In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.
In yesterday’s wake up call, I spoke about the Pirates slow offseason that has included the re-signing of Ivan Nova and signing of Daniel Hudson. It also includes the departures of players such as Matt Joyce and Sean Rodriguez.
The offseason has also been full of trade talk involving the possible acquisition of Jose Quintana and the possible dealing of star outfielder Andrew McCutchen.
This morning, I’ve been thinking about what acquisition this offseason the Pirates could benefit most from. It’s a short list to choose from. We could go with Ivan Nova who flourished with the Pirates in 11 starts last season, posting a 3.06 ERA. We could also go with Daniel Hudson, who bolsters the Pirates bullpen and basically replaces the hole left after Neftali Feliz signed with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Both of these signings are big for the Bucs, but the best thing the Pirates did this offseason didn’t actually involve the few things that they did. It might involve one of the things that they didn’t do.
In the past, I have always been a supporter of the Pirates listening to trade offers for McCutchen. I’ve always said “Don’t settle” while still understanding why the team would listen to interested suitors. Now that the trade talk involving the 2013 National League MVP has subsided, it’s time to look forward to 2017 with McCutchen in the outfield.
It’s no secret that McCutchen had a down year in 2016. It was by far his worst year in the majors, but he did shine bright in the month of September, hitting .284 with six home runs and 20 RBIs in 29 games.
McCutchen ended last season on a high note and may be primed for a bounce back year in 2017. Despite the impacts that Nova and Hudson could have this upcoming season, the Pirates may benefit from not trading Cutch at the moment.
Though the offseason will likely continue to be a slow one for Pittsburgh, they still may benefit. If the five-time all star returns to form in 2017, he could be even bigger than any free agent acquisition the Pirates could have made.
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Baseball Talk on the Web
- David Ross accepted an MLB analyst position with ESPN on Monday.
- Chris Bahr of FoxSports.com takes a look at seven MLB teams that could contend or collapse in 2017.
- Cardinals Hacker to MLB: Astros deserve punishment too.
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