Live Wire: Turley traded for cash to Athletics ... PNC Park to be vaccination site ... 44 days until first spring training game

Welcome to our new Pirates Live Wire, a round-the-clock feature that offers news that's fast, friendly to use and fun. The previous week's entry is right here.

Let's jump right in ...

TURLEY TRADED TO ATHLETICS
FOR CASH CONSIDERATIONS

1:55 p.m. Thursday: Left-hander Nik Turley has been traded to the Athletics for cash considerations.

Turley was designated for assignment Tuesday after the Pirates claimed outfielder Troy Strokes Jr. off waivers.

He went 0-3 with a save over 25 appearances in 2020, pitching to a 4.98 ERA over 21 2/3 innings. -- Alex

PIRATES PREPARING TO USE
PNC PARK AS VACCINATION SITE

12:15 p.m. Thursday: The Pirates are working with Allegheny Health Network and Highmark to use PNC Park as a COVID-19 vaccination center, a source tells DK Pittsburgh Sports.

"We have been actively meeting with our medical partners at AHN and Highmark to prepare to potentially utilize PNC Park as a COVID-19 vaccination center in the near future, as the ballpark can allow for mass vaccinations to be done in a safe and socially distant manner," the team sent in a statement to DK Pittsburgh Sports. "Since the beginning of this pandemic the Pirates organization has done everything we can to help ensure the needs of our community are met.  We will continue to do our part to ensure that, together, we will make it through."

In recent days several Major League teams have offered up their stadiums for mass vaccinations, including the Mets, Dodgers, Padres and Astros. -- Alex

PIRATES CLAIM OUTFIELDER
STOKES JR., DESIGNATE
TURLEY FOR ASSIGNMENT

 3:45 p.m. Tuesday: The Pirates claimed outfielder Troy Stokes Jr. Wednesday, adding him to their thin pool of outfielders on the roster.

To make room for him, left-hander Nik Turley was designated for assignment.

Strokes, 24, missed all of last season with the Tigers after undergoing surgery on his hand to repair a broken hamate. He was added to the Brewers' 40-man roster after the 2018 season, where he won a minor-league Gold Glove and was named a Southern League mid-season All-Star. However, he struggled to make the leap to class AAA, slashing .233/.341/.385 with nine home runs and 40 RBIs, and was designated for assignment in September of 2019.

He has not played a game in the Majors and has two option years remaining. While he has played all three outfield positions, he has mostly been used as a left fielder.

He is one of five true outfielders on the Pirates' roster now, joining Bryan Reynolds, Gregory Polanco, Anthony Alford and Jared Oliva.

Turley went 0-3 with a 4.98 ERA over 21 1/3 innings with the Pirates last year, being one of the few relievers to actually make it through the full season without a trip to the injured list. If he passes through waivers, he has enough service time to elect free agency, if he so chooses. -- Alex

MANFRED SAYS TO PREPARE
FOR FULL 162-GAME SEASON

8:40 p.m. Monday: A month ago it seemed the Major League season could be pushed back in order to make sure players were vaccinated before they came to spring training.

That won't be the case, as Bob Nightengale reports that commissioner Rob Manfred told teams to prepare to report to spring training on time and for a full season. 

The Pirates haven't announced a report date for pitchers and catchers, but their first spring training game will be Feb. 27. -- Alex

SPRING TRAINING
COUNTDOWN: 47 DAYS

12:00 a.m. Monday: Well, that's it for football. Just 47 more days until the Pirates play their first spring training game against the Red Sox. A time hasn't been announced yet. There's also hockey starting Wednesday, if that interests you. -- Alex

HAYES MAKES
KID'S DAY

1:00 a.m. Sunday: Let's make this entry short and sweet -- Ke'Bryan Hayes absolutely made this kid's day at a Players Alliance event in Houston. -- Alex

DAVID ECKSTEIN
STEPS DOWN

4:55 p.m. Friday: A source tells DK Pittsburgh Sports that special assistant to baseball operations David Eckstein has voluntarily decided not to return to the Pirates' coaching staff so he can spend more time with his family.

Eckstein, the brother of hitting coach Rick Eckstein, filled in where needed the last two years, whether it was helping offensive game planning, replay work or actually grabbing a glove and playing in the field during sim games during summer camp.

