LAS VEGAS -- At 5 p.m. Eastern Thursday, Major League Baseball free agency will officially begin, as players will be allowed to sign with other teams.
And while the Pirates aren't going to be one of the big shakers, going after one of the top free agents who will command a nine-figure salary, they are going to be active.
“We want to improve it," Ben Cherington told me at the Rose Terrace of the Conrad Las Vegas hotel at Resorts World, the home of the general manager meetings. "We’re exploring every way we can to do that. Nothing’s changed in terms of our goals. We want to improve the roster. We want to get better in 2023."
There are several priorities the Pirates have identified as areas they can get better, including perhaps the most important position: Starting pitching.
During our one-on-one conversation, Cherington brought up that the Pirates will be looking for rotation help, and it might not just be one pitcher.
If the season was to start today, the rotation would likely consist of Mitch Keller, Roansy Contreras, JT Brubaker, Johan Oviedo and Bryse Wilson. It's a unit that showed some growth as a unit this past year, and there are even a handful of top prospects who should contribute next year, like Quinn Priester, Mike Burrows and Luis Ortiz -- but they still finished with the seventh-highest ERA in the league in 2022 (4.61).
There's room for internal improvement, but adding an arm or two would be a major boost, as well.
“We like where we’re starting to get to in terms of the collection of young pitching we have and some guys making some gains this year," Cherington said. "There’s a chance for some of those guys to reach another level next year, but we’d like to add to the group."
In the past two years, the Pirates have hit twice by bringing in veteran lefties on one-year deals. First it was Tyler Anderson in 2021, then José Quintana in 2022, both of whom are hitting the free-agent market again. Reports indicate that Anderson could be extended a qualifying offer from the Dodgers, so consider him off the table.
When the subject of a Quintana reunion was broached, Cherington did not directly answer, saying that, "the good news for Q is he had a terrific year, and he’s in a stronger position in the market.”
Even if that isn't much of a vote of confidence for a potential reunion, there are no guidelines for the type of pitcher the Pirates will target. They aren't focusing on someone who is just looking for a one-year deal to rebuild value. It could be a multi-year deal or a trade, too. In Cherington's time as Pirates GM, he has not signed a free agent to a contract for more than one guaranteed year.
But there was something else Quintana brought to the Pirates besides just a mid-3s ERA. He was a leader, someone that the group could look up to. If you need proof that he left a positive impact, when Quintana returned to PNC Park in August, all three Pirates starters played his entrance song, Mueve Mami, as a tribute.
The Pirates are a young team. They'll be young for a while. But that doesn't mean they need to bring another veteran to replace Quintana. The No. 1 priority is finding someone who fits their system and projects to be an impact player.
"People always ask is veteran leadership, is veteran influence, important," Cherington said. "I say when you’re around it, up close to it and see it in its most positive form, it’s a real thing. So the answer is yes. That’s different than being able to predict what someone’s going to be able to do from the outside. You’ve got to be a little careful with that. It is a factor, not the only factor. Probably focused more on the skills and how we would project [they’d do here].”
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• Not to pile on, but the offense needs work, too.
Last year, the Pirates finished 27th in baseball in runs scored (591), 29th in batting average (.222) and 28th in OPS (.655). During his first three years as general manager, the Pirates have consistently ranked near the bottom of the league of many important offensive categories.
"We know we’ve got to find another way to build a deeper lineup, create some more offense," Cherington said. "We’re looking at how to do that. Continue to explore both free agency and trade for ways to do that.”
Improving first base would be a good place to start. The team's combined .601 OPS from the first base position was the franchise's lowest since 1920, and their combined -3 WAR, according to FanGraphs, ranks as one of the worst seasons at the position in the history of the National League.
Talking about the position, Cherington acknowledged they need to improve, saying they need to "solve" the issue. That could mean bringing someone in or trusting someone in the system, even if they aren't a traditional first baseman. There is plenty of competition among several positions in the organization, namely the middle infield, outfield and even catcher if you go to the minors where Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez are knocking on the door. If there isn't enough playing time there, first base could be a home for them as well.
"If it’s the more traditional first base fit, that’s one way to do it," Cherington said. "We’re also exploring ways, whether it’s guys who are already here or it’s guys who aren’t here, who are not first basemen that can give us more production. We’ve got to be open-minded. This point of the offseason, we’ve got to be pretty open-minded about how to solve it. We just know we need to solve it.”
• Those struggles on offense did not yield any change to the offensive side of the major-league coaching staff.
As Cherington confirmed last month, the only change to the staff is an addition: Mendy López as an infield coach. Andy Haines is getting a second year as hitting coach, and there shouldn't be any changes on the hitting side before the 2023 season.
“We are mostly focused on the group that’s here and recognizing Andy is in his first year and has relationships with those guys. He’s got more information than he did last year, and last year when we hired him, we went straight into the lockout. Really missed the offseason last year. So this is, a year in with a full offseason, really able to dive into some development with our group. It’s a really important time.”
• For López, it looks like he will be the only addition to the major-league staff for next year.
Bench coach Don Kelly handled infield coaching duties last year after Joey Cora was dismissed at the end of the 2021 season, but it was determined both he and the team would be best off focusing his attention elsewhere. Bringing in López takes something off his plate while also bringing in a well-respected coach.
“I think he brings an element to our staff that will be really valuable,” Cherington said.
Cherington acknowledged "it's not entirely coincidental" that brought in an infield coach from the Dominican Republic when their potential starting middle infield -- Oneil Cruz and Rodolfo Castro -- is also from the Dominican. López was brought in to help all of the infielders, but he could be an important tutor for Cruz and Castro.
