As spring training looms, the Pittsburgh Pirates picked up a potential fourth outfielder option in free agent Matt Joyce.
As first reported by Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed free agent outfielder Matthew Joyce to a minor league contract.
Source: Free-agent OF Matt Joyce to #Pirates on minor-league contract.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) February 18, 2016
Here at Pirates Breakdown, we recently wondered if the Pirates had enough pure outfield depth behind their star trio of Andrew McCutchen, Gregory Polanco, and Starling Marte. This deal may indicate that the team had those same questions. While Sean Rodriguez and Jason Rogers both could spend time in the outfield as that fourth option, the team lacked a true outfield-focused bench player heading into spring training.
Joyce will look to rebound from a couple of wayward seasons after an All-Star 2011 campaign. Below are his career stats coupled with 162-game averages.
| Year | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 92 | 277 | 242 | 40 | 61 | 16 | 3 | 12 | 33 | 31 | 65 | .252 | .339 | .492 | .831 |
| 2009 | 11 | 37 | 32 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 7 | .188 | .270 | .500 | .770 |
| 2010 | 77 | 261 | 216 | 30 | 52 | 15 | 3 | 10 | 40 | 40 | 55 | .241 | .360 | .477 | .837 |
| 2011 ★ | 141 | 522 | 462 | 69 | 128 | 32 | 2 | 19 | 75 | 49 | 106 | .277 | .347 | .478 | .825 |
| 2012 | 124 | 462 | 399 | 55 | 96 | 18 | 3 | 17 | 59 | 55 | 102 | .241 | .341 | .429 | .769 |
| 2013 | 140 | 481 | 413 | 61 | 97 | 22 | 0 | 18 | 47 | 59 | 87 | .235 | .328 | .419 | .747 |
| 2014 | 140 | 493 | 418 | 51 | 106 | 23 | 2 | 9 | 52 | 62 | 111 | .254 | .349 | .383 | .732 |
| 2015 | 93 | 284 | 247 | 17 | 43 | 12 | 1 | 5 | 21 | 30 | 67 | .174 | .272 | .291 | .564 |
| 8 Yrs | 818 | 2817 | 2429 | 326 | 589 | 139 | 14 | 93 | 334 | 329 | 600 | .242 | .335 | .426 | .761 |
| 162 Game Avg. | 162 | 558 | 481 | 65 | 117 | 28 | 3 | 18 | 66 | 65 | 119 | .242 | .335 | .426 | .761 |
Joyce also is a left-handed bat, which should play well in the National League Central.
At this time, financial terms are not yet available, but the money won’t be an issue as it’s just a minor league deal.
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