The Pirates are not giving up on the possibility of adding a left-handed-hitting first baseman through trade, reports Jayson Stark of ESPN.com. Though efforts to date have not proven fruitful, Pittsburgh is still hoping to find a platoon partner for rigty Gaby Sanchez.
The club is still keeping an eye on how camp plays out for long-rumored target Ike Davis and the Mets. Other possible options — like Justin Smoak or Mitch Moreland — could become available depending upon what happens with the several key free agents that remain.
Though GM Neal Huntington says that he is confident with the club's in-house candidates, including Andrew Lambo, Chris McGuiness, and Travis Ishikawa, none have proven to have an above-average big league bat. And Huntington acknowledged that an addition remains possible. "That doesn't stop us from looking elsewhere," he said. "It's just that now, our bar has been set a little bit higher … If there's something that makes us better, and makes sense for us, we'll still look to do that."
Smoak makes sense. Then Seattle can get either Morales or Cruz
Or trade for a center fielder, rotate Hart and Morrison between DH/1B.
What kind of CFer is on the market?
You’d have to speak with the GM’s. But with 29 other teams, finding a seller shouldn’t be mission impossible.
The Rays have a solid prospect in Kevin Kiermaier who might be ready right now. If so, maybe Jennings would be available?
You can’t say there’s no options. There’s always someone wiling to deal, though price is a huge factor.
If Cruz or Morales return to Seattle, Smoak in Pitt seems likely…What would a trade package look like? Smoak for Marte?….I kid I kid.
I think you’d need to throw in two top 100 prospects with Marte to pry Smoak away from Seattle 😉
Ha! The Mariners set the market for trading once promising young 1B when they acquired Logan Morrison, so unfortunately, I think Smoak is worth a good reliever at best.
Bryan Morris, Vin Mazarro, or Jeanmar Gomez. Any 1 of those 3 and maybe a C level prospect.
Ya something like that. Again it would all depend on where Cruz n Morales go.
Locke and Snider for Smoak
I would take that in a hot second!
Great deal! Then the Pirates could use Lambo in RF with Tabata.
Just sign Morales. He’s the only one that has the proven bat. Though he can’t field, he hasn’t been given an opportunity in a while. And since they have a low pick the draft shouldn’t matter as much. Bat 5th behind Pedro
Morales is not atrocious at 1B. I just dont think it is the best way to utilize him
The biggest problem with Morales at first? He hurt himself playing 1B in May and it affected his offense until August. He’s not in shape to play 1B 150 times a year. He’s a DH.
Morales is not going back to the ms because the rangers are so interested in him so bad but they need to trade moreland to the pirates
Who let you near a computer?
None of your business i just know that the pirates want moreland from the rangers and the rangers want kendrys morales in free agency so Grilled Cheese your buccos need mitch moreland you dont need morales
Who let you near a computer?
I can see Texas considering Morales a little more now. That allows them to move Moreland to the Pirates for RP help. Beyond that, I am not quite sure what Moreland is worth at this point in his career. I think in two years he is worth more than now but could also be worth less.
*righty
Lind for Heredia and Kingham?
maybe for one
These guys are still young, and approximately 75% of pitching prospects flame out. Lind has a career .850 OPS against righties, with a .924 OPS last year. He is a lot more of a guarantee as a platoon guy than getting 2 young pitching prospects that aren’t even top 5 in the organization.
And he would be worth only $22.5m over the next 3 years.
How about Gaby Sanchez for Aaron Sanchez and Alberto Tirado. There’s a 75% chance that both pitchers could bust, and Gaby has great platoon splits. Done and done.
I’ll give you Andy Dirks for Andrew McCutchen, McCutchen has a 12% chance of having a down year. Plus Andy Dirks has a sick flow.
I’ll give you Andy Dirks for Andrew McCutchen, McCutchen has a 12% chance of having a down year. Plus Andy Dirks has a sick flow.
Nice argument, really comparing apples to apples. Lind is already better than Gaby and Sanchez and Tirado are better than Heredia and Kingham. No one said Lind for Cole and Taillon, calm down.
How about Gaby Sanchez for Aaron Sanchez and Alberto Tirado. There’s a 75% chance that both pitchers could bust, and Gaby has great platoon splits. Done and done.
82% of stats are made up on the spot.
Lind for Locke.
That’s just greedy, Don Kelly for Locke? I kid I kid
As a Pirate fan, I still like that trade. I’d rather have Kelly than Josh Harrison.
The Pirates may offer Bryan Morris, Vin Mazarro or Jeanmar Gomez, but the Mariners may counter with lefthander Jeff Locke, who bombed after his All Star selection last year.
