the start of the season, but the organization chose not to “push him.” The right represents an important bounceback player to watch, given his huge contract. He says that recovery has been “smoother” than he anticipated and that he’s yet to experience discomfort throwing.

Here’s more from the NL Central:

There was plenty of news out of Brewers camp today, as Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports. Top reliever Will Smith is experiencing knee swelling and could miss the start of the season. That would leave Jeremy Jeffress as the obvious choice to handle the 9th while Smith works back to full speed.
Brewers Rule 5 pick Zack Jones has had shoulder issues all spring long and is going to start out on the DL. That could actually make it easier to keep him, as the team can bring him along slowly and give him some minor league time on a rehab assignment before exposing him to the majors.
The lower back soreness experienced recently by Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun appears to be an increasing concern. Manager Craig Counsell suggested that the team will exercise caution, but doesn’t expect the problem to disappear in the next few days. “We may have to manage this into the season,” said Counsell. “That’s becoming apparent now.”
Outfielder Shane Victorino discussed his status with the Cubs with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. It appears he’s still deciding whether to remain in the organization, but doesn’t seem inclined to retire. “I just still want to play the game I love,” Victorino said. “We all want to do that forever, but this time I really felt like I had made a turn for the better this offseason, going back to switch-hitting.” He added that he wouldn’t hesitate to call it quits if he felt otherwise, saying: “I am my hardest critic, so if I feel like I am done, no one would need to make that decision for me.”
Pirates lefty Cory Luebke has an opt-out date of Tuesday the 29th, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets. That’ll be an interesting situation to monitor, as Luebke has reportedly been fairly impressive in camp — as we covered last night.

Bullpen Notes: Ohlendorf, Giles, Luebke

By Mark Polishuk | March 25, 2016 at 8:15am CDT

Here’s the latest on some relief situations from around baseball…

Free agent righty Ross Ohlendorf has garnered multiple offers and could sign with a team as early as today, according to Chris Cotillo of SB Nation (Twitter link). Ohlendorf might even land a guaranteed Major League deal, Cotillo suggests. The 33-year-old opted out of his minor league contract with the Royals earlier this week, and the club subsequently released him. Ohlendorf, an eight-year veteran, threw 19 1/3 innings in relief for Texas last season and put up a 3.72 ERA, 8.84 K/9 and 3.26 BB/9. It’s worth noting that his average fastball velocity in 2015 was 93.7, a solid increase over his career mean (92.0).
The Marlins are one of the teams connected to Ohlendorf, Peter Gammons of GammonsDaily.com reports. Miami took a hit to its bullpen with the news that Carter Capps will miss all of 2016 recovering from Tommy John surgery, so it makes sense that the Fish would be looking at relief help. Jim Benedict, the newly-hired Marlins VP of pitching development, is familiar with Ohlendorf from their shared time in the Pirates organization.
The Astros’ trade for Ken Giles surprised many in the industry, ESPN’s Jayson Stark writes, particularly since dealing five young players for a reliever seemed so counter to Jeff Luhnow’s strategy since taking over Houston’s front office. Three factors seemed to fuel the trade — the Astros’ bullpen meltdown in last year’s ALDS, the trend around the game for a lockdown relief corps for late in games, and Giles’ own unique promise as a long-term star closer.
Pirates lefty Cory Luebke has scouts “buzzing,” tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, who notes that the 31-year-old is hitting 94mph with his fastball and 87mph with his curve this spring. Luebke has an out clause in the minor league contract he signed with the Pirates last month, meaning he could be available to sign anywhere soon if he doesn’t win a spot in the Bucs’ bullpen. Luebke last pitched in the majors in 2012, having since undergone a pair of Tommy John surgeries. His most extensive action came as a Padre in 2011, when he tossed 139.2 innings of 3.29 ERA ball to accompany an outstanding 9.92 K/9 and 2.84 BB/9. San Diego then signed the seemingly emerging starter to a four-year, $12MM extension, only for Luebke to fall victim to injuries. Luebke finally returned to the field last June to throw seven innings at three different minor league levels in the Padres organization, but a flexor strain diagnosis and a subsequent minor forearm surgery brought an end to his season.