Derek Shelton said several times last year that he was grateful to have David on staff.

"I can't tell you how just thankful and the great fortune that I have to be able to have David alongside and be able to talk," Shelton said during summer camp. "His lens into baseball is very different than mine. I never played on the field in the big leagues. He established himself as a player in the big leagues. He gets to see things in ways from his lens that gives me information to make better decisions."

Eckstein played 10 years in the majors and was a two-time All-Star and World Series champion. He was named the 2006 World Series MVP.

All of the main positional and assistant coaches on staff are returning next year. -- Alex

HARTLIEB THROWS FIRST
BULLPEN OF NEW YEAR

11:30 p.m. Thursday: Let's take a look in Geoff Hartlieb's offseason:

Hartlieb rehabbed at this facility last offseason, so he is sticking with what worked for last year. -- Alex

DEL POZO, RIDDLE
SIGN MILB DEALS

6:15 p.m. Thursday:  Miguel Del Pozo and JT Riddle are going to play on.

Both signed minor-league contracts Thursday. Del Pozo is going to the Tigers and Riddle the Twins.

Del Pozo walked eight and allowed seven runs over 3 2/3 innings with the Pirates in 2020. Riddle batted .149 with an OPS+ of 8 over 69 plate appearances. Both elected free agency this offseason after being designated for assignment. -- Alex

PIRATES ADD RIGHTY DE JONG
ON MINOR-LEAGUE DEAL

12:55 p.m. Wednesday: The Pirates finally made their first external free agent signing this winter, adding right-hander Chase De Jong on a minor-league contract.

De Jong, 27, has pitched in at least one game the last four years, going 1-5 with a 7-12 ERA over 15 career appearances in the Majors, including 10 starts. He allowed 12 runs over 7 1/3 innings with the Astros last year.

His fastball sits around 93 mph and averages 2,583 RPM on his curveball, which is a little above league average. He also mixes in a slider and changeup. He had previously been ranked as a top 20 prospect in the Blue Jays', Dodgers' and Mariners' farm systems. -- Alex

SEWICKLEY NATIVE SMITH MAKES HISTORY
AS BASEBALL'S FIRST BLACK WOMAN COACH

3:15 p.m. Monday: Bianca Smith, a native of Sewickley, has been hired by the Red Sox to become the first Black woman to coach professional baseball. She will work with infielders  at the Red Sox spring training facility in Fort Meyers, Fla.

Smith had previously interned in the baseball operations departments of the Rangers and Reds and was an assistant coach with University of Dallas in 2018. -- Alex

CHERINGTON WENT AFTER
CATCHER KIRK IN TRADE

3:45 p.m. Sunday: One of the biggest holes in the Pirates' farm system is catching, but according to Scott Mitchell of TSN, they tried to pry Blue Jays' prospect Alejandro Kirk away last summer.

The Pirates very nearly traded Joe Musgrove to the Blue Jays during the trade deadline, so we can infer Kirk was a key player those negotiations. Musgrove is still on the market, and the Blue Jays are still in the running for his services. 

Ben Cherington and assistant GM Steve Sanders both came from the Blue Jays, so they know this system.

Kirk ended the year ranked as Baseball America's 98th overall prospect, with them giving a 70-grade hit tool. He batted .375 with a home run over 25 plate appearances in his first taste of the majors last season. 

However, the 5-foot-8 backstop weighs 265 pounds, so there are concerns about his weight long term. -- Alex

PIRATES LAST IN
POWER RANKINGS

12:05 a.m. Sunday: Well, this is hardly unexpected, but after finishing with the worst record in baseball in 2020 and trading away Josh Bell, the Pirates were ranked at the bottom of the first MLB.com power rankings of 2021 Saturday. -- Alex

NO PLANS FOR
PIRATESFEST

5:30 p.m. Saturday: This is hardly a surprise considering the pandemic, but I was told this afternoon that there will not be a PiratesFest this offseason, either in-person or digitally. 

Last year the Pirates held their usual festival in late-January.

