In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pittsburgh Pirates missed out on one of their starting pitching targets yesterday, as LHP Derek Holland signed with the Chicago White Sox.
Although the Pirates did make an offer to Holland – a fact confirmed to Pirates Breakdown by a source with intimate knowledge of the talks – negotiations seemed to move at a snail’s pace in comparison to how some other teams operate.
Take the Boston Red Sox for example. Dave Dombrowski and his staff swept right in to the Chris Sale sweepstakes, acting decisively even though they entered the fray late. Contrast that to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who reportedly went back and forth with the Washington Nationals to the point where the Nationals began looking elsewhere.
We have seen this before with the club, most notably in allowing J.A. Happ to sign with the Toronto Blue Jays. While there were certainly other factors involved, perhaps the main impetus in Happ moving away from the Pirates in negotiations was the Pirates’ lack of aggression in getting a deal done.
While no one would suggest that a “small market team” – if there is such a thing (see links below) – such as the Pittsburgh Pirates should not be methodical in their approach to evaluating talent, acting more decively and aggressively when they identify a target would be a welcome change.
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Baseball Talk on the Web
- Beyond the Box Score opines that there is no such thing as a Small Market Team.
- Jeff Sullivan of Fangraphs chimes in on Andrew McCutchen.
- Reaction to MLB’s new rules on hazing have been mixed. Some former players are bashing the change.
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