Connor Byrne also contributed to this post

Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates

By charliewilmoth | March 24, 2016 at 7:50pm CDT

This is the latest entry in MLBTR’s Offseason In Review series. The full index of Offseason In Review posts can be found here.

The Pirates’ offseason didn’t feature the kinds of decisive signings or trades that might convince fans the Bucs are ready to follow up on their terrific 98-win 2015 season, but that’s par for the course for an organization whose recent successes have been built more on sly under-the-radar moves than on heavy spending.

Major League Signings

1B John Jaso: two years, $8MM
P Neftali Feliz: one year, $3.9MM
P Juan Nicasio: one year, $3MM
IF David Freese: one year, $3MM
UT Sean Rodriguez: one year, $2.5MM
P Ryan Vogelsong: one year, $2MM
P Trey Haley: Major League contract
1B/OF Jake Goebbert: Major League contract

Notable Minor League Signings

Matt Joyce, Cory Luebke, Eric O’Flaherty, Cole Figueroa

Trades And Claims

Acquired P Jon Niese from Mets for 2B Neil Walker
Acquired P David Whitehead from Phillies for P Charlie Morton
Acquired IF Jason Rogers from Brewers for OF Keon Broxton and P Trey Supak
Acquired P Trevor Williams from Marlins for P Richard Mitchell
Acquired P Kyle Lobstein from Tigers for cash

Extensions

Chris Stewart, C: two years, $3MM (plus 2018 option)

Notable Losses

Walker, Morton, A.J. Burnett (retired), J.A. Happ, Pedro Alvarez, Antonio Bastardo, Joakim Soria, Joe Blanton, Aramis Ramirez (retired) Vance Worley, Travis Snider

Needs Addressed

Critiquing a Pirates offseason is intimidating, because you feel like the team is daring you to admit you don’t really know what you’re talking about. Many commentators greeted recent past Pirates offseasons with ambivalence or even derision for being built around seemingly off-brand additions of players like A.J. Burnett, Russell Martin, Francisco Liriano, Mark Melancon and Francisco Cervelli … who then turned out to be core members of excellent teams. Whoops.

So what to make of the Pirates’ past winter, which featured the departures of key players like Burnett, Neil Walker and J.A. Happ and additions of a slew of low-cost replacements like Ryan Vogelsong, Juan Nicasio and John Jaso? Your guess is as good as mine. On the surface, it doesn’t look like the Pirates did nearly enough. But then, that’s how previous offseasons have looked too, and the last several have mostly turned out brilliantly.

The 2016 Bucs will have a new-look infield, with Pedro Alvarez and Walker departing to make room for Jaso and Josh Harrison (who will take over for Walker at second). Alvarez hit 27 home runs in 2015, but the Pirates non-tendered him anyway, a move that was entirely justified — Alvarez struck out frequently and hit for low batting averages, and his defense was inexplicably awful after moving across the diamond to first base. He was unlikely to produce enough value to earn the $8.1MM he was set to make in arbitration, so he had no trade value, and it’s not surprising the Bucs opted to let him depart.

To replace him, they signed Jaso to a cheap two-year deal. Like Alvarez last year, Jaso will be new to first base, but most players’ efforts to move to first from another position go better than Alvarez’s did. Also, as FanGraphs’ Jeff Sullivan has pointed out, catchers have generally fared well in transitioning to first base — think of Scott Hatteberg, Jason Phillips or Joe Mauer. Jaso doesn’t have nearly the power Alvarez did, but he does have a career .361 on-base percentage that should play well at first, particularly at just $4MM per season. Jaso, a left-handed hitter, needs to be platooned, but the Pirates already had righty first baseman Michael Morse under contract and top prospect Josh Bell in the minors, and their acquisitions of David Freese and Jason Rogers this offseason give them plenty more righty first base depth should Morse falter.

