Busy Day For The Pirates

Keeping Up With The Jones’

The Pittsburgh Pirates claimed Brandon Jones off waivers from the Atlanta Braves.  Brandon Jones was DFA’ed when the Braves signed Eric Hinske.  A scouting report on Brandon Jones can be found here, and stats can be found here.

BTW Take:

Jones was dropped repeatedly by the Braves in the depth chart regardless of his readiness due to experienced players being brought into the organization.  He is an athletic and highly touted player much in the mold of many of the outfielders Huntington has acquired in his tenure.  His defense is above average and he is said to have an above average arm in the outfield.  His bat is said to be MLB ready.

While there was speculation a trade was imminent another roster move was made…

 

Steven Jackson DFA’ed

In a less than expected move, but not quite shocking, Steven Jackson was DFA’ed to make room for Jones on the 40 man roster.

BTW Take:

With the number of relievers, quality relievers at that, still available via free agency, moving Jackson off the 40 man roster should not be a surprise.  While Jackson will likely garner some attention, he has a good chance of clearing waivers when similar pitchers are still available and willing to agree to a minor league contract that does not tie up a 40 man roster slot.

When pitchers like Brian Bass and D.J. Carrasco sign minor league deals, the odds another team would take Jackson on a waiver claim seems much slimmer to me.

It is a gamble, but I would call it a calculated risk that Huntington is taking.

 

No Arbitration Hearing For Duke

The Pirates and Zach Duke avoided arbitration by agreeing to a 1 year contract valued at $4.3 M.

BTW Take:

No surprise on a 1 year deal as is customary when dealing with arbitration.  Duke was in his 2nd year of arbitration with one more remaining after this coming season. 

 

What Does This All Mean?  And Thanks For All The Fish.

I believe Jeff Clement will not be on the Opening Day roster with Pittsburgh.  It seems the recent moves point towards the Pirates wanting Clement to get a little more time playing first base in AAA before he takes the field for the Pirates at the MLB level.

With the number of outfielders on the roster, Garrett Jones can resume play at his natural position of first base.  The athleticism in the outfield with the additions of Ryan Church, Brandon Jones and rule 5 pick John Raynor.  Add those names with Young and Moss, and there isn’t much room on the 25 man roster for Clement, Garrett Jones and Steve Pearce.

It has been an interesting offseason so far, but I feel there is yet more to come after the Dotel signing is finalized.

Would the Pirates be daring enough, bold enough, even crazy enough to make a free agent signing that could spur them into the discussion for one of the most improved teams of the offseason?  Would the Pirates be willing to sign an ace?  Yes I am talking about Ben Sheets. 

Why would he sign with the Pirates and why would they try to sign him?

For Sheets:

First, the Pirates can guarantee Sheets has the chance to be on a contending team by years end.  If/when the Pirates are out of it come the trade deadline, they can move him to a contender.

Second, Sheets would have the opportunity to prove he is still ace quality and earn a large payday after the season while pitching in a less stressful environment for most of the season.  Think of it as a minor league rehab assignment while collecting a MLB paycheck and pitching against MLB hitters.

Third, if he led a staff that ended the longest losing season streak in pro sports history, he would automatically be enshrined in the Pirates Hall of Fame and become a legend in the city of Pittsburgh.

Forth, the opportunity to work with the legendary Dave Kerwin and stick it to the Brewers.

For the Pirates:

First, Sheets would provide a true ace on the staff and set up a very nice rotation of Sheets, Maholm, Ohlendorf and Duke. 

Second, it would add a player who could be traded at the deadline for a bounty of prospects or be kept and land a first round pick as a type A free agent.

Third, a signing of Sheets would raise the Pirates payroll and keep the dogs of the union and the commissioners office off the trail of not spending revenue sharing.  The Pirates do have a sizeable amount of cash still available under their self imposed salary cap they could use to lure Sheets to Pittsburgh.

Forth, it would give the fans a sense the Pirates want to win.

