1/12/15

Pittsburgh Pirates Non-Roster Invitees

So far, the Pirates have invited 18 players to spring training. While many of these players are minor league prospects, there are some of them who have some MLB experience. Out of the 18 players, pitchers Collin Balester, Charlie Leesman, Brad Lincoln, Clayton Richard, and Blake Wood, and outfielder Gorkys Hernandez all have MLB experience. Balester, 28, has pitched in 73 career games for the Washington Nationals and Detroit Tigers. He has a career record of (7-16) with a 5.30 ERA. Leesman, 28 in March, has pitched in nine career games for the Chicago White Sox. He has a career record of (0-1) with a 9.00 ERA. Lincoln, 29, has pitched in 99 career games for the Pirates, Toronto Blue Jays, and Philadelphia Phillies. He has a career record of (9-11) with a 4.74 ERA and one save. Richard, 31, has pitched in 147 career games for the Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres. He has a career record of (46-47) with a 4.33 ERA. He has pitched three complete games with two of them being shutouts. Wood, 29, has pitched in 115 career games for the Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Indians. He has a career record of (6-7) with a 4.39 ERA and one save. Hernandez, 27, has played in 70 career games for the Pirates and Miami Marlins. He has a career batting average of .192 with three home runs and 13 runs batted in. Every year, there are usually one or two players on the list of non-roster invitees who make the team. Out of the 18 non-roster invitees, I would say that the most likely candidate to make the team is Clayton Richard. The reason for my belief is that he has the most MLB experience and that he can be a good guy to put in the bullpen for longer innings. Also, he can be used as a starting pitcher if need be. It will be interesting to see how spring training plays out and who will be on the Pirates' 25-man Opening Day roster.