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Offseason In Review: Pittsburgh Pirates

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The Pirates are next in our Offseason In Review series.

Major League Signings

Notable Minor League Signings

Trades and Claims

Notable Losses

Summary

The Pirates ramped up their free agent spending this offseason, adding three significant big league contracts and plenty of interesting players on minor league deals for new manager Clint Hurdle.  GM Neal Huntington also cut ties with a trio of disappointing arbitration eligible players in Duke, Milledge, and LaRoche.

CorreiaThough the signing did not generate national headlines, the Correia deal was significant for the Pirates franchise.  It had been 12 years since the Bucs signed a domestic free agent pitcher to a multiyear deal.  Why take this leap for 2011?  Correia is a sleeper, a relatively young righty who can get groundballs and hopefully supply 200 innings.  If he can regain his '09 form, he'll step in as the staff leader as Paul Maholm's Pirates tenure winds down.

The Pirates' 2011 rotation could feature Correia, Olsen, and James McDonald, all recent additions.  Duke is gone, and while Maholm is penciled in he's probably trade bait.  Huntington took over as Pirates GM in September of 2007, and for all his machinations over the last three-plus years he hasn't brought in any decent Major League starting pitching aside from Ross Ohlendorf.  Plus, the Pirates overestimated what they had by giving multiyear deals to Maholm and Ian Snell.  The next two waves of starting pitching must transform the Pirates, with McDonald, Bryan Morris, Rudy Owens, and Jeff Locke in the near-term and Jameson Taillon, Stetson Allie, and Luis Heredia further down the road.

The Pirates had to overpay a bit to secure Overbay and Diaz, though both veterans have limited upside.  In the best case Overbay hits like he did over the season's final four months (.261/.351/.458) and a Diaz/Garrett Jones right field platoon plays to each player's strength.  I can't envision either Overbay or Diaz being flipped for anything significant, so these might be respectability signings.  Those types of acquisitions haven't worked out well for the Pirates, with Akinori Iwamura and Ramon Vazquez coming to mind.

I'm more intrigued by the Pirates' minor deals.  Beimel and Veras should augment the bullpen at minimal commitments, while Marte, Fields, and Atkins were all highly-regarded third basemen in years past.  The Pirates didn't have success trying to upgrade over Ronny Cedeno at shortstop, though they reportedly checked in on J.J. Hardy, Jason Bartlett, and Brendan Ryan.  Rule 5 pick Rodriguez should have a big league future, whether at shortstop or second base.  Anything Valdez provides is a plus, since the Bucs were set to non-tender Duke anyway.

The Pirates have yet to top 67 wins in a season during Huntington's tenure, and have an active streak of 18 consecutive losing seasons.  Milledge and LaRoche were supposed to become solid regulars, but both have already been cut loose.  Formerly extended players Ryan Doumit and Paul Maholm are nearing the end of their Pirates careers as well.  Pirates fans are probably in for two or three more years of stopgap veterans, though position player talent is on the rise with Andrew McCutchen, Jose Tabata, Pedro Alvarez, and Neil Walker.  If Huntington is to last to see Taillon's big league debut, he'll need the aforementioned second wave of starting pitching to break through to some extent in 2011.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Quick Hits: Manuel, Doumit, Twins, A’s

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Some links to check out as you celebrate Valentine's Day…

  • Phillies manager Charlie Manuel says he won't want to discuss an extension with the Phillies anymore if he doesn't have a new deal by the time the season starts, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. Manuel's contract expires after the season and his agent has been discussing a deal with the Phillies. 
  • Yahoo's Tim Brown chronicles Giants manager Bruce Bochy's path to last year's World Series championship.
  • Pirates GM Neal Huntington says Ryan Doumit "has value" to Pittsburgh, but admitted that the team could trade Doumit before Opening Day, according to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Twitter). As MLBTR's Mark Polishuk recently explained, it's a make or break year for the catcher/outfielder.
  • The Twins agreed to sign Dominican right-hander Felix Jorge for $250K, according to Ben Badler of Baseball America. Jorge has an 88-91 mph fastball with "a good delivery, a loose arm and [some] feel for spinning a solid curveball," according to Badler.
  • A's GM Billy Beane told John Sickels of Minor League Ball that he likes the idea of trading draft picks. Click through for an interesting read on what Beane looks for in a pitcher and how he evaluates some of the current Athletics.
  • Be sure to check out RotoAuthority if you're a fantasy player wondering how this year's crop of shortstops looks.

Quick Hits: D’Backs, Doumit, Wagner, Marlins

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Chuck Tanner, manager of Pittsburgh's last World Series championship team, passed away today at age 81.  Tanner played eight seasons in the majors but gained more fame as a manager, compiling a 401-414 record manning the benches of the White Sox, Athletics, Pirates and Braves from 1970 to 1988.  Tanner's lone postseason appearance came in 1979 when he led the "We Are Family" Bucs to victory over the Orioles in a tight, seven-game World Series.  The MLBTR team sends its condolences to Tanner's friends and family.

