Contact

Questions? Comments? Tips?

Email: WHYGAVS [at] gmail [dot] com

WHYGAVS? Poll

Who's more likely to break out in 2010?
 

Search
Mining the free agent list E-mail
Written by Pat Lackey   
Monday, 23 November 2009 11:13

I'm working on the WHYGAVS Glossary, but right now it's just a messy jumble of terms and definitions that keeps getting bigger and bigger. Hopefully I can get it refined and cleaned up and online by some time tonight.

This morning let's do open question time. I did a Q&A with Simon On Sports last week and one of the questions was about free agency. I kind of shuffled it off with a John Lackey joke, but the honest truth is I'm not sure who I think the Pirates should be going after in free agency this year. They'll probably take a look at Rick Ankiel and I can get on board with that. I think Carl Pavano might be a cheap source of good innings for a National League team. I'm not sold on Khalil Greene, but I guess maybe Nick Green or John McDonald could possibly provide an all-glove substitute to Ronny Cedeno at shortstop. Marcus Thames could make a nice platoon partner for Garrett Jones.

Even there, I feel like I'm stretching. I know the Pirates are going to spend money this off-season, I'm just not sure who on this list that would be a productive signing considering that a team in the Pirates' situation is much better served by giving at bats to guys like Milledge and LaRoche and Clement than it is signing a stop-gap to fill their positions. The stop-gaps will always be available, but we need to know about these players now. The Pirates could certainly afford to do something like the Brewers did with Mike Cameron, but that's a much less valuable move for a team further away from contention. So who on the free agency list should the Pirates be interested in? Why?


Digg! Facebook! Technorati! StumbleUpon! BallHype: hype it up!
Comments (6)add comment

bucconewbie said:

FA list
we could really stock up on some pitching by bringing back some Pirate greats: Kip Wells, Kris Benson, Josh Fogg, Jason Schmidt, Mike Gonzalez to name a few... :)

Actually i think Rich Harden could be an interesting innings eater. Having looked at the FA list for hitters, i'm not sure there's anyone really worth the Pirates sacrificing funds they could be putting into the draft or Latin America. If we really want to see if Millege and LaRoche are going to be legit everyday players, give them this year and that's it. spend the $$ next offseason when some better talent comes available.
 
November 23, 2009
Votes: +0

Pittsburgh Sports said:

Pittsburgh Pirates Need a SS.
Anyone have any ideas want the starting line-up will be next season. I'm hoping to see Jose T, but i doubt he'll start the year in Pittsburgh. What will the Bucs do at SS? Jones should be given the shot at being an everyday 1b. However we all know Pitching is key problem area for the Pirates, they should think about Chapman.
 
November 23, 2009 | url
Votes: -1

bucsfanforever said:

...
Simple-get Rick Ankiel-be nice to see more clutch hits/HR's with men on base.
 
November 23, 2009
Votes: +0

Maxwell said:

I wouldn't mind...
the Bucs trying to sign Ankiel, although even if they did, it's not a foregone conclusion that they will.

First off, he's a Boras client, which means he will take long and most likely get more than what we expect him to get (possibly a two-year deal, which I don't think the Pirates should do, more like one year with an option). I'm of course speculating, but Boras is the best in his profession because he gets his clients the best deals.

And it has been proven that most MLFA don't want to sign with the Pirates, and it's not gonna get any easier with the way the media and former players have pictured the Bucs in the past year (Hinske, Burnett, all the trades).

I'm much more in the camp of taking flyers on MiLFA like Ruben Gotay and the ilk. Those are the guys that want to come to the Pirates because of the options available. Think GFJ. Save the money for draft and development, or for when Cutch/Tabata/Alavarez start getting expensive.

But if I had my wish, I'd forget about Chapman and focus on Noel Arguelles, another Cuban defector who is young (19), throws hard with loose action (91-94), and is left-handed. KLaw believes he could easily get a signing bonus in the 8-10 million range, something the Pirate's could easily afford.
 
November 24, 2009
Votes: +1

w.k. kortas said:

Rich Harden, innings eater?
I think you may have meant Jon Garland; Harden is almost Doumit-esque in his durability.
 
November 24, 2009
Votes: +0

Richard said:

Ya'Zhynka
I like the idea of bringing in Ankiel and a right-handed outfielder to platoon with him. Maybe Reed Johnson. His OPS against lefties last year was over .900. Both would provide the defense needed in left field at PNC.
 
November 24, 2009 | url
Votes: +1

Write comment
smaller | bigger

busy
 

Follow WHYGAVS

About Bloguin

Bloguin is the revolutionary blog network specifically focused on helping bloggers get the most out of their websites. We're currently working on building a large network of online communities and hope to expand our blogging coverage to include a wide range of topics.

Advertisers

The Bloguin Network allows advertisers to promote their products and services to our ever-growing number of visitors. We offer both site-specific ad placements as well as the ability to run a network-wide campaign. If you're interested in working with Bloguin to meet your advertising needs, please contact us.

Most-Wanted List

The Bloguin Network is always looking to expand. Here are some of our high-priority areas that we're specifically looking to grow. If you're a blogger and interested in joining our network, please fill out our application form.

  1. NBA/Basketball Blogs
  2. NFL Blogs
  3. Major League Baseball Blogs

The Bloguin Login

The Bloguin Login gives you full access to everything our network has to offer. Your name and password will work for each and every one of our sites. Signing up is simple, and will allow you to post in all our forums, create member blogs, and access other cool features! What are you waiting for? Create an Account!