Pirates should target former Cy Young winner Brandon Webb

According to a report on mlbtraderumors.com, pitcher Brandon Webb is looking for a comeback in the 2013 season.

This is a perfect guy for the Pittsburgh Pirates to try and aquire. The Pirates’ rotation is filled with many questions as A.J. Burnett and Wandy Rodriguez are the only two reliable starters. And there is no guarantee that Burnett will be as good as last year.

James McDonald is a huge question mark going into 2013. The Pirates don’t know which pitcher will show up: the one that dominated the first half of last season and got voted to the all-star game or the guy that bombed in the second half of last season, causing a demotion to the bullpen.

They also just released Jeff Karstens, so they need another arm. Webb isn’t without risk as he hasn’t pitched since 2009 when he began having shoulder issues.

Webb won the National League Cy Young in 2006 while pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks.  He went 16-8 with a 3.10 ERA.  He finished second in Cy Young voting the next two seasons. His best season was in 2008 when he won 22 games for the Diamondbacks. In seven seasons with Arizona, Webb compiled an 87-62 record with a 3.27 ERA.

He is 33 years old now, and no one knows what he has left in the tank. Meaning that there are not going to be many teams offering him big money. He will be well worth the risk of a one-year contract. If he could return to the form he displayed from 2006-08, dominating hitters with one of the best sinkers in the game, then the Pirates could have a very high-upside signing on their hands.