Some news to wrap up the week…

NL Central Notes: Cardinals, Ohlendorf, Marcum

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On this date in 1916, the Cubs purchased future Hall of Famer Three Finger Brown from the Chicago Whales. The right-hander's career was over 12 appearances later, but he retired with a 2.06 ERA (139 ERA+) and 239 wins. Here's the latest on some of the Cubs' division rivals…

  • The Phillies have watched former Reds reliever Jon Coutlangus throw recently, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The lefty logged 41 innings for the 2007 Reds and has a 3.94 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 189 2/3 minor league innings.
  • Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch points out that few players have put St. Louis on their no-trade lists in recent years.
  • Fernando Gonzalez isn't the only Dominican prospect the Cardinals signed. Goold reports that the Cardinals have agreed to sign 17-year-old outfielder Jorge Araujo. Vice president of player procurement Jeff Luhnow says the left-handed hitter is "toolsy."
  • Paul Swydan of FanGraphs asks whether Ross Ohlendorf used advanced stats to beat the Pirates in arbitraiton and concludes that it wasn't necessarily to Ohlendorf's advantage to use anything more complicated than ERA, WHIP and K/BB. The right-hander beat the Pirates in arbitration yesterday after winning one game in 2010.
  • The incentives in Shaun Marcum's deal were part of the reason the Brewers were able to avoid arbitration with him. MLB.com's Adam McCalvy has the details on Marcum's incentives, which provide the former Blue Jay with a $200K bonus if he reaches the 200-inning plateau.

Ohlendorf Beats Pirates In Arbitration Hearing

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Ross Ohlendorf won just one game last year, but it didn't take him long to pick up his first victory of 2011. The right-hander beat the Pirates in arbitration, MLBTR has learned. Ohlendorf will earn $2.025MM instead of the $1.4MM salary the Pirates had offered.

Ohlendorf, a super two player, posted a 4.07 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 to go along with his 1-11 record last year. The 28-year-old has a 4.40 ERA in 354 big league innings with the Pirates and Yankees. He set himself up for higher future salaries by beating the Pirates, who have now come to terms with all of their arbitration eligible players.

As MLBTR's Arb Tracker shows, 12 arbitration eligible players, including Josh Hamilton and Jose Bautista, remain unsigned. Jered Weaver's hearing with the Angels is today.

Quick Hits: NL Central Grades, J. Upton, Salazar

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Here are some items of note for Feb. 8. On this day in 1999, the Red Sox's arbitration hearing with Midre Cummings was decided by Elizabeth Neumeier, marking the first time a woman had decided an arbitration case since its adoption by MLB in 1974. The preceeding 409 cases had all been decided by men.

  • With Spring Training nearly upon us and most teams merely making a few roster tweaks here and there, Jayson Stark of ESPN.com hands out his grades for the best and worst offseasons among the residents of the NL Central. The Brewers, on the strength of bolstering their rotation with Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum, fared the best, writes Stark. The Cubs did well to retool a bit with the additions of Matt Garza and Carlos Pena, while the Pirates and Reds got so-so marks for their modest changes. The rebuilding Astros are pulling up the rear, and the jury is still out on the Cardinals, who have an outstanding issue to tend to with respect to a potential extension for Albert Pujols.
  • Diamondbacks GM Kevin Towers was never really interested in dealing Justin Upton this offseason, writes Tom Verducci of SI.com, but he felt it prudent to gauge other teams' interest. No offers were of particular interest to Towers, according to Verducci. Towers is interested in seeing what Upton can do under the tutelage of new hitting coach Don Baylor, under whom one-time uberprospect Carlos Gonzalez realized his full potential with the Rockies in 2010.
  • Padres infielder Oscar Salazar has cleared waivers after being designated for assignment, has accepted his minor league assignment and will be in Major League camp, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com.

Pirates, Ohlendorf Go To Arbitration

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The Pirates and pitcher Ross Ohlendorf had their arbitration hearing Tuesday, tweets Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and a decision is expected on Wednesday.

Ohlendorf is seeking $2.02MM while the club is offering $1.4MM, as our Arbitration Tracker shows, leaving a midpoint of $1.71MM. The hearing marks the first of the 2010-11 offseason and the Pirates' first since Jack Wilson in 2004, blogs Rob Biertempfel of TribLIVE.com.

Ohlendorf, 28, has started 50 games over the past two seasons with the Bucs, and has a career ERA of 4.40 in his four-year career spent with Pittsburgh and the Yankees. He earned $439K last season, when he went 1-11 and posted a 4.07 ERA in 21 starts.

In addition to Ohlendorf, 12 other arbitration-eligible players have not yet settled their 2011 salaries: Carlos Marmol, Delmon Young, Hunter Pence, James Loney, Jered Weaver, Jeremy Guthrie, Jose Bautista, Josh Hamilton, Kelly Johnson, Luke Scott, Rickie Weeks and Shaun Marcum.