The Bucs then sent Walker to the Mets for Jon Niese. At first glance, this move makes less sense than the Alvarez/Jaso swap did. Walker, unlike Alvarez, is a genuinely good player, a consistent hitter with a broad offensive skill set who will generally produce two to three wins per season. (As a Pittsburgh native, he was a fan favorite to boot.) Niese, meanwhile, is a competent but uninspiring lefty whose strikeout rate dropped to 5.8 batters per nine innings last season. Walker and Niese also have similar salaries, so the Pirates didn’t even really save money in the deal.

Walker, though, was a below-average defender, and was only one year from free agency. Niese, meanwhile, gets ground balls — a skill the Pirates love — and has two options at the end of his contract, potentially allowing the Bucs to keep him for two more years than they could have kept Walker. The Pirates’ acquisitions of starting pitchers have generally gone quite well in recent years, so if pitching coach Ray Searage and company are able to rejuvenate Niese, the Bucs will be able to keep him through 2018 — but also aren’t required to guarantee those seasons if it doesn’t work out.

The long-term plan in Walker’s absence is to use Harrison (who played five positions in 2015) as their regular second baseman and Jung-Ho Kang at third. That plan set them up well defensively, but reduced their depth and wouldn’t work in April, when Kang figured to be battling back from a knee injury he suffered late last season. And so, in a late-breaking move, the Bucs signed Freese to a cheap contract. He’ll man third base until Kang returns, and will likely occupy a variety of roles after that, perhaps eventually displacing Morse as Jaso’s platoon partner. Freese, who’s been an average or better player in five of the last six seasons, was a bargain at $3MM.

The same can’t necessarily be said of some of the Pirates’ other cheap contracts. Sean Rodriguez can, at least theoretically, play seven different positions, but he hits so poorly that his versatility is of limited use. It would have been easy to imagine him signing a minor-league deal this offseason, rather than a $2.5MM Major League contract. Perhaps Rodriguez has value in the clubhouse that isn’t easy for outsiders to see.

Ryan Vogelsong, too, was a questionable use of funds, even though he’ll only make $2MM this season. Vogelsong is 38, has been replacement-level or below in two of the last three seasons, and was demoted to the bullpen last year. He’s in competition for one of the Pirates’ last two rotation jobs, and perhaps with some attention from Searage, he can improve upon his 4.67 ERA last season. Given his age and recent history, however, his upside appears limited.

The Bucs also signed Neftali Feliz for $3.9MM, which seems like a lot to pay a reliever who flamed out badly last season, has persistent control issues and hasn’t had an unambiguously good season (with both good results and good peripherals) since 2010. Feliz is just 27, though, and has good velocity working for him (although he doesn’t throw quite as hard as he did in his first few seasons with the Rangers). He’s also done well in Spring Training thus far, so perhaps he can be a Pirates reclamation project.

A more interesting cheap pitching deal was that of Juan Nicasio (pictured), who has a good fastball and slider (although not much of a changeup) and whiffed 10.0 batters per nine innings in the Dodgers’ bullpen last year. Given his stuff, age (29), service time (4.084 years, allowing the Pirates to control him for 2017 if they like) and ability to start, $3MM for Nicasio seemed like a reasonable gamble, and there are already signs it could pay off, with Nicasio whiffing 24 batters in 15 shutout innings so far in Spring Training. He’s still in competition for a job in the back of the rotation.

The Pirates also made a number of even less costly depth acquisitions. They got starting pitching prospect Trevor Williams in a lopsided, but minor, deal with the Marlins compensating the Bucs for the Marlins’ hires of Pirates executives Jim Benedict and Marc DelPiano. (In particular, the loss of Benedict, who was widely credited with helping many of the Bucs’ pitchers, could potentially be significant for the organization.) A reliever, Trey Haley, arrived from the Indians on a big-league deal but is likely to begin the season in the minors, where he’ll hone his mid-90s fastball, with the Pirates hoping he can improve his control enough to eventually contribute. There’s still some hope that Cory Luebke (who was signed to a minor league deal) can regain his former promise after a long battle with injuries. And fellow lefty Kyle Lobstein, acquired in a minor trade after the Tigers designated him for assignment, could serve as rotation depth or as a lefty out of the bullpen.