Will it happen, no.  Should it happen?  I believe yes.  It is a gamble considering his history of injury problems, but Huntington seems to be a gambling man based on his history of acquisitions.

 

Update: I forgot one Item

KDKA-FM as reported by the Post-Gazette.

A Few Promising Things

I am not trying to drink the Kool-Aid. I am not saying this team will contend.

What I am saying, even with a four game losing streak, there is still a few things to believe as promising.

Even with Maholm having a bad outing, he never should have started his last inning, Maholm still fought and had his team in a position to win when he was finally removed.

The night before, the Pirates battled back to tie the game at five before the bullpen imploded.

Snell pitched very well, being out dueled in Wednesdays game.

Duke has continued to shine.

The pitching staff still lead the NL in ERA at the end of April, a five pretty good teams in Pittsburgh Pirates history did the same. So there is some hope with the pitching staff.

There are plenty of reasons to think this staff has at least 3 legitimate pitchers at the top of the rotation.

Ohlendorf and Karstens, they have even looked good at time.  They are both filling their roles in the rotation the way they should as forth and fifth starters.  The way they have pitched, many teams would take that production from the 4 and 5 spots.

The Pirates offense has not been as outstanding the last 22 innings, but slumps can be expected on any team. 

The best part of this 4 game skid...The Pirates are still at .500 on the season.  As long as the team can get this skid under control, and soon, there is still plenty of reasons to think this team might break the streak.  The key to breaking the streak, the pitching must maintain what they are doing. 

The starting rotation needs to keep from pushing, thinking they need to go 7 or 8 innings scoreless.  The only way that mind set is avoided...the offense needs to step it up and soon.

Injuries:

Jaramillo has stepped in nicely to fill the mitt behind the plate after Doumit went down with a wrist injury.  He has hit better than expected and has provided a little better defense behind the dish.  While Doumit's bat is missed, his glove has been more than adequately replaced.

Bixler has provided solid play at short with Jack Wilson on the DL.  His bat has yet to fully translate to MLB levels, but his defense has been solid. 

The loss of McLouth for 6 games did not help the offense.  Morgan has continued to play well, when not getting picked off when on base. 

The problem for the Pirates right now, they can't afford any more key injuries.  The depth still is not where Huntington would like it to be.  Luckily, the injuries have happened at positions where adequate players were waiting in the wings. 

If the Pirates take a hit in the starting rotation, that could doom the team to that record breaking season of 17. 

Brother In Arms:

I am formally retiring the Lil and Big LaWhiff titles.  Both brothers are playing well.  Andy has recovered from one of the ugliest starts of a season I have ever seen a player have.  His glove has been solid and his bat has translated enough to show he is ready to be the everyday third baseman until a certain someone arrives.

Adam is being 2nd half Adam in the first half.  If he can keep this up the whole season, he has a good shot at 35 HR's this season.  A nice change for a lineup that hasn't had much pop since the early 90's.

 

Game Thread:

The game thread may be up late again today.  Too many things to do and I am still tweaking the new Netbook.

BTW News, Pirates 2009, New Young Buc

Ahhh!

Yesterday, my youngest son had surgery to remove adenoids and to have tubes put in his ears.  Everything went well and he is doing very well.  As a parent you have a tendency to be distracted when your child is about to have an operation, no matter how minor.  Just the thought of your child going under is a scary proposition, no matter how many times you have been through it.  Needless to say, holding him in the recovery room made a huge weight be lifted from my mind.

 

Pirates 2009:

While sitting in recovery holding Nicky as he slept, my mind started wandering back to baseball and the Pirates.  The 4-3 start to the 2009 season is a good thing, like that is breaking news. 

My biggest interest going forward is what will happen first.

You see, I have a belief that it is easier to stay above .500 than it is to get back to .500.  When trying to recover lost ground, teams always seem to press because of a tangible goal of .500.  When a team gets close, then fails, the pressure keeps building.

