• Blog
  • Press
  • About
  • Blog
  • Press
  • About
Cover Those Bases

Pirates To Sign Ivan Nova To Three-Year, $26 Million Deal

12/22/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Pittsburgh Pirates agree to re-sign right-handed starting pitcher Ivan Nova on Thursday. 

Nova and the Pirates agree to a three-year, $26 million contract with a $2 million signing bonus. 

The once promising pitcher had a revival in Pittsburgh during the second half of last season, and he has decided to stay with the team that helped him rediscover his once-exciting potential. 


Read More
0 Comments

Source: Pirates To Sign Daniel Hudson To Two-Year Deal 

12/19/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed right-handed pitcher Daniel Hudson, a source confirmed to Cover Those Bases on Monday.

Hudson's deal with the Pirates is for two years and is worth $11 million, the source said. The deal includes $1.5 million in incentives for both seasons based on games finished. They begin to kick when Hudson finishes 30 games, and they will max out if he finishes 60.
​
Hudson will add to the back-end of a Pirates bullpen that has lost two crucial pieces in the last calendar year in Mark Melancon and Neftali Feliz (who is still a free agent at the time of this writing).


Read More
0 Comments

Braves Sign Sean Rodriguez To Two-Year, $11.5 Million Deal 

11/24/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Atlanta Braves have signed super utility man Sean Rodriguez, as Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported Thursday. 

FanRag Sports' Jon Heyman reports that Rodriguez received a two-year, $11.5 million deal from Atlanta. He will earn $5 million in both 2017 and 2018 in addition to a  $1.5 million signing bonus. 

The Braves have been very active thus far this offseason, as Rodriguez is their third notable move. They signed two veteran starting pitchers--R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon--before adding Rodriguez to their lineup. 

Going forward, Rodriguez is expected to mostly play second base with Atlanta. He does have experience at almost every position on the diamond, though, playing first, second, shortstop, third, right field, center field and left field all just last season with the Pirates.

Five teams reportedly showed interest in Rodriguez. The Blue Jays, Pirates and Dodgers were all mentioned as suitors. MLBTradeRumors.com pegged Rodriguez for a two-year, $12 million deal, so he got about what was expected money-wise. 

Rodriguez had a great 2016 season, posting a .270/.349/.510 line with 18 home runs and 56 RBI over 342 plate appearances. According to FanGraphs, he was worth 1.9 Wins Above Replacement. 

--Devan Fink

0 Comments

Pirates extend David Freese on two-year deal 

8/22/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Monday that they have extended third and first baseman David Freese on a two-year deal.

As Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reported, Freese will earn a guaranteed $11 million in the new deal. There is also a team option for 2019 valued at $6 million with a $500,000 buyout. 

According to Heyman, Freese can earn up to $22.5 million over three years on the contract, as the deal includes performance bonuses based on plate appearances. 

The 33-year-old Freese signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Pirates this past March after being non-tendered by the Angels in November.

Most famous for the walk-off home run in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series as a member of the Cardinals, Freese still remains a serviceable option on both sides of the ball five years later.

This season, Freese is hitting .276/.355/.437 with 12 home runs and 49 RBI in 391 plate appearances.

He has posted a 117 wRC+ this season as well as a 3.7 UZR/150 at third base and a -13.1 UZR/150 at first base. Freese has been worth 1.6 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs. 

Prior to signing Freese, the Pirates have $53 million guaranteed to nine players next season with another seven players hitting arbitration. Baseball-Reference projects their 2017 payroll to be at $88.3 million, a 27 percent increase from 2016 if so. 

​--Devan Fink

0 Comments

Blue Jays acquire Francisco Liriano from Pirates

8/1/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
The Toronto Blue Jays spent most of trade deadline day shuffling around their starting rotation, but after the bell sounded is when their biggest deal leaked. 

As first reported by Robert Murray of FanRag Sports, the Blue Jays and Pittsburgh Pirates have struck a deal. Toronto has acquired Francisco Liriano and two top prospects--catcher Reese McGuire and outfielder Harold Ramirez--in exchange for right-hander Drew Hutchinson. 

The 32-year-old Liriano had been one of the Pirates' best pitchers over the past three years, if not their best pitcher. But in 2016, he has struggled, allowing the Blue Jays to potentially buy him on the low in a free agent year. 

The Dominican Republic native has gone 6-11 this season with a 5.46 ERA over 21 starts, numbers that are not great. He has struck out 116 batters over 113 2/3 innings pitched, in line with his career averages but has walked 69, highest in the National League. 

He'll struggle in Toronto if he can't find his location in the hitter-friendly American League East, but at the same time, he could be a great add for them down the stretch. He has playoff experience and had a 3.26 ERA and a 2.54 K/BB ratio from 2012 to 2015.

Liriano's current three-year, $39 million deal culminates at the end of 2016.  

Hutchinson, on the other hand, is another buy-low candidate for Pittsburgh. He is just 25 years old but has never quite broken out as a great starter in Toronto.

This season, in particular, he's been hit around a bit in the Majors, allowing seven earned runs and four home runs while posting a 12-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 12 2/3 innings pitched. In Triple-A, he's pitched to a 3.26 ERA and a 110-35 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 102 innings. 

One positive to Hutchinson is that he is able to be controlled through the 2018 season. And if there is any team that can fix him up, it's the Pirates, who have been known to help many pitchers mechanically, including Liriano. 

--Devan Fink

0 Comments
<<Previous

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Angels
    Astros
    Athletics
    Blue Jays
    Braves
    Brewers
    Cardinals
    Cubs
    Diamondbacks
    Dodgers
    Giants
    Indians
    Mariners
    Marlins
    Mets
    Nationals
    Orioles
    Padres
    Phillies
    Pirates
    Rangers
    Rays
    Reds
    Red Sox
    Rockies
    Royals
    Tigers
    Twins
    White Sox
    Yankees

    Follow @CoverThoseBases
    Picture
    Follow @DevanFink

    Archives

    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photos used under Creative Commons from Keith Allison, Keith Allison