More analysis after the break …

The Bucs also acquired two corner infield types in Jason Rogers and Jake Goebbert who were buried by the later acquisitions of Jaso and Freese. (Both can also play outfield but aren’t likely to do so much with the Pirates.) Rogers, who performed well in his first extended stint in the Majors last year, is the more interesting of the two, and the one for whom the Pirates paid the most heavily, giving up speedy bench outfield candidate Keon Broxton and lottery-ticket pitching prospect Trey Supak. Due to the presence of Freese and Morse on the Pirates’ active roster and the fact that Rogers has an option left, though, he’ll probably begin the season with Triple-A Indianapolis.

Along the way, the Bucs quietly extended backup catcher Chris Stewart, a 34-year-old singles hitter with good framing ability who’s had two decent seasons in Pittsburgh, although his total extra-base output in that time amounts to 13 doubles and no triples or homers. Stewart will receive a total of $3MM for his final year of arb eligibility and one free agent campaign, while also giving away an option for another. It’s a tiny guarantee for the Pirates, but a lot for Stewart, who has never made more than $1.225MM in a season.

The Stewart extension suggests (but perhaps does not conclusively prove) that the club is set to move on from Cervelli after the 2016 season, when he’ll be a free agent — Cervelli says the Bucs haven’t discussed an extension with him despite his brilliant 2015 season, and they have a potential replacement in the wings in Triple-A catcher Elias Diaz. Diaz is already a big-league caliber defender, and the Pirates have another excellent defensive catching prospect in the minors in Reese McGuire, but it remains to be seen how they’ll replace Cervelli’s offense if he departs. (Then again, the same could have been said this time last season, when Cervelli was replacing Martin.)

Questions Remaining

Much of the talk around Pittsburgh this offseason focused on another extension for Andrew McCutchen, who will be eligible for free agency after 2018. Both McCutchen and the Pirates have expressed interest in striking a deal, but it seems highly unlikely they’ll consummate one. The Bucs already control McCutchen through his age-31 season at bargain prices, and a meaningful extension beyond 2018 would effectively buy out what are likely to be decline years. A declining Andrew McCutchen could still be a very good player, but a market-value contract would surely cost upwards of $20MM a year, and the always-thrifty Pirates don’t seem likely to spend what could amount to 20% of their payroll on a player in his 30s. (A more realistic extension candidate, perhaps, is toolsy outfielder Gregory Polanco, who maintains he is open to a long-term deal.)

Meanwhile, the 2016 team has more immediate issues, beginning with its rotation. The Pirates could have a very good group starting in the summer, when Tyler Glasnow and perhaps Jameson Taillon could arrive (with the Bucs likely delaying both promotions due not only to development reasons but to the Super Two threshold). But first the Pirates will have to get through the first couple months with at least one and perhaps two of Jeff Locke and Vogelsong in the rotation.

The shortstop position is perhaps another issue. Jordy Mercer can handle the position defensively, but he’s coming off a season in which he hit .244/.293/.320 with just three home runs. He hit 12 in 2014, so perhaps he’ll rebound somewhat offensively in 2016, but if not, maybe it shouldn’t be taken for granted that he’s really a big-league starter. The next man up would likely be Kang, with Freese taking over at third. That alignment would likely cost the Pirates a few runs defensively, but the offensive improvement could make it worthwhile.

Deal Of Note

In mid-December, the Pirates sent Charlie Morton to the Phillies for minor-league pitcher David Whitehead. After the deal, the Pirates insisted they were fans of Whitehead, a former late-round draft pick who posted a 4.44 ERA, 6.2 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 135 2/3 innings at Class A+ Clearwater in 2015. But the deal was plainly a salary dump. The Bucs had owed Morton $8MM in 2016, plus a $1M buyout on his 2016 option.

Morton’s seven-year Pirates tenure was uneven, despite being an extreme ground-ball pitcher in an organization designed to help ground-ball pitchers succeed. But the deal left a vacuum in the Pirates’ rotation. At the time, the move suggested that the Bucs intended to replace Morton with one of the many good free-agent and trade options then available, but they acquired Vogelsong six days later and didn’t make any more significant rotation additions. (They’d already signed Nicasio.)