Failing to reach .500 for a young team, such as the Pirates, seems to always have a snowball affect, more like an avalanche.  When they get close but come a win or two away from the mark, as we have seen a few times in the last 16 years, the team seems to always have that losing streak right then.

A team that is over .500 can endure a losing streak and still not worry of a tangible goal they are failing to achieve, as long as they stay above .500.

So what I am looking for is what happens first.  Do the Pirates have a long winning streak or long losing streak?  If they can attain a long winning streak first, that will go a long way towards breaking the 16 year spiral we as fans have endured.

As for players so far, here are a few things I have noticed:

• Brandon Moss seems to be a little faster than last year, I have been impressed with the speed he has shown so far.  While not blazing speed, he has been impressive none the less.
• Staying with Moss, he has yet to earn a RBI.  A somewhat distressing fact.
• Was I wrong on Nyjer Morgan?  He has been a catalyst for this team with the bat and with his speed and toughness.  He is doing a lot of little things right that have plagued him in the past.  A couple example are breaking up a double play to keep the inning going just prior to Doumit's grand slam.  Another example was taking out the catcher on an excellent hip check from his youth.  While he didn't need to make contact, the play was closer than it appeared as the ball was on it's way home.
• Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson both look like they want to stay in Pittsburgh.  Each has been fantastic, maybe no more so than the fantastic double play they turned against the Reds.
• Zach Duke looks as if he has turned back the clock, or at least hit the same point that Maholm did a year and a half ago.  He seems to be trusting his pitches again and is pitching to all parts of the plate.
• With Maholm, Duke and Ohlendorf all pitching well, getting Snell to stay in a groove rather than grooving too many pitches will be a big hurdle for Russell and Kerrigan to clear.  If Snell finds himself again, the bullpen may not be an issue as they will not be used often.

I fear the warm and fuzzy sensation I have been having about the Pirates, too many times in has turned into a stomach virus the last 16 years.

 

New Young Buc:

The Pirates have acquired Delwyn Young from the Dodgers for two PTBNL.  Look for Luis Cruz to be demoted after Young arrives in Pittsburgh.  Young will likely be used as a utility player who can play outfield and most infield positions save 1B.

BTW Take:

Cruz was on the roster due to Bixler becoming a prospect again in spring training.   This move allows the Pirates to have a bat on the bench, rather than just a glove.  It doesn't make perfect sense, since Young has not played 2B in two years. 

Random March Madness

Pitt was doing well enough in the tournament, I did not want to jinx them with my posting.  Call it my superstitious side, call it the baseball player in me reemerging.  Call it whatever you will, I had to step back from the keyboard for a couple days, and they won both.  The old rule, don't mess with a streak.

Unfortunately, I am back now.  On to the Madness...Random that is:

How's this for a 180:

The Pittsburgh Pirates and Jack Wilson have begun discussions for a contract extension.  Apparently Wilson has initiated the discussions.

BTW Take:

Did I miss something?  For the last few years Wilson has been making statements on how he would retire after his contract was up.  Now he is initiating discussions for an extension?  Personally, I would be a little annoyed with Wilson.  He has basically undermined trade discussions with his talk of retirement.  Now he wants to continue playing.  I can't blame the guy for wanting to stay in Pittsburgh, it is a great city to live in and I miss it dearly. 

Could there be more to it?

Might Wilson be looking at the team as actually being close in the next couple years?  Might he be showing faith in the direction Huntington is going?  Considering how well the rotation has done this spring.  Considering the stars of the Pirates future (McCutchen, Tabata, Alvarez) are very close.  Thinking Andy LaRoche is ready to show what he can do.  Might all those things add up to Wilson having faith in the direction?  Might he see an end to the humiliation, and end to the streak?

Maybe?  Or Jack is full of it and just wants another payday.  You decide.

