LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — As the Yankees aggressively try to add to a roster that now features Giancarlo Stanton and the Cardinals continue to try to acquire a power hitter, Neal Huntington remains mum on the Pirates' strategy.
When speaking to reporters Tuesday at the Winter Meetings, Huntington mentioned Josh Harrison and Andrew McCutchen as though both will be on the roster when spring training begins. He has said the Pirates are exploring external options at both third base and the outfield, but they're also content with players already on the roster.
However, his interest in relief pitching appears to be real. An industry source told DKPittsburghSports.com Tuesday at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort that the Pirates have expressed interest in a number of relief options — both right-handed and left-handed — including Jared Hughes, who pitched for the Brewers this season after the Pirates released him in March.
Like the rest of the market, signings of relief pitchers have come slowly because many of the top targets have yet to sign. Wade Davis, Greg Holland, Juan Nicasio, Anthony Swarzak and Tony Watson are still available.
Luke Gregerson, a 33-year-old right-hander, received a two-year, $11 million contract from the Cardinals, despite having a 4.57 ERA and allowing 13 home runs in 61 innings with Houston this season. Brendan Morrow, who was an important piece in the Dodgers' bullpen during their World Series run, signed a two-year, $21 million contract with the Cubs.
Meanwhile, the Pirates will spend $5.5 million on Daniel Hudson next season. Hudson was their primary offseason acquisition last winter, but the right-hander lost his role as the setup man and had a 1.46 WHIP in 61 2/3 innings.
Despite Hudson's struggles, he could be traded. His salary isn't unreasonable for a reliever with experience pitching high-leverage innings. He's also entering the final year of his contract, so the short commitment would be attractive to some teams.
Also, the Pirates wouldn't ask for much in return since it would present them with an opportunity to either use a young reliever or starter in the bullpen.
The club is reportedly interested in left-hander Xavier Cedeño, a 31-year-old who pitched in only nine games for Tampa Bay in 2017 because of a forearm injury. Huntington prefers to add a lefty because Felipe Rivero is the only one returning on the 40-man roster, but the Pirates do have options.
Huntington told reporters that Steven Brault, a left-handed starter who was the club's minor league pitcher of the year this season, is a candidate to start the season in the bullpen. He had a 4.67 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in 34 2/3 innings for the Pirates this season.
"We have some flexibility and versatility there," Huntington said Monday. "A couple other options internally that we’re taking a look at. It’s a matter of getting the best available guy for us. It doesn’t have to be a lefty. We talk about this year in and year out. Perfect world, yes, but we’d rather have a good right-hander than a mediocre left hander."
Hughes, a 32-year-old right-hander, pitched for the Pirates from 2011-16, posting a 2.82 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 309 1/3 innings. However, his ground ball percentage dropped and his xFIP rose in 2016. The Pirates avoided arbitration with Hughes last January, signing him to a $2.825 million deal.
But when spring training began, Huntington told Hughes that contract could be too expensive for the Pirates. After allowing 12 runs in 9 1/3 innings during spring training, Hughes was released. He signed with the Brewers four days later and was a reliable piece of the team's bullpen.
His ground ball percentage of 66.2 percent was his highest since 2014 and he posted a 1.22 WHIP in 59 2/3 innings. But the Brewers did not tender him a contract last month, making him a free agent.
Hughes was paid $950,000 by the Brewers in 2017.
The Pirates have also expressed interest in a number of other right-handers, including Matt Albers, who had a 1.62 ERA and 0.85 WHIP in 61 innings for the Nationals in 2017.
The Pirates would have a surplus of right-handed options in the bullpen if they sign either pitcher. George Kontos, Daniel Hudson, Edgar Santana, Dovydas Neverauskas, A.J. Schugel and Johnny Barbato are returning.
Although Huntington did not mention Tyler Glasnow specifically, he alluded that Glasnow could begin the season in the bullpen, much like Trevor Williams did in 2017 before he was inserted into the starting rotation.
By utilizing Glasnow or Brault in a long relief role, Hurdle would have two pitchers who can enter the game when a starter struggles early, preventing the Pirates from having to constantly make roster moves to keep the bullpen fresh.
This season, Neverauskas had five stints with the Pirates and Santana had four because of the bullpen being overused. Additionally, many major league teams are examining the importance of long relievers during the regular season because of how managers successfully deployed their bullpens in the playoffs in recent seasons.
"It’s using the old-school model of an apprenticeship, but also use the new-school model to allow Clint to be aggressive and get a guy out of there when it’s obvious in the third or fourth inning it’s not his night," Huntington said. "We can go get him and be strong in the middle. As I said yesterday with Brault, have a guy who can get one hitter or maybe 17 hitters out to keep the deficit and allow our offense to chip back in."
The Pirates are likely waiting to see how much money is available to them before engaging in any extensive talks with free agent relievers. Of course, a trade would give them more to spend.
ESPN's Buster Olney reported Tuesday that clubs across Major League Baseball are under the impression that the Pirates are open to trading Gerrit Cole. Trading Cole would likely put either Glasnow or Brault in the rotation, although the Pirates could make an additional move to replace Cole.
The 27-year-old right-handed pitcher is projected to make $7.5 million through arbitration in 2018. Harrison will make $10.5 million and McCutchen's team option will pay him $14.5 million.
• When Huntington told reporters of his plan for third base in 2018, José Osuna's name was not mentioned. It was a bit odd considering Osuna is learning the nuances of the position in the Venezuela Winter League, and he would give the Pirates more power than either Sean Rodriguez or Adam Frazier.
I asked Huntington about Osuna on Tuesday and it sounds like Osuna will start the season at Triple-A if the transition to third isn't smooth in spring training.
"We’ll see if he’s going to be able to make a very difficult transition at the highest level," Huntington said. "He could be a factor as we talk about a versatile right-handed player that can play first, can play third, can go play right field. Can be a bench option. But like Jordan [Luplow], like our other young players, it might be in his best interest to go get a lot of at-bats, to continue his growth and develop, especially if we think third base could be a viable option for him somewhere down the road."
• Huntington said the Pirates will use the remaining money in their international signing bonus pool to either sign a player or execute a trade.
• In a question-and-answer session at PiratesFest Saturday, Frank Coonelly shouldered the blame for the Pirates being unprepared for Jung Ho Kang's absence in 2017. Coonelly told the audience that he led Huntington to believe that Kang would be able to receive a visa.
But Huntington said it's also his fault that it occurred.
"I appreciate Frank’s willingness to do that. I was right there with him. ... Some of these things can and do get covered up until late. We were embarrassed that we didn’t know about the first two (DUIs), but there was no indication from anybody anywhere that we had spoken with, that we were involved with, that we asked questions of, that there were any signs of problems or anything. We didn’t get it and that’s on us. We understand that."