The Morton trade, then, might have been connected to the Pirates’ decision to keep closer Mark Melancon, who will make $9.65MM in 2016 before becoming eligible for free agency. Ordinarily, a reliever like Melancon, the 2015 Trevor Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year award winner, might have netted the Bucs a considerable return in a trade, but perhaps that wasn’t the case this year. Unlike other top relievers who changed teams this winter, like Craig Kimbrel, Aroldis Chapman, Ken Giles and Carson Smith, Melancon doesn’t have a stratospheric strikeout rate, and while he got dominant results with a high ground-ball rate last year, his velocity and other peripherals sagged. “We went into the offseason thinking Mark would be a part of the bullpen until somebody compelled us to think differently,” said Bucs GM Neal Huntington, via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Stephen A. Nesbitt. “No one did.” Had the Pirates traded Melancon (and elevated the capable Tony Watson to the closer role), perhaps they would have kept Morton, or pursued additional starting pitching help.

Overview

The Pirates’ offseason wasn’t an impressive one on paper, but that’s not a huge surprise. Many fans remain annoyed at the organization’s apparent unwillingness to spend heavily to contend, but given how successful they’ve been with cheap veteran additions lately, perhaps it’s best to wait and see how players like Jaso, Nicasio and Feliz do before critiquing them too harshly.

In the short term, the Bucs will continue to face tough divisional competition from the Cardinals and especially the Cubs. But they have McCutchen for three more seasons, and with a solid core in place, strong lines of communication with which to integrate cutting-edge data into their decision-making, and players like Glasnow and Bell on the way, their short- and long-term futures still appear bright.

What’s your take on the Pirates’ winter? (Link to poll for mobile app users …)

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

NL Central Notes: Lucroy, Bruce, Schwarber, Pirates

By Mark Polishuk | March 24, 2016 at 8:48am CDT

Here’s the latest from around the NL Central…

The Brewers were talking with the Astros and Braves about a three-team trade involving Jonathan Lucroy last month, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reports. Houston made an attempt at Lucroy earlier in the offseason, as previously reported by FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal, and the club has also been linked to Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte. This isn’t to say that Inciarte was also necessarily part of this three-team proposal, of course, as Atlanta’s role in the trade could’ve taken any number of forms.
Lucroy has been the subject of many trade rumors this winter, to the point that he and his family don’t have living arrangements in Milwaukee settled yet since he presumed he was going to be dealt. “It’s all out of your control. But communication is a big thing. I’d like to be kept up to date what’s going on. It’s not like I’m going to spread it all around, I just want to know when it’s coming, when to expect it,” the longtime Brewers catcher said.
Also from Nightengale’s piece, he notes that the Reds were willing to pay roughly $8MM of Jay Bruce’s $12.5MM salary as part of the abandoned three-team trade that would’ve sent Bruce to the Blue Jays, Michael Saunders to the Angels and prospects to Cincinnati. It was expected that the Reds would have to eat some money in any Bruce deal, given that the outfielder is coming off two consecutive subpar seasons. Saunders is making $2.9MM in 2016, so adding Bruce would’ve cost Toronto around $1.6MM in extra salary (not counting the $1MM buyout of Bruce’s $13MM club option for 2017).
Like Lucroy, Bruce is also rather surprised to still be with his original team given all of the trade speculation. He reiterated that he would prefer to stay with the Reds, and blames his recent “pretty poor” play for threatening his long-term future in Cincinnati. (Though it could be argued that if Bruce had been hitting more, the Reds would’ve been able to move him sooner.) “In order for me to have a chance to stay here, I need to play better. We’ll see what happens. I never changed my sentiment, wanting to be part of this for the long haul….But obviously, I have to do my part to even have a chance,” Bruce said.
Kyle Schwarber could be a personal catcher for Jason Hammel this season, CSN Chicago’s Patrick Mooney writes, as the Cubs are looking for ways to get Schwarber’s bat into the lineup whenever possible. Schwarber’s defensive future has been the subject of much debate, as he’s scheduled to see most of his playing time in left field this year even though his fielding prowess is still a question mark. It’s also unclear if Schwarber can handle being a regular catcher, though with Miguel Montero and David Ross ahead of him on Chicago’s catching depth chart, he could be eased into the position for just Hammel’s starts. Being removed from too much grind behind the plate could actually benefit Schwarber, Mooney notes, by helping him stay healthy.
The Pirates hired James Harris as a special assistant to baseball operations in February, and Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review examines how the hiring is an example of how the Bucs are willing to look outside of baseball for ways to build their organization. Harris specializes in fitness and nutrition techniques and he has spent much of his career in football, including the last decade working with Chip Kelly both at the University of Oregon and with the NFL’s Eagles. Harris’ lack of baseball experience wasn’t a big factor for Pirates GM Neal Huntington, as the goal for any athlete is about “maximizing performance. How do we help this player get better every day and perform as consistently as possible?“