 

WBC Should Be WBC:

I have an idea for the World Baseball Classic.  Change the name.  It should be the World Baseball Championship.  I want to see a true world champion determined.  No more of this country versus country crap.  Let's abbreviate it and take league champion versus league champion.  I want to see a true World Champion named.  MLB fans could cheer on their representative, Japanese League fans root for their representative.  I want to see who is the best of the best.  Make it a yearly event.  Make a true World Champion!

 

Rumor Update:

My last post was on a rumor of the Pirates hunting for someone for the rotation.  The next day the Ohman rumors started kicking up again.  Now they can be tied together.  If the Pirates can land Ohman, they will be trying to move Burnett to land a fifth starter off the waiver wire heap.  There are going to be quite a few casualties of the 25 man roster in coming days, the Pirates are scouring the wire for a target.

As a side note, I have heard Walkers name in some rumors surrounding the starting rotation, as trade bait not a position switch.

 

Wily Mo No Mo':

The Nationals released Wily Mo Pena.  Please Neal Huntington, look away from the shiny object like Wily Mo looks away from the ball on defense.

 

McCutchen, Tabata, Alvarez:

This spring, all three have shown they are nearly ready.  Look for Alvarez to finish the year in Indianapolis, he should fly through the system in quick order.  Tabata and McCutchen should be in Pittsburgh and soon. 

 

Left Field:

While Nyger Morgan is a fun and energetic guy, he does not belong on a MLB roster at this time.  It is a certainty that McCutchen will not be starting in left to start the season, more of a business of baseball thing than a baseball decision.  This leaves a few candidates for the starting job: Monroe, Salazar, Jones and Hinske.  A platoon may be in order for Monroe and Hinske.  But my money, if I were to bet, is still on Salazar.  Salazar can play better D than either Monroe or Hinske and is no slouch with the bat either.  Jones is the wildcard, I have liked what I have seen of him and he just seems to have that little something extra.  That something that it is hard to put a finger on.

 

Fifth Of Starter:

Ohlendorf has locked up the fourth starter sot in the rotation.  As mentioned earlier, the front office is not happy with the competition for the fifth starter spot and are looking to fill from outside the franchise. 

 

Jaramillo:

It was made official, Jaramillo was named backup to Doumit.  Diaz was sent to Indy.  I look at this more along the lines of wanting to get the better all around guy some more playing time.  Jaramillo is obviously better with a glove and arm, but Diaz has impressed with the bat.  If Doumit goes down for an extended period, look for Diaz to get called up and step into the starter role.

 

BTW:

It is great to be back writing again, I wish my superstition would have won Pitt the championship.  Anyhow, Jon with his beast of the east entry is leading a pitiful pack of prognosticators in the BTW Bracket Challenge.  It is not a pretty sight.

 

In my Sportsocrocy  Mock Celebrity Bracket, I still have a good chance of winning.  I need a win out of Michigan St and North Carolina today and it is nearly locked up.

Rumor

I am still working on details, but here is the latest rumor I have heard from multiple sources.  The Pirates are not satisfied with the starting rotation, as if that is a surprise.

What is surprising?

The Pirates may be close to acquiring a starting pitcher.  Details are fuzzy, but all the rumors surround Huntington and crew not wanting to break camp with Karstens as the fifth starter. 

According to sources, the Pirates have all but locked in on four starters: Maholm, Snell, Duke and Ohlendorf.  While the team is satisfied with what Ohlendorf has shown so far this spring, they are looking at him as a fifth starter solution. 

Huntington is pressing to land another starter before spring training is too far along to allow Russell and Kerrigan a chance to get a good read on the addition.

The possible acquisitions seem endless but the acquisition is not believed to be a free agent pitcher, unless the pitcher is waived or claimed in the coming days.

As I find out more, I will pass on any details.  Hopefully someone with closer sources on the team can verify the rumor.

 

Apologies:

I had a brain fart as I was writing this and spelled Joe Kerrigan's last name Kerrington.  Sorry Joe.  It is corrected now.