According to Baseball Reference, Smoak has accumulated 1.4 WAR in four seasons while Locke has accumulated 0.5 WAR in three seasons. The 27-year-old Smoak has a career OPS+ of 97 while Locke has a career ERA+ of 88.
Once you factor in defense and base-running he’s barely a better player than Gaby. There have got to be better options out there.
Daric Barton would be perfect and most likely wouldn’t cost anything (available on waivers after ST is over)
I’d rather have Lambo. Hell, I’d rather have Garrett Jones back instead of Barton.
Smoak to the Pirates. Pirates need a 1B and Seattle needs pitching. This could work for both teams.
The M’s need to make that move regardless, it is time to move on from Smoak.
I agree that this makes a lot of sense for both teams. Smoak for Bryan Morris could probably get done today: Morris is a solid bullpen piece, but right now he doesn’t have a job because Stolmy Pimentel is out of options and the Pirates plan to use him as the swingman.
Agreed. I can see Texas signing Morales especially since Cruz will be in Baltimore.
I still see Morales going to Seattle. They’re the only ones willing to give him multiple years as of right now.
Could be. Now that the market is heating up on those 2…i expect one to be signed with the other possibly same day. I liked Cruz in Texas but IMO, i would rather have Morales, a much more complete hitter.
I think the pressure is finally getting the O’s to start signing players. I think whoever they sign, the M’s will sign the other one. Only think Cruz will go back to Texas if the other two drop out of the race.
I wouldn’t mind having Cruz as Texas’s DH….But i’d LOVE Morales here .
Yeah Morales would do some damage in that newly named Globe Life Park. Probably hit 30+ HRs.
I like the fact Morales is a SH but I do not like the fact he is either a 1b or DH. With Cruz, you can still use him in the OF if needed. I think the Rangers may have an issue at 2b though. The Profar situation is interesting with the shoulder not taking to the treatment.
I hear Mat Gamel is avialable 🙂
Mike Jacobs is available. If Travis is in the mix, why not Mike Jacobs?
If the Jays can sign Morales, maybe Cruz would the Pirates consider a trade for Lind +prospect(s) for Walker?
I don’t think they should fill one hole by creating another huge one. It would have to be a top prospect for the Bucs to consider it, IMO.
Thats why I said if they can sign Morales to be their DH/1B, who would be an ugprade over Lind as he can hit both righties and lefties pretty good. And yeah I agree, although Walker had declined a bit last year from previous years he’s still a top second baseman. He’s also set to hit FA in 2016 and may not be in the Pirates price range. So if its Lind a bullpen arm or two, Happ (or not) and DJ Davis for Walker. I think that seems fair. The Pirates have Alen Hanson coming up too who looks real good. Would help both teams immediately and the Pirates would get a top prospect in DJ Davis
I meant hole for the Bucs. Hanson isn’t ready yet. The only scenario where that works is if the Pirates were to sign a ss (Drew) and slide Mercer over to 2B.
Ahaha I think my bias is showing… whoops
No way Walker leaves
I think Ive heard in the past the GM of the pirates say he would move Walker if he got a good deal. And do you think the Pirates can extend him?
The pirates GM never said that. He wants to be in Pittsburgh as that’s where he grew up. Pittsburgh still wants him. I fully believe he will be a pirate for life.
Cool, didnt know he was a Pitt native. But still, what do you think an extension for him would look like, and how much of a discount would he take to stay with the Bucs?
He will be 31 after his 3 arb years… how bad should the pirates want his 31-35 years?
Hes just not a player a low payroll team extends imo, if you wanna buy out free agent years, do Marte.
If they can extend him next year they could work something like a 5 year deal that would only put him at 33 by seasons end, which is pretty desirable. But I agree Marte is special, lock that kid up
At most I see a 5 year deal. Buying out 2 FA years, possibly a vesting option or two at the end. In terms of money, I could see a 5/$35-40 MIL contract. Coming off of a down year 7 million per year could be a steal. But going forward if they don’t sign him now, obviously his value and $$ will go up.
I disagree with you,Grilled. I think he effectively priced himself out of Pittsburgh unless he signs a real team friendly extension.
I could see the pirates being one of the teams to be in on drew. They could put Alvarez at first and drew or mercer at third. It would get them the left handed bat and drew is much better defensively than alvarez
mike carp is an option here… lefty who can play 1st and outfield, plus sox have a surplus on their bench with bradley and sizemore
Take him!
Carp was solid last year but his BABIP was inflated.
Carp was solid last year. There was nothing inflated about him, except he faced RH pitchers almost exclusively.