NL Central Notes: Cubs, Pirates, Brewers, Reds

By Zachary Links | March 22, 2016 at 8:30pm CDT

No team will fret over having too much in the way of talent, but Phil Rogers of MLB.com wonders if the Cubs’ depth could stifle the growth of Javier Baez and Jorge Soler. In the case of Baez, manager Joe Maddon believes that he can get enough work in as a utility player. Overall, Maddon is grateful to have such strong insurance against injuries.

“It’s obvious just by making the daily lineups now,” he said on Sunday. “When you give guys a day off playing but the team that goes to play that day is pretty thick still. That’s what has hit home with me. … The depth is really intriguing. You need that to be successful during the course of a long season. You’re going to have things happen. No question.”

Here’s more out of the NL Central:

Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette took on the tough task of predicting the Pirates’ Opening Day roster. His projections do not include outfielder Matt Joyce, who was brought in on a minor-league deal this offseason. Nesbitt’s writes that his projections could be thrown off by a few factors, including the possibility that Michael Morse is moved in anticipation of Jung Ho Kang’s return.
Brewers left-hander Sean Nolin won’t be ready for Opening Day and that could have roster implications for Milwaukee, as Tom Haudricourt of the Journal-Sentinel writes. As Nolin deals with his elbow issue, only two lefties – Chris Capuano and Franklin Morales – are left vying for spots and both were brought in on minor league deals. Those two southpaws plus reliever Blaine Boyer have opt out clauses in their contracts that could spring them from their deals before Opening Day.
Nolin is out-of-options, but his elbow issue likely will buy the Brewers time in making a decision on him, Haudricourt tweets. Nolin is likely destined for the DL.
J.J. Hoover is likely to be the Reds’ closer and manager Bryan Price says he would “definitely” be the choice if the season started now, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com writes. Hoover, who won his arbitration case against the Reds this offseason, could help his arb case next offseason if he can rack up saves.

Central Notes: Diaz, Lindor, Cole

By charliewilmoth | March 21, 2016 at 7:46am CDT

Signing Ruben Tejada to be their starting shortstop, rather than promoting Aledmys Diaz to the job, was the right move for the Cardinals, Bernie Miklasz writes for 101Sports.com. Diaz went 4-for-4 with two doubles in the Spring Training game after Jhonny Peralta went down with a thumb injury. But his production has since slowed, and Diaz has very little experience in Triple-A (where he was optioned Sunday after Tejada’s signing became official). It’s best for him to begin his season there to see if he can build on the success he enjoyed in the second half of last season, Miklasz argues. Here’s more from the Central divisions.