Random Spring Madness

Beating the rush to March Madness, I am going to run with some Random Madness...

Starting Rotation:

Right now, the starting rotation looks to have 4 members in Maholm, Snell, Ohlendorf and Duke.  The 5th starter is a pretty ugly battle, but one that Dan McCutchen may be winning.  He has been far from dominant, but he has limited the hits and performed at an adequate rate for a 5th starter.  While his 5.40 ERA is nothing to be proud of, he is showing more than Karstens or Gorzelanny.  Barthmaier has all but sealed a trip to Indianapolis.

The telltale of the whole 5th starter battle should clear up in the coming weeks, whoever gets the bulk of the innings among McCutchen, Gorzelanny and Karstens in the coming weeks will be the winner of the battle. 

Regardless of the winner, when Dumatrait is deemed healthy and his arm strength is back, look for him to step into the rotation immediately unless one of the three start to show something near adequate value.  I'd expect at least one game in the next two weeks to showcase all three pitching.

Then there is always Pedro, Martinez not Alvarez.

Houston, We Have A Problem:

Houston is 1-11 in spring ball.  The question here is simple.  How bad will they be in 2009?  From all reports across the land, they are looking to shed salary and have a farm system that would make Dave Littlefield proud.

If they simply do salary dumps, they could be headed towards breaking the Pirate soon to be record for losing seasons.  There is not much help on the way either.  If they can rebuild the farm with trades of their current talent, the Pirates record will be safe.  I am interested in seeing if they pull a Aramis Ramirez style trade for Lee, or if they hold out for talent in return.

It should make for an interesting start to the season if the Astros dump players.

BTW March Madness:

The time is coming for March Madness.  As in past years, I will be running a March Madness Pool.  If there is a prize, it is yet to be determined, I will have the info up when the link is posted.  I will have the link up in a couple days, or sooner if I find time tonight.  Plan on joining other BTW readers, The Buccos Forum regulars and random bloggers from around the interweb in an intense battle for March Madness Supremacy!!!

 

Here is the Link:

http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/t1/register/joinprivategroup_assign_team?GID=59773&P=pirates

 

IF it requests a password: pirates

 

More info coming.

LaWhiff

Ah, it truly is baseball season, almost.  After reading Dejan Kovacevic's piece on Steve Pearce in the Post-Gazette today, I casually started looking at spring stats for our 6-1 Pittsburgh Pirates.

I damn near choked at this stat line.

Avg - .167, OBP - .167, SLG - .167, Ab -12, SO -8, R- 0, RBI -0

Yes, it looks like Adam LaRoche is in Mid-May form.  Really, that is correct, EIGHT strike outs in 12 at bats.  He has two, count them, two hits.  Both were singles.  He has not drawn a base on balls.  The only time he has touched the plate is during his walk back to the dugout after striking out.  The bright spot, of the four balls he has put in play, fifty percent have been for base hits.

Now, rounding back to the Pearce article, HOW can the Pirates not find playing time for Pearce in Pittsburgh?  Especially early in the season during LaRoche's down time.

With so many unknown quantities coming into the year such as Morgan, Moss, Andy LaRoche, Ohlendorf, Karstens and half the bullpen.  In addition, at some point in the season we will likely see McCutchen and Tabata.  What would it hurt to add one more unknown to the list in Pearce?

If the Pirates can find a taker, and get anything of value in return, trading LaRoche early in the season or during spring may be the best move they could make.  This is a year of discovery for so many players.  Why not take the chance and see if Pearce is also ready for his shot?  

 

Five Questions:

In case you missed the Five Questions installment yesterday, I recommend you take the time to read it.  It is a very good read and well worth the time.  I must say, it is easier to ask questions and have someone else write the post for you.  Thanks Jen, that was a great series of answers. 