There's nothing to announce on what might take the place of PiratesFest, but they might hold some sort of event in the summer instead, assuming it is safe. None of it is set in stone though, and likely will not be for quite some time. -- Alex

REMEMBERING CLEMENTE
ON ANNIVERSARY OF DEATH

5:00 p.m. Thursday: Today marks 48 years since the anniversary of Roberto Clemente's flight to Nicaragua, trying to get emergency supplies into the country after they had a serious earthquake. 

A user on Reddit posted to r/baseball an image of the front page to El Diario, America's longest running Spanish newspaper, on Clemente's death. -- Alex

PIRATES FARM SYSTEM RANKED
AS ONE OF MOST IMPROVED

10:30 a.m. Wednesday: After having one of the best drafts last year, acquiring minor league talent in the Starling Marte and Josh Bell trade and picking up some late international free agents, MLB.com ranked the Pirates' farm system as the third most improved in 2020. Ahead of them were the Rays -- who recently just got a haul of prospects for Blake Snell -- and the Tigers.

Mike Rosenbaum's article can be found here. -- Alex

SHELTON JOINS PIRATES IN SUPPORT
OF RENAMING MVP AWARD FOR GIBSON

2:50 p.m. Tuesday: Derek Shelton tweeted his support of the movement to rename the Most Valuable Player award from Kenesaw Mountain Landis to Josh Gibson Tuesday:

The Baseball Writers Association of America voted in October to remove Landis' name from the trophy.

The Pirates want the award to be named after Gibson too, with a spokesperson saying recently: “The Pirates are enthusiastically supporting the idea of renaming the MVP award after Josh Gibson, as he was one of the greatest players to ever play the game of baseball.  We would applaud such action in order to ensure that future generations are educated on his lasting impact on our game.” -- Alex

MUSGROVE'S MARKET
EXPANDING, HEATING UP

2:45 p.m. Monday: Per a report from Jon Heyman, Joe Musgrove is drawing more trade interest, including from teams that lost out on the Blake Snell sweepstakes.

Musgrove was very nearly traded to the Blue Jays during the deadline, and the belief entering this offseason was he was the most likely of the Pirates players to get dealt this winter. 

Previous reports had Musgrove linked to the Blue Jays, Angels and Red Sox.

Ben Cherington hinted recently that there would be more trades before the winter was through.

"[This trade] likely won't be the last one," Cherington said shortly after trading Josh Bell. "There will probably be more." -- Alex

CHERINGTON ON MLB NETWORK:
'WE HAVE TO BE HONEST'

1:30 p.m. Monday: In a guest spot on the MLB Network show High Heat with Christopher Russo, Ben Cherington discussed the Josh Bell trade, saying that the state of the organization and needing to acquire more talent facilitated the deal.

"As we look to build a winning team in Pittsburgh, we have to be honest about where we are now," Cherington said, adding shortly after that he is open to trying to keep "the right guys" Pirates longer.

The full spot can be found here. -- Alex

POLANCO BREAKS WRIST,
WILL MISS LIDOM PLAYOFFS  

3:20 p.m. Saturday: Gregory Polanco will be unable to play in the LIDOM postseason after his team, Leones del Escogido, reported that he has fractured his right wrist. 

The Pirates tell DK Pittsburgh Sports that Polanco sustained a small non displaced fracture of the triquetrum bone. 

The wrist will be immobilized for a short period of time. He is projected to be ready for full baseball activities by Spring Training. - Noah

BELL EXCITED TO BE
WITH 'ALL-STAR' NATIONALS

2:50 p.m. Saturday: Josh Bell was formally introduced by the Nationals in a Zoom call Saturday afternoon, where he said he was 'excited for this new chapter' and to be part of an 'All-Star' team.

Another interesting tidbit from the call was Bell said there was "back and forth" between the Pirates and his agent, Scott Boras, about a potential long-term extension in the past, but the two sides never got close. The Pirates explored extensions with some of their players during spring training last year, though it wasn't clear if Bell was part of that group. -- Alex

BEST BELL MOMENT?

2:30 p.m. Saturday: Josh Bell never played in a playoff game for the Pirates, or really any significant games late in a season. Despite that, he was a very liked player and one of the faces of the franchise in his five years here.

So what is everyone's favorite Bell moment? For me, it will be his second career at-bat, crushing an absolute no-doubter of a grand slam. -- Alex