12/14/14

Pirates' Top Three Moves So Far

The Pittsburgh Pirates have been very busy this off season thus far. They have made many moves in an attempt to create a team that will make it to the playoffs for a third consecutive season. The best move that the Pirates have made so far this off season is the Francisco Liriano signing. This was big, as Liriano had two solid seasons with the Pirates. The starting rotation had been a problem in recent years, but the addition of Francisco Liriano helped solidify the rotation. In two seasons with the Pirates thus far, he has a career record of (23-18) and has pitched two complete games. Another reason why this was a solid signing is that it proved that the Pirates aren't cheap. I have seen many comments in which people were berating Pirates' management and ownership by calling them "cheap". Paying Francisco Liriano $39 million over the next three years? Not cheap at all. The Pirates' second-best move was the signing of A.J. Burnett. Burnett had two solid seasons with the Pirates in 2012 and 2013. He was also a big help in the development of both Jeff Locke and Gerrit Cole. He is also a team leader. Burnett, who will be 38 prior to the start of the 2015 season, realized that his career is coming to a close, and he decided that Pittsburgh is where he wanted to finish. The Pirates' third-best move was the addition of Francisco Cervelli. The loss of Russell Martin was very predictable, so the Pirates needed to get someone to take his place. They traded pitcher Justin Wilson to the Yankees to acquire the Venezuelan backstop. Though he has been a backup for most of his career and that he has been plagued by injury, Cervelli boasts a career .278 batting average and has a career caught stealing rate of 22%. Cervelli was also key because he has caught A.J. Burnett when the two were teammates on the Yankees. The honorable mention out of the Pirates' moves is the addition of Antonio Bastardo. The Pirates needed a left-handed reliever after they dealt Justin Wilson to the Yankees. Bastardo has been a reliable reliever for the Phillies. The Pirates do also have Bobby LaFromboise, but he only has limited experience. The Pirates have been very active so far and it will be interesting to see what other moves will be made prior to the start of the 2015 season.