Carlos Correa is an incredibly exciting young shortstop, but in comparison, Francisco Lindor of the Indians doesn’t get enough hype, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports argues. Lindor got off to a slow start after being promoted to the big leagues last year but batted .370/.413/.500 in August and .325/.366/.592 the rest of the season. “How many times do you see a kid come up in the first 100 at-bats and just go off, and then the league makes its adjustments?” asks manager Terry Francona. “It was kind of the other way around.” One reason for his late-season success, Lindor says, was bunting — he had nine sacrifices in August. By bunting (which Francona wasn’t necessarily thrilled with, but which he did allow), Lindor learned to track the ball better, setting himself up for success in future plate appearances.
Pirates ace Gerrit Cole is one of several pre-arbitration players who were reportedly unhappy with the salary his team offered him for the 2016 season, Nathaniel Rakich of VICE Sports notes. (Cole will receive $541K from the Bucs after posting a 2.60 ERA, 8.7 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 2015.) But going public with their displeasure in an effort to affect the next Collective Bargaining Agreement might not be the best course of action, Rakich argues. The MLB minimum salary is a pittance compared to what many players get, but it’s still a lot of money by the standards of most MLB fans. And the 1994-95 strike, in which players and owners negotiated through what Rakich calls “grandstanding,” demonstrates the perils of trying to change labor conditions by arguing through the media.

Pirates Notes: Lineup, Nicasio, Cole

By | March 19, 2016 at 8:52pm CDT

Earlier, we heard the Pirates may bat Andrew McCutchen second in an attempt to better optimize their lineup. That’s not the only optimization planned, writes Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Slow footed John Jaso may bat first so the club can take advantage of his high OBP – especially against right-handed pitching. As manager Clint Hurdle notes, the expected effect of an optimized lineup might come out to only one or two extra wins over the course of a season. Of course, it’s also right to note that expected and actual production can diverge for numerous statistical reasons.

Here’s more out of Pittsburgh:

Juan Nicasio’s ability to command the fastball will determine if he can have an impact as a starting pitcher, writes Sawchik. The veteran righty has pitched well this spring with 16 strikeouts, three walks, and no runs allowed in 10 innings. Nicasio is now a viable alternative to Jon Niese, Jeff Locke, or Ryan Vogelsong. However, he might be better suited for relief work since his velocity played up to 96 mph out of the Dodgers bullpen last season. He’s sat 92 to 95 mph this spring as a starter.
While pitching coach Ray Searage gets the credit for the Pirates ample success with starting pitchers, it’s an organization-wide philosophy, writes Rob Biertempfel of the Pittburgh Tribune-Review. Jim Benedict, now with the Marlins, helped to develop the philosophy. Now it falls to others in the organization like Double-A pitching coach Justin Meccage to continue implementing their proven techniques. While baseball strategy is important, Searage cites communication and trust as the keys to the Pirates Way.
The Pirates have changed their policy for pre-arbitration players after the brouhaha with Gerrit Cole, GM Neal Huntington said on MLB Network Radio. Huntington admits the policy was probably outdated before the incident with Cole. Previously, the club followed strict policies for setting pre-arbitration salaries. Teams do this to minimize the need for negotiations over relatively small amounts of money. A set policy can also help to avoid hurt feelings or disputes. Obviously, that wasn’t the case here.

Central Notes: Pirates, Cardinals, Holaday

By charliewilmoth | March 19, 2016 at 4:39pm CDT

The Pirates, rarely satisfied with the unexamined application of conventional wisdom, are considering moving Andrew McCutchen to the No. 2 spot in their order, writes ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. McCutchen has been the Pirates’ No. 3 hitter for more than five seasons, but the Pirates think they might be able to score more runs batting second, because he’ll get more plate appearances, but also because they’ll have his high on-base percentage closer to the top of the order and because he won’t be coming up with two outs and the bases empty so much. “For 47 years, the baddest dude on the team hit third,” says manager Clint Hurdle. “Well, you know what? It shouldn’t be that way anymore. There’s a better way to get it done.” Here’s more from the Central divisions.

