MLB Winter Meetings: What Plan Should the Pirates Have?
By Matt Shetler
As the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings kick off in Dallas, TX, it’s a time for teams to get a jump-start on improving for the upcoming season.
With that being said, what should Pirates GM Neal Huntington be trying to do in Dallas?
That answer is simple. Acquire a first baseman and a starting pitcher. That’s really it.
The Pirates actually don’t need much. Do they have questions? Certainly, especially at third base with Pedro Alvarez and in the corner outfield spots with Alex Presley and Jose Tabata. But those guys will play because they are all young guys with upside.
Was Alvarez bad in 2011? Awful would be a better description, but Pirates manager Clint Hurdle needs to run Pedro out there on a daily basis in 2012.
An insurance policy to back up Alvarez wouldn’t be a bad acquisition, but it shouldn’t be Huntington’s top priority. The Pirates have starters at every position, after already filling their needs behind the plate and at shortstop , except first base and they need another arm for the rotation.
Yet instead of Huntington actively pursuing a first baseman, the Bucs are linked to the likes of Nate McLouth, Mark Derosa, and Ian Stewart.
Bench depth is nice to have, but securing a fifth outfielder really makes no sense if you don’t have a starter at first base.
The club is talking to Derrick Lee about a return to Pittsburgh and he has until Wednesday to decide on the clubs arbitration offer. If he accepts, problem solved and the Bucs have their man. But if he declines, Huntington better have a backup plan because he doesn’t have one on the current roster.
Garrett Jones isn’t an option. He had an OPS of .753 OPS, and a combined .734 OPS during the last two seasons. That would rank him 20th among all major league first basemen. That’s just not good enough. Playing first base primarily in 2010 he was also well below average defensively. Actually he was pretty awful.
They also signed Jake Fox and Nick Evans to minor league deals, but they aren’t options either.
The only actual internal option is Matt Hague, but in that case you are relying on a rookie to be a run producer in a young lineup to begin with. He had a very good 2011 but he’s streaky, having a very good June and July and a decent rest of the season. June and July were the only two months he posted an OPS over .800.
Having said that though, Hague is a hitter, never hitting below .293 in the minors and while he may not be the prototypical home run type first baseman, he does have moderate power that could translate to a lot of doubles and runs produced at the major league level.
Given the internal candidates, Hague is the actual only option Hurdle has.
For the Bucs to attempt to compete in 2012 three things have to happen.
First of all, they need to pitch well and sustain it throughout the course of an entire season. Secondly, Alvarez needs to bounce back and become the run producer he’s expected to become. Finally, they need a productive first baseman.
Those are three big if’s, but if they can do all of that added with what the club has coming back, then maybe this team can compete in the NL Central in 2012.
Who knows, maybe the Bucs will have their first baseman come Wednesday, but if not they better have a backup plan.
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