Neal Huntington made his first deadline move in the middle of the night, acquiring Rangers closer Keone Kela for starting pitcher Taylor Hearn and a player to be named later.
Kela, 25, is under contractual control for 2019 and 2020, fortifying the Pirates' bullpen beyond this playoff chase. Now, Huntington will likely shift his focus to trying to acquire an upgrade to the starting rotation. The club has been linked to two of the bigger names available; however, he may be unwilling to pay the hefty price after already parting with Hearn.
The Pirates, now 55-52, are seven games out of first place in the Central Division and four back in the Wild Card, despite having won 15 of their last 19 games, including the franchise's first 11-game winning streak in 22 years. They were seven games below .500 and 12 1/2 out of first when Huntington told reporters July 8 that he was prepared to sell at the deadline if they failed to gain ground before the All-Star break.
His players met that requirement. On the other hand, the Pirates have just a 7.2 percent chance of making the postseason, according to Baseball Prospectus, and their best hope is a one-game playoff to earn a spot in the NLDS. They've twice lost in that game, including in 2015 when they needed 98 wins to even qualify. Huntington acquired Aramis Ramirez, Joe Blanton, Joakim Soria, J.A. Happ and Michael Morse at the deadline that season.
With his club five games over .500 in 2014, Huntington stood pat, only trading Jason Grilli to the Angels for Ernesto Frieri after he failed to acquire Rays ace David Price. Unsurprisingly, Huntington prefers to make multiple acquisitions, rather than going all-in on one player such as Price.
"The fact we’ve pursued some bigger names for significant acquisitions costs shows to an extent we’re willing to go there," Huntington said Sunday. "Again, I didn’t push it across the finish line in ’14 and that’s on me, but we have a willingness to trade upper level prospects. We have a willingness to trade our top draft picks. ... The challenge becomes history continues to show us the best way to win a World Series is to get to the postseason as consistently and as frequently as possible, because that’s the key is getting there."
Landing Kela counts as a significant acquisition. The right-hander has 23 saves this season and will receive a significant raise in arbitration this offseason. He, Felipe Vazquez, Kyle Crick and Edgar Santana make the Pirates' bullpen comparable to any contender in the National League.
Yet, there is likely more work for Huntington to get done. After all, the Pirates could use an additional starter to bolster a rotation that's had a remarkable month.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported Sunday the Pirates inquired about Rays starter Chris Archer, a 29-year-old under club control through next season with club options for 2020 and 2021. With few controllable arms on the market — the Mets are said to not be shopping Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard — the price tag is likely too high for the Pirates and possibly any other team.
The Padres, equipped with the top farm system in the majors, are even unwilling to meet their demands, according to beat writer Dennis Lin. The Mets seem to have a significant price tag on right-hander Zack Wheeler, who's thrown 13 scoreless innings against the Pirates this season. They seem unwilling to part with Wheeler and any trade could have obstacles considering the organization has three people splitting general manager duties.
Either of those pitchers would require the Pirates to part with either Austin Meadows or Mitch Keller, on top of other prospects. Although there's depth in the system, it was ranked only 16th in the majors by Baseball America before the season and losing Hearn — plus another unknown player — could make Huntington think twice about making another significant move.
Multiple reports suggest the Pirates are also interested in Orioles starter Kevin Gausman, a 27-year-old under contract for two more years, but Baltimore general manager Dan Duquette is also asking for a ransom. After all, controllable starting pitching is the most valuable commodity in the majors, considering how much starting pitching costs in free agency.
Huntington is unlikely to add a starter if he can't land one of the those three since other starters available are unlikely to present much of an upgrade over the starters in their rotation. Although Kela fortifies the back end of the bullpen, Huntington could also choose to add another middle reliever.
Seemingly every team out of contention has made controllable relievers available, and the Pirates could use an upgrade over Steven Brault, their only lefty in the bullpen. Brault, a starting pitcher serving an apprenticeship in the bullpen, has 41 walks in 66 1/3 innings, posting a 5.85 ERA with 17 walks in his last 20 innings.
Richard Rodriguez's command has also been erratic as of late, and Tyler Glasnow still has a 1.46 WHIP and 4.34 ERA, despite improving in some respects since last season.
There are a number of arms still available, including David Hernandez and Jared Hughes of the Reds, Jose Alvarez of the Angels, Craig Stammen or Kirby Yates of the Padres, Tyler Clippard of the Blue Jays or White Sox lefty Xavier Cedeño.
The Pirates have the prospect depth to acquire such arms, and the trade market is in their favor. The Yankees acquired starting pitcher Lance Lynn from the Twins as a possible relief option for two lesser prospects; the Braves acquired Brad Brach from the Orioles for international slot money; and the Mets were criticized for parting with closer Jeurys Familia for two lesser prospects and slot money.
"We’re open to really anything at this point in time and having conversations on all levels and fronts," Huntington said.