215 PA vs RH
28 vs LH
He ate RH pitching alive. 2012 with Seattle, was hurt and performed poorly. 2011 and 2013 was a decent platoon player vs RH pitching.
Trade Sanchez, Keep Lambo, Sign Morales, cut Ishikawa and McGuiness.
Ya because there’s a long line of teams that want Gabby Sanchez.
Filtered FAs and…. Casey Kotchman is the winner.
Jordan Lennerton? Probably a AAAA guy but he rakes at AAA and is only 27. Would be given away for a low level young guy.
They already have Andrew Lambo who is basically the same guy.
Jordan Lennerton? Probably a AAAA guy but he rakes at AAA and is only 27. Would be given away for a low level young guy.
Dear Pirates:
PLEASE take Duda or Davis.
PLEASE!
Sincerely,
EVERY METS FAN
No.
Smoak to PIT for Watson or Wilson from the bullpen. Seems like a win-win for both.
Watson and Wilson are worth more than Smoak. I’ll take Matt Adams for either of those 2, preferably Watson.
That makes way too much sense. I’d love for that to happen. But seeing that they’re in the same division makes that almost impossible.
Watson and Wilson are worth more than Smoak. I’ll take Matt Adams for either of those 2, preferably Watson.
I’d do Morris! but no way on Watson or Wilson. Those were 2 of the the best relievers in the game last year and Wilson could probably start if they stretched him out.
I think Smoak can, and should, be had for a reliever, but not Wilson. Watson… maybe, but I think Bryan Morris would make more sense.
I hear Garrett Jones is available.
Not really, considering he signed with the Marlins…
Pirates still looking for left-handed bat at first base….that is cheaper than Morneau.
…because Morneau worked out so well for the Pirates.
could have maybe given him a chance. a full season here might have been a better story and 6M a year to find out isn’t a bad price considering what they are staring at now.
Morneau looked slow with the Pirates, both in bat speed and agility at first base. Plus, the Bucs really didn’t want to make a multi-year commitment to a guy basically on the downside of his career, and I don’t blame them.
I keep seeing people saying Davis, Moreland, Smoak. Personally I don’t think they are any good. I like Lind, but I want more than a platoon. And I think we need a big RH bat to play 1B and bat 5th. Edwin Encarnacion makes a lot of sense for the Pirates. Gaby could be sent back to platoon with Lind, opening up a spot for Morales or Cruz. A package centered around Gaby, Locke, and Nick Kingham and/or Josh Bell could prove to get a deal done.
To get Encarnacion, Allen Hanson has to be included. And I’m okay with that.
I really dont think many teams want Locke at this point after his astronomic collapse after the AS break. Not saying hes chop liver but his trade value is at rock bottom right now. Not worth much, and the Jays have enough #5 starters we need quality. EE is projected to be a top 50 player in all of MLB, inlcuding pitchers. ESPN fantasy has him ranked as the 8th best player overall. Not trying to use fantasy rankings to evaluate him but it does say something. Plus he has a ridiculously team friendly deal. Gabys trade value is really low right now too. Kingham and Bell both look great but arent top top prospects which is what you would need to land him. Either Hanson or Taillon and Kingham and/or Bell would definitely be needed. BUttttt this is all pretty pointless since the Jays are in win now mode and arent interested in trading EE for prospects sooooo…
Obviously Gaby and Locke wouldn’t be the center pieces. They’d be throw ins along with probably Hanson (Blue Jays 2B of the future), Nick Kingham(or Heredia), and perhaps Josh Bell. Gaby could platoon with Lind, Morales could be signed, and you get an OF and 2B for the future, along with a solid #2 or #3 in the future in Kingham. Locke is a good bounce back candidate, and could develop into a #3 or so. Heck, he was an allstar last year. For the Pirates, Encarnacion fits the Pirates budget, and could bat 5th and protect Pedro. Marte/Polanco/McCutchen/Alvarez/Encarnacion/Walker/Martin/Mercer that is a great lineup.
I may not mind that deal, seems decent enough. But sadly I don’t run the Jays (really wish I did though) and they aren’t sellers in the slightest at this point (with next to no activity this offseason not sure what they are) and likely won’t be trading any major pieces unless the return brings help to the MLB lineup. Fun excercise though
Boy, Brandon Moss would be a good fit. To bad this happened:
mlbtraderumors.com/2010/11/minor-league-transactio…
The Bucs are so cheap that they can never be as lucky as last year!
Luck and cheapness are linked?
Lennerton of the Tigers. He MlB ready, cheap and can hit for average, power and play defense.
I still can’t believe the Pirates have been looking for a legit first baseman since 2009 and a right fielder since 2008. The search continues.
Polanco should/could fix one of those issues. The other one…well…