GM John Mozeliak says the Cardinals’ signing of Ruben Tejada increases the team’s flexibility, MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince writes. “There is a level of fatigue in this game that was not discussed 10, 15, 20 years ago,” says Mozeliak, whose Cardinals were the victims of what seemed like an unusually long list of injuries last year (although Castrovince notes that they were lucky to have four players, including Peralta, appear in at least 150 games). “One of the things we wanted to do was just make sure, as the season turns to July, August and September, is just make sure our guys are fresh.” Tejada presumably will take over for Jhonny Peralta at shortstop while Peralta recovers from a thumb injury, with Jedd Gyorko returning to the utility role the Cards originally planned for him. But Tejada doesn’t seem to be taking a starting job for granted. “I just came here to play, to do my best,” he says through an interpreter. “Whatever my performance is on the field, there’s going to be a decision made [off of that].”
Tigers catcher Bryan Holaday is generating interest from other teams, Peter Gammons tweets. Holaday is out of options, and the Tigers have two more established catchers in James McCann and Jarrod Saltalamacchia. So there might not be a roster spot for Holaday, unless the Tigers want to carry three catchers. (The Tigers have also experimented with using Holaday at third base and in the outfield this spring.) The 28-year-old Holaday, who split his time between Detroit and Triple-A Toledo last season, has hit brilliantly this year in Spring Training, for what little that’s worth — he has 11 hits, including four homers, in just 21 at-bats. His previous track record, including a career .251/.283/.340 line in the Majors, isn’t nearly so Ruthian, but it’s not surprising there would be at least some interest in a relatively young, cost-controlled catcher.

Braves Claim Jesse Biddle From Pirates

By charliewilmoth | March 19, 2016 at 3:51pm CDT

The Braves have claimed lefty Jesse Biddle, MLB.com’s Adam Berry tweets. The Pirates had designated Biddle for assignment last week. It was originally reported that the Pirates had released Biddle with the intention of re-signing him to a minor-league deal, but perhaps they had simply placed him on release waivers, which would have allowed the Braves to claim him.

Biddle will miss the 2016 season after having Tommy John surgery. The Pirates acquired him from Philadelphia earlier this offseason. He struggled the last two seasons in the high minors, but was once one of the Phillies’ top prospects. MLB.com ranked him the No. 53 prospect in baseball after the 2013 season, when he posted a 3.64 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 5.3 BB/9 in 138 1/3 innings as a 21-year-old at Double-A Reading.

NL Notes: Phillies, Melancon, Holliday

By charliewilmoth | March 19, 2016 at 1:18pm CDT

GM Matt Klentak says that despite Aaron Altherr’s wrist injury and Cody Asche’s oblique troubles, the Phillies are not actively looking for additional outfielders, MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki writes. The Phillies do, however, remain open to the possibility of acquiring a player should the right opportunity arise. “I wouldn’t characterize it as active,” says Klentak. “This is the time of the year where most teams are starting to connect with each other to talk about different scenarios that are going to play out at the end of camp — who is going to make the team, who may not. So those conversations have begun — generally, anyway.” With Altherr on the shelf until midseason and Asche possibly missing the start of the season, the Phillies plan to go with Odubel Herrera, Peter Bourjos and Rule 5 selection Tyler Goeddel in their outfield to start the season.

The Pirates entered the offseason projecting to pay about 10% of their payroll to Mark Melancon. Paying such a steep price for their closer might not have seemed ideal in theory, but GM Neal Huntington says keeping Melancon was the best move in practice, Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes. Melancon ended up with a $9.65MM deal for the year when the Bucs avoided arbitration with him. “We went into the offseason thinking Mark would be a part of the bullpen until somebody compelled us to think differently,” says Huntington. “No one did.” The Pirates instead made other cost-cutting moves, including parting ways with Pedro Alvarez and trading Charlie Morton to the Phillies. Melancon and Tony Watson were nearly unstoppable in the late innings last season, and the Bucs are hoping that they can be again in 2016, likely Melancon’s last year with the club.
Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday is taking well to learning first base, writes MLB.com’s Richard Justice. “I think having played third base for a few seasons in the Minor Leagues definitely helped,” says Holliday. “There’s definitely a little bit of an adjustment period being that close in. But I feel like I’ve played a long time and I’m athletic enough that with the proper training and work, I can do it.” Holliday has never played first in the regular season in his long big-league career, but he’s appeared there in five games this spring. Once the season starts, Holliday still figures to take his share of time in the outfield. Two young outfielders, Randal Grichuk and Stephen Piscotty, already are in line for everyday at-bats, but playing Holliday at first on occasion would potentially allow another younger player, Tommy Pham, more playing time. Brandon Moss will also figure into the Cardinals’ first base and outfield mix.

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