The Pirates went into the offseason looking for pitching. They'll do the same going into the Winter Meetings this week.
These Winter Meetings in San Diego will be the first in-person meetings since 2019 after COVID-19 forced it to be virtual in 2020 and the lockout cancelled it in 2021. If the trades at the usually quiet general manager meetings last month are any indication, it should be a busy couple of days.
And for the Pirates, it should mean pitching buzz. There are other areas of need that they will target (especially catcher), but they came into this winter looking to add to their rotation. That could mean acquiring multiple pitchers or signing someone to a multi-year deal. This isn't the only opportunity to add to the rotation, but it's a big one.
One pitcher they have been in contact with is Kyle Gibson. From what I've heard, the Pirates impressed the veteran right-hander in their meeting and there is an offer on the table from the club. This could pick up steam this week. And while Gibson's 10-8 record and 5.05 ERA don't necessarily impress, I heard from an analyst that Gibson already made some tweaks at the end of the regular season that could help him rebound in 2023.
Going based off what the Pirates look for in pitchers, I can confidently assume those tweaks are part of the reason why the Pirates are interested in him. He is a reclamation project where the first hurdle may have already been cleared.
It's probably not much of a surprise that the reclamation/more affordable route is going to be explored, but Oscar Marin and the pitching team are getting a better reputation league-wide. That's going to widen the net of pitchers who will be willing to come to Pittsburgh.
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2. You know what would also help the pitching staff? Bringing back Roberto Pérez.
There's been mutual interest there for quite some time, and there's a lot of buzz around prospects Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez, who will make their major-league debuts in 2023 if all goes according to plan. But the Pirates need a catcher for the start of the season, and there's a clear preference in the Pirates' clubhouse.
"I think losing Bebo Pérez was the biggest single blow we took to our team," Chase De Jong told me before a corporate sponsor event at PNC Park Thursday. "He has an effect on our entire staff. I think last year made obvious how important an everyday major-league catcher is."
As for the two catching prospects, the bullpen heard about them this past year from bullpen catcher/catching coach Jordan Comadena, who was very complimentary. It'll be an interesting spring for those two as they get to know the major-league pitchers better. -- Stumpf
3. Also at that event at PNC Park Thursday was prospect Mike Burrows, who got to go back into the Pirates' clubhouse for the first time since he signed back in 2018. The right-hander will get a more permanent spot there at some point this year. -- Stumpf
4. Carlos Santana was brought in partly for his veteran leadership, and with a young core of Latin players on the team, it's easy to assume he's here to mentor just them. De Jong doesn't see it that way.
"He's a guy that walks in this clubhouse and his resume instantly demands the respect of everybody," De Jong said. "Doesn't matter what country you come from."
JT Brubaker joked to me that when Santana danced in his introductory Zoom, he did a little soft shoe at his home because he was so excited to see the energy he is going to bring to the team.
"That was his first day at PNC and he's bring that type of energy? I'm even more excited to see what he brings into spring and into the season." -- Stumpf
5. Brubaker is doing some offseason work with Tread Athletics this winter, the same facility he and Mitch Keller turned to during the lockout last winter. This time, though, Marin and members of the pitching team can actually be involved, which is beneficial to all.
"Going into spring, everybody is going to be on the same page," Brubaker said. "Same page of video, mechanical. Same page of, 'ok, this is my feeling of throwing this pitch.' Lingo, verbiage. Continue to work and develop in that aspect." -- Stumpf
6. The draft lottery will be this upcoming Tuesday, where the Pirates have a 16.5% chance of receiving the first overall draft pick and a 5% chance at finishing at No. 8 (and a less than 1% chance at No. 9). The slot value difference between that first and eighth pick is arguably more valuable than actually picking first. There was a $3.4 million difference in slot value this year in just the first round, and the difference between those two picks could be about $4 million in slot value. That's the difference between picking two players at slot value or signing Bubba Chandler and Anthony Solometo, like they did in 2021. Tuesday is going to be quietly one of the most important nights of the 2023 Pirates' season. -- Stumpf
PENGUINS
7. The Penguins have not put Kris Letang on long-term injured reserve yet, which would require him to be out for 10 games and 24 days (retroactive to Nov. 28, the date of his stroke). The reason teams wait to put a player on LTIR is because using LTIR halts the accruing of unused cap space. The Penguins hardly have any space at it is -- just $72,819 -- but they bank a small amount each day that they operate under the cap ceiling. -- Taylor Haase at PPG Paints Arena
8. If the Penguins do put Letang on LTIR, the relief gained from his $6.1 million salary cap hit would be enough to recall Ty Smith if wanted. Smith's cap hit is $863,333, but things work a little differently when using LTIR to recall a player like Smith. If a team is using LTIR to recall a player with potential performance bonuses in their contract, they need to have the room to fit all of those potential performance bonuses, regardless of if the player will hit them or not. Smith's contract has $400,000 in potential performance bonuses, which means that $1,263,333 must be available to recall him while using LTIR. -- Haase