Of course, they could have hearings or avoid hearings by settling on one- or multiyear deals.

MLB Teams Sign Six Dominican League Prospects

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The Dominican Prospect League announced that Major League organizations have signed six of its top prospects. Here are the details on the deals:

  • The Yankees signed 20-year-old center fielder Freiter Marte for $100K. Marte had been selected to play in the DPL All-Star Game.
  • Elvis Rubio, who was also chosen to play in the All-Star Game, signed with the Brewers for $95K. Rubio is a 17-year-old corner outfielder.
  • If you think Rubio is young, look at who the Rays signed. Tampa Bay signed 16-year-old left-hander Luis Cepeda for $60K. The Rays get another DPL All-Star in Cepeda.
  • The Cardinals signed Fernando Gonzalez, a 16-year old right-hander, for $66K. Gonzalez has drawn comparisons to a young Leo Nunez, according to the league.
  • The Indians signed Kevin Calderon for $80K. The 16-year old made this year's All-Star team and is considered a top defensive catcher.
  • The Pirates signed Leandro Rodriguez, a 17-year-old right-hander with a loose arm, for $80K. 

Make Or Break Year: Ryan Doumit

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114100605028_Giants_v_PiratesIt's hard to imagine a scenario that would keep Ryan Doumit in a Pirates uniform past the 2011 season.  Even if Doumit had a Jose Bautista-esque massive breakout next year, it would only hasten his depature from PNC Park, since the Bucs would jump at the chance to acquire some prospects for a suddenly-valuable asset.

Why is Doumit's future in Pittsburgh so dim?  Doumit signed a three-year, $11.5MM extension following an impressive 2008 season that saw the catcher post a .318/.357/.501 slash line in 465 plate appearances.  Since then, however, Doumit has been beset by injuries and has only managed a .728 OPS in 760 plate appearances over the last two seasons.

Doumit has club options worth $7.25MM in 2012 and $8.25MM in 2013, and the Pirates must decide on both options at once following this season.  It's a no-brainer that Pittsburgh will take the $500K buyout rather than exercise the two options, given Doumit's struggles and durability issues since 2008.  The Pirates have already been openly shopping the switch-hitter this winter and last, and have offered to pay a healthy chunk of Doumit's salary, but no takers have been found.

The challenge for Doumit in 2011 is to both stay healthy and to play well enough to impress his next team.  Even if Doumit avoids the DL next year, though, playing time could be hard to come by for the 29-year-old despite his experience at three positions.  Garrett Jones and Matt Diaz comprise a lefty-righty platoon in right field, Lyle Overbay will start most days at first base (with right-handed hitting Steve Pearce as the top backup) and Chris Snyder is slated to catch. 

Doumit's best chance at playing time is a platoon with Snyder.  Doumit has a .796 career OPS against right-handed pitching, including an .832 OPS against righties last year.  (Snyder's career OPS against righties is just .687.)  The downside to that plan is Doumit's career-long defensive struggles as a catcher, which is why the Pirates tried him at other positions in the first place.

When it comes to a catcher with pop, however, most teams are willing to overlook defensive problems on a short-term basis, especially for a catcher that can hit right-handed pitching.  A catcher-needy team could make a move for Doumit at the trade deadline, and for Doumit's sake, an AL team would be the best option so he could get off the field and pick up a few DH at-bats.

Doumit is too much of a defensive liability to be an everyday catcher and a .796 OPS against right-handers isn't enough to sustain a full-time job at first base or in right field either.  Doumit's future is likely as a platoon or bench option, but if he hits well next season, he should have no trouble finding a Major League contract in 2012 given his multi-positional experience and solid bat from the left side of the plate.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI

Olney On Maholm, Carmona, Alderson

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Spring Training hasn't begun yet, but ESPN.com's Buster Olney gets a head start on the summer's trade rumors by listing some pitchers who could be available this July. James Shields, Joe Blanton and Edwin Jackson are possible trade candidates, but as Olney points out, it's entirely possible that those starters won't be available and others will be on the block. Here are the details:

  • The perception around the league is that the Pirates have been willing to talk about trading Paul Maholm. The left-hander is likely a year away from free agency, so the Pirates could shop him if they aren't interested in keeping him. Maholm earns $5.75MM this year and after the season the Pirates can exercise a $9.75MM buyout for 2012 or pay a $750K buyout.
  • Fausto Carmona is "going to draw a lot of interest," but the Indians would ask for top prospects in exchange for Carmona who is young (27) and signed to a team-friendly contract. 
  • Justin Masterson will "continue to draw interest because of his past success and his versatility," Olney writes.
  • Olney guesses that Mets GM Sandy Alderson would prefer not to talk to the Wilpons about their financial situation. By avoiding those conversations, Alderson can focus on baseball and avoid being drawn into a legal case.
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