Nady and Marte Traded Part Duex, Pearce Recalled, Game 104

Vitals:

SAN DIEGO PADRES (39-65)	RHP JOSH BANKS (2-4, 3.51 ERA)
PITTSBURGH PIRATES (48-55)	RHP JOHN VAN BENSCHOTEN (1-2, 8.27 ERA)
Game Time	7:05 EDT
XM	XM 185
TV	FSN

Nady And Marte to Yankees:

Well, the trade has been finalized, and it looks much better today than yesterday.  Names change and so does the outlook of the future. 

The new players involved are:

Jeff Karstens 25, R/R, RHP

Daniel McCutchen 25, R/R, RHP

Ross Ohlendorf 25, R/R, RHP

Jose Tabata 19, R/R OF

Thanks to Eric for this link to the NY Post article.

No wonder I was receiving so many conflicting reports yesterday, apparently the deal was not done until early today according to Dejan at the PG.

Scout.com has an article up outlining the new players in the Pirates system.

BTW Take:

This deal looks much better, I'll have some scouting reports up later.  McCutchen was considered untouchable over the offseason when teams discussed trades with the Yankees.  Where I was happy with the deal yesterday, I am even more so now.  There are now some power starting pitchers in the Pirates future.

Pearce:

Steve Pearce was recalled today to fill the roster spot left open by Nady.  No official word on who will fill Marte's slot, likely Ohlendorf.

 

 

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Nady and Marte Traded

I am getting conflicting reports, so I'll just say the Yankees are the most common name mentioned. More as I find out.

 

UPDATE: Nady and Marte are heading to the Yankees for 4 players.

Below is a link to each players stats:

Ross Ohlendorf 25, RHP - Was being converted to bullpen before the trade.

George Kontos 23, RHP - Primarily a starter in the minors.

Phil Coke 26, LHP - Primarily a starter in the minors.  (Not considered a top 25 prospect.  Likely nothing more than filler.)

Jose Tabata 19, OF - Soon to be 20, already in AA.  Currently on the DL.

Looking up scouting reports on these guys.  More to come as I find them.

 

UPDATE 2:

PinstripePlus.com has a review of what the Yankees gave up in the trade.

On Jose Tabata:

With an offensive game known more for his ability to hit hard line drives and high batting averages than his developing power, he gives the Pirates a replacement that may not take too long to reach the big leagues.
"Tabata is just special," Yankees hitting coordinator James Rowson said of Tabata. "He's a young hitter but special is just the way to describe him because he can do things that most players can't do.
"He does them and he does them with consistency. He's just that guy, he can hit. There's not much to do with him except toss him some baseballs and let him get after it."

On Phil Coke:

Coke had put together two solid seasons at the high-A level prior to this year but had taken the next step in his development this season after refining a very good breaking ball to go along with a quality changeup and a fastball that had jumped up in velocity to the 91-94 MPH range.

On George Kontos:

Making advancements with his developing changeup and quality big league curveball to go along with his power fastball and power slider, Kontos had 103 strikeouts in nearly 107 innings. His 91-94 MPH fastball that can hit 96 MPH at times and his plus slider makes some scouts believe he could be a nice addition in the back-end of a big league bullpen someday.

On Ross Ohlendorf:

Once a sinker-ball starting pitcher, the Yankees moved him to the bullpen to take advantage of his power arm. Pitching for Triple-A Scranton at the time of the trade, going 1-1 with a 4.03 ERA, he had posted a 6.53 ERA in 25 appearances for the big league club earlier in the season before his demotion in late June.

There is much more on them all in the article.

 

BTW Take:

The more I read, the more I start to like the long term affects of this trade.  Tabata looks to be a very strong addition that could be with the Pirates as soon as 2010 depending on health.

Of the three pitchers, Ohlendorf looks to be the closest to MLB ready, but may be the one with the more limited pitching repertoire.  Kontos and Coke look like the other acquisitions Huntington has made in recent months, hard throwers that could mix in well with the soft tossing rotation we currently have.  Coke scares me being 26 at AA, I need to look a little longer to see if he missed time due to injury.

 

 

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