9. The Penguins hosted the women of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association for four games last weekend. Expect the Penguins to play host to more neutral-site professional women's hockey in Cranberry this season, as early as next month. -- Haase
10. Kasperi Kapanen was nothing but pleasant to deal with during his time as a healthy scratch. When he was scratched twice last season he was short in his answers when asked about it, and it was pretty clear how annoyed he was over it all. He was polite and thoughtful in dealing with the media this time around, and he was a source of enthusiasm in the locker room after wins. On the road I'd see him outside the locker room being his usual loud, excited self, hyping up his teammates and congratulating them after games. -- Haase
11. Several weeks back, there was a report from Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet that Ron Hextall was looking to make a trade or two. This was at the same time Kapanen found himself out of the lineup as a healthy scratch. I did some digging, but didn’t hear anything that would suggest the Penguins are all that serious about -- or interested in -- moving Kapanen. That makes sense, as they would otherwise be accepting defeat on his two-year contract only a month into the deal. Management is still optimistic about the impact he can have on this team. -- Danny Shirey at PPG Paints Arena
12. Pretty cool to see Kapanen get the game-winner last night in the first game after players found out about Letang's stroke. Kapanen is one of Letang's closest friends on the team. Letang has Kapanen over for dinner sometimes, and especially went out of his way to do so pretty often in Kapanen's first year in Pittsburgh. They have a goofy relationship, they'll do things like meow at each other during the pre-game soccer games. -- Haase
13. The Letang news wasn't announced until after media availability in the locker room on Wednesday, so we didn't know during practice or when we were talking to players. In hindsight, things were especially light and guys were in good spirits, all things considered. I'm sure it helped that Letang personally addressed the group after Tuesday's game to re-assure his teammates he was OK. He was in Cranberry on Wednesday, too. -- Haase
14. It can be easy to lose sight of just how competitive these guys are, and that doesn’t come to a halt when they leave the ice. Several players who opted not to participate in the morning skate on Thursday were playing what appeared to be a mix between soccer and volleyball or tennis, and they were taking it quite seriously. There was a ton of yelling, some of which included frustrated expletives. They just love to win. Doesn’t matter what it is. -- Shirey
15. Casey DeSmith is building the weirdest pack of pets around. He already had a hairless munchkin (short legs) cat named Yoda and two french bulldogs. This week he told me he got another hairless munchkin cat, this one he named Smalls. -- Haase
STEELERS
16. The Steelers were down right pissed off with how badly they defended the run last season. It's no secret they set out to be better, and they have accomplished that thus far. The Steelers currently rank sixth in the NFL against the run at 104.0 rushing yards allowed per game. Different people I've talked to have given general answers about how this has happened, and truth be told, there isn't really one true answer. However, Chris Wormley credited Brian Flores' influence in helping the group get better collectively.
"I think guys like Flo coming in and not only showing us what we do on this play, but really why we do it on this play. Also, where runs are going, what the offense is trying to do, etc.," Wormley told me. "All that put together, what it really comes down to how badly we wanted to right some wrongs from the season before."
This defense didn't even want to settle for a little improvement. They really took finishing dead last against the run last year to heart, and they want to turn it around in a hurry. "Hopefully we'll get to top-five by the end of the year," Wormley told me. -- Chris Halicke on the South Side.
17. Cam Heyward had to do his Thursday media availability wearing a Michigan hoodie after losing a bet between him and Wormley. I chatted with Wormley about it for a couple minutes, and he was just so proud and so happy to see Heyward in blue and maize. Heyward was sure to get rid of the hoodie as soon as possible, tossed it back at Wormley and said, "Never again, Worm! Never again!"
"He looked great," Wormley told me. "I wish he would have wore it a little longer." -- Halicke
18. It's not looking too promising for Najee Harris' availability in Atlanta. He hasn't practiced yet, and hasn't even taken the field with the team Wednesday or Thursday. He did go on the field for some light work in between walkthrough and the main portion of Thursday's practice, but there would have to be a serious uptick in workload on Friday to have any chance to play this Sunday. --Halicke
19. DeMarvin Leal is feeling good on his way back from knee surgery, and is trending in the right direction to be activated before his 21-day window expires next Wednesday. "I expect to," Leal told me. "I'm pretty confident." -- Halicke
20. With the World Cup going on and the United States performing well, I went around the locker room asking random players who are soccer fans and who is keeping a close eye on how the USMNT is doing. Turns out there just isn't an overwhelming interest. Most answers I received were, "Not really a soccer fan, but I'm cheering for them and hope they do well." We'll see if the interest picks up if the U.S. can defeat Netherlands Saturday and advance to the quarterfinal. -- Halicke
21. I almost felt weird to ask Matthew Wright and Pressley Harvin III since the tie to soccer is, well, obvious. I was correct in my assumption regarding Wright, who told me he's paying as close attention as possible. On the other hand, Harvin is not as interested as you might think he is. Turns out, he really doesn't like soccer. "I might be the only specialist in the whole league that isn't watching," Harvin told me with a laugh. "But, I hope they do well." -- Halicke
