The 2010 MLB Winter Meetings, held in Orlando, Florida, have officially wrapped up. The Pirates entered the meetings looking to fill needs, at Right Field, Shortstop, First Base and Pitching. Early on, they were attached to several players, showing interest in players, such as; Justin Duchscherer(FA), Orlando Cabrera (FA), Kenshin Kawakami(ATL), Brendan Ryan(STL), J.J. Hardy (MIN), Jason Bartlett (TBD).
There were several teams that were active, from the start, on December 6th. We saw the Diamondbacks making trades to receive prospects in return, Orioles receive third baseman Mark Reynolds, ‘Reynolds deal just tip of iceberg for O’s’ Orioles/MLB.com Brittany Ghiroli, writes. The Nationals, who made a blockbuster/excessive deal with Jayson Werth, were actively pursuing Cliff Lee and a possible Zack Greinke trade. We saw the Pirates active early, in showing interest.
On Monday, the Pirates came to terms with left-handed pitcher Scott Olsen, for 1yr/1MM with performance incentives. Olsen, a former Marlin and National, seems to be poised to be the fifth starter, in a newly revamped rotation, though if recent performances continue, he may be transitioned to the bullpen. Also late Monday night, Pirates signed, former Giant and Padre, right-handed pitcher Kevin Correia, to a 2yr/8MM contract, the first multi-year FA signing in years. Correia, started his career in San Fransisco as a reliever, later became a starter. The two previous seasons, in San Diego, he finished with a record of 22 – 21, Correia would find himself somewhere in the middle of the rotation, most likely behind Macdonald and Ohlendorf.
Tuesday, the Pirates found themselves inquiring about Braves pitcher Kenshin Kawakami, in which the Braves want to unload his $6M salary for 2011 and are willing to pay a portion, also made contact with, free agent SS, Orlando Cabrera’s agent. There was interest being shown in, reliever Aaron Heilman, closer Kevin Gregg and spoke with Hiroyuki Kobayashi, for a minor league deal. The only transaction made on Tuesday, was the signing of, former Brave, Matt Diaz for 2yr/4.25M. Diaz, an outfielder, would certainly add support to the platoon plan in right field, though he is not a power hitter, did have career highs in 2009 but was plagued with a thumb injury in 2010.
On Wednesday, it was fairly quiet for the Pirates, only being attached to several rumors circulating through the whole day. The need for upgrade at Shortstop, found the Pirates showing interest, in trading for, JJ Hardy(MIN), who was eventually traded to the Orioles, Jason Barlett(TBD), currently in a ‘Gentlemans agreement’ to be traded to San Diego, and Brendan Ryan(STL), which St. Louis was actively pursuing a trade, with acquiring Ryan Theriot. It was made public, that they were willing to trade Paul Maholm, and were trying to dump Ryan Doumit in anyway possible.
Rounding out the Winter Meetings, was the Rule 5 Draft, where the Pirates were hoping to pick up some depth for the organization. In the first round, they selected SS Josh Rodriguez, which was a phenomenal pick up, out of the Cleveland Indians organization. After passing in the Double-A Phase, the Pirates selected OF Bradley Chalk, from San Diego, and C Travis Scott, from Seattle. Pirates lost P Nate Adcock, who was acquired from Seattle in the Jack Wilson trade, to Kansas City. Adcock had a stellar year in Bradenton, and will certainly missed in the organization. During the draft, to complete the Zack Duke trade, the Pirates received P Cesar Valdez, as the PTBNL, from the Diamondbacks.
All-in-all, the Winter Meetings seemed to be a slight success for the Pirates. The additions of Matt Diaz, will add to the platoon in right field, Kevin Correia will certainly add a to a dismal starting rotation, and Scott Olsen, in my opinion, will ultimately end up in the bullpen. Though the meetings are over, ground work has been laid out, and trades could still be made; Kenshin Kawakami, from the Braves, and Brendan Ryan, from the Cardinals, are two possible trades that have been rumored.
The Winter Meetings are also a prime time to make contacts with free agents, and the PIrates have been linked to; IF Bill Hall, P Bartolo Colon, IF/OF Alfredo Amezaga, P’s Kevin Gregg, Justin Duchscherer, Jeremy Accardo and Aaron Heilman. It seems as though they are attempting to build up the bullpen, giving them room to possibly trade Evan Meek or Joel Hanrahan. The increase in payroll, the Bob Nutting, Pirates majority owner, ensured, seems to be still floating around and with the transactions made, seems to have barely been touched. If there is going to be money spent, it most certainly will happen with a trade/contract extension, or a prior mentioned free agent signing.
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