By Tim Dierkes | at
Pirates outfielder Nate McLouth, who has an arbitration hearing scheduled for Tuesday, has a feeling that the chances of reaching an agreement have increased since he last spoke to MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch.
The two sides have a $1.05MM gap – McLouth submitted $3.8MM, while the Pirates submitted $2.75MM for his first arb year salary. Langosch notes that the Bucs haven’t had a hearing since Jack Wilson’s in ’04.
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MLB.com’s Jen Langosch has pieced together a list of the Pirates’ non-roster spring training invitees. Check ’em out:
RHP Denny Bautista, RHP Chris Bootcheck, RHP Jason Davis, LHP Daniel Haigwood, RHP Juan Mateo, RHP Daniel McCutchen and RHP Brian Slocum; catchers Eric Kratz and Miguel Perez; infielders Shelby Ford, Garrett Jones, Pedro Lopez, Anderson Machado and Andy Phillips; outfielders Andrew McCutchen, Craig Monroe and Jeff Salazar.
Friday is the official report date for pitchers and catchers.
By Tim Dierkes | at
4:54pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman lists five teams considering Abreu: the Angels, Braves, Pirates, Reds, and Mets. The Pirates are a new one.
3:58pm: A source told Crasnick that the Angels have "strong interest" in Abreu. The Braves remain in the mix.
10:33am: Here’s what ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick had to say regarding the market for Bobby Abreu yesterday:
While Seattle and Atlanta are monitoring Abreu’s status and staying in contact with his representatives, the Mets continue to maintain they’re not in the mix.
Meanwhile Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News wrote this morning:
A Mets official did not rule out signing free-agent outfielder Abreu, but indicated that any contract likely would have to be for one year at less than $4MM.
Other teams loosely linked to Abreu in recent days: the White Sox, Angels, and Dodgers. Abreu is in line for a huge pay cut from last year’s $16MM. The remarkably quiet market for Abreu and other corner outfielders this offseason is tied strongly to defense. ESPN’s Peter Gammons talked to a GM who said a few days ago:
I still believe that one of the factors that has hurt some of the good offensive free agents this winter, like Manny Ramirez, Abreu and Adam Dunn, is the concern about how many runs they give back defensively. There is a great deal more appreciation for defense than there was a decade ago.
By Tim Dierkes | at
According to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Nate McLouth’s arbitration hearing is scheduled for February 17th. He says the $1.05MM gap between McLouth and the Pirates on the player’s ’09 salary has "frozen" talks. Biertempfel says the team’s last hearing was in ’04, when Jack Wilson won.
This is McLouth’s first arbitration year; he’s under team control through 2011.
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Pirates president Frank Coonelly hosted a chat with fans over at MLB.com Wednesday afternoon and discussed various hot stove issues. We’ll summarize it here, but it’s also definitely worth checking out.
By Tim Dierkes | at
8:46pm: Kovacevic says pitcher T.J. Beam was designated for assignment by the Pirates to make room for Hinske. Beam, 28, posted a 4.14 ERA and 4.7 K/9 in 45.6 innings for the Bucs this year.
12:45pm: According to Dejan Kovacevic, the Pirates announced the signing of Eric Hinske today. He’ll earn $1.5MM plus a possible $1MM in incentives.
Hinske was one of the best free agent bargains a year ago, as he hit .247/.333/.465 for the Rays at an $800K salary. He’ll be a useful, versatile player for the Bucs if kept away from lefties.
By Tim Dierkes | at
FRIDAY: Dejan Kovacevic has the contract details – Maholm gets $14.5MM guaranteed. $13.75MM for his three arb years, plus a $750K buyout for his $9.75MM 2012 club option.
THURSDAY, 9:15am: Maholm gets three years plus a club option for a fourth, says Kovacevic. That option covers Maholm’s first free agent year.
Maholm, 26, posted a 3.71 ERA in 31 starts in 2008.
8:08am: According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Pirates reached an agreement on a multiyear deal with starter Paul Maholm. The deal is expected to cover his three arbitration years. I imagine Maholm will earn something in the $12-13MM range for those three years.
This was Maholm’s first arb year; he submitted $3.8MM while the Pirates countered at $2.65MM ($3.225MM midpoint).
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4:30pm: Kovacevic says Hinske and the Pirates have agreed to terms one a one-year deal with a base salary around $1.5MM.
THURSDAY, 12:20am: Dejan Kovacevic says Friday is more likely than Thursday for Hinske to sign.
WEDNESDAY, 5:23pm: Jon Heyman agrees. He says the Pirates are in serious discussions with Hinske, working towards a deal worth roughly $1.5MM.
11:22pm: Ken Rosenthal says the Pirates are closing in on a one-year contract with Hinske. An agreement could be reached Wednesday that would pay Hinske $1-2MM plus incentives. Dejan Kovacevic also has the story, noting that the signing would end Doug Mientkiewicz’s time in Pittsburgh.
7:35pm: Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette confirms that the Pirates have had contract discussions with Hinske and believes that the two sides "could be close to an agreement."
TUESDAY, 5:44pm: Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com has learned from a baseball industry source that the Pirates are targeting free agent outfielder Eric Hinske.
The Pirates could use Hinske as their fourth outfielder and primary pinch-hitting option. According to Langosch’s report, "discussions between the two sides have increased to the point where the Pirates may be bringing Hinske to Pittsburgh before the end of the week."
By Tim Dierkes | at
Links for Thursday…
By Tim Dierkes | at
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
The Pirates are pursuing free-agent outfielder Luis Gonzalez, with their most recent discussion having occurred late last week.
He adds that two other clubs are also pursuing Gonzalez for a fourth outfielder type role. Kovacevic says the Bucs are eyeing other free agent outfielders as well. One player not on their radar is Kris Benson.
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