Could Pittsburgh be a potential home for David Freese?

David Freese remains unsigned. Could he be a fit for the Pirates?

On Monday, MLBTradeRumors ran down a few potential teams that could use the services of free agent third baseman David Freese in 2016. The Pittsburgh Pirates were mentioned as a team that could use Freese in the upcoming campaign, which may seem odd just a few days before pitchers and catchers report. But given that Freese is going to be four years removed from his best season and five years removed from his outstanding postseason performance with the St. Louis Cardinals in which he was named the MVP of the NLCS and the World Series, he probably could be had for a relatively modest contract.

Freese spent the last two years with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and both represent a downward trend for the third baseman. Last season he slashed .257/.323/.420, good for an OPS of . 743. While this is a far cry from what he did during his peak years, this isn’t the type of slash line for someone you would expect to still be looking for a job this close to spring training. Add in his 14 HR, 56 RBIs, and 2.3 WAR (according to Baseball Reference) and it’s even more puzzling that someone hasn’t signed him. In the field, his fielding percentage of .967 was the sixth-best of qualified third baseman, so it’s not like he was a disaster in the field.

As Steve Adams notes in his original post, a potential signing of Freese would allow the Pirates to shift Jung Ho Kang over to shortstop and move Jordy Mercer to the bench. This would give the Pirates a stronger daily lineup since Freese is a better hitter than Mercer. Moving to Mercer to the bench would allow him to replace a weaker bat currently on the bench that could make the team out of spring training.

But with players such as Jason Rogers and Sean Rodriguez on the roster, just two of the many that have experience at third base, it seems unlikely that the team will sign Freese. Then there is the issue of the roster, as signing Freese would take a spot on the 40-man, necessitating a corresponding move.

In the off chance that he remains unsigned once spring training gets underway, the Pirates should definitely consider offering him a relatively cheap one-year contract. His numbers as of late may not be up there with what he did in his heyday, but he would improve the team that Clint Hurdle puts on the field each day this summer.

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