Migraines, Lee and Lawrence

Not much happening on the Pirate Rumor front, so I was hoping to do a STARS Post on one of the NL Central teams. Unfortunately I have been fighting a migraine most of the day. No I do not believe it was caused by the Jose Hernandez signing.

Then I thought I would do a 2007 Preview/Prediction post. But I think it is still too early for that post.

Thought maybe a Nostradumass post on what DL has in store for the fans before pitchers and catchers report. That caused the migraine to return. The only possible target not yet mentioned that I thought might be a DL target is Travis Lee. DL has had a man crush on him, similar to the one with Nady and Hernandez, for the last few seasons.

According to Rotoworld there has been little interest in Lee this off season. My belief is there is a VERY good reason. He has not had a truly average season since 2003. He is a player that DL has targeted in the past and likely will do so again. This is one of the classic scrap heap pickups DL is good for. I'd expect the rumors to start sometime in February that the Pirates are interested, unless the Yankees actually are interested and sign him. They may be just using him as a bargaining chip against Doug M-alphabet soup (Another of DL's Man Crushes).

The rumors continue to swirl on Brian Lawrence with many teams interested. I actually think this would not be a bad move if the price is right. He is a pitcher who can be a top of the rotation guy (for the Pirates) when healthy but is more likely a number 2 or 3 pitcher at best.

Lawrence is a right handed veteran who should be affordable. The only drawback is him coming back from shoulder surgery. I think he is worth taking a chance on, even if he is looking for a 2 or 3 year deal. An offer of $4M-$5M a season with plenty of incentives built in could land him but may be a bit too much of a gamble.

Rumor has it Lawrence has looked very good in his workouts for scouts and teams. His velocity is right near where it was before surgery and his command had been impressive. He still has the late movement on his sinker and good speed on his slider. He is a ground ball pitcher which will work well in PNC with the short fence in right that is more suited to left handed pitchers.