On his first weekly radio show since the 2016 MLB Trade Deadline, Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington commented on Ivan Nova, Drew Hutchison & More.
Nearly one week after the 2016 MLB Trade Deadline, Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington offered many comments on Ivan Nova, Drew Hutchison and more.
On what the team sees in Ivan Nova
Huntington started the show by touching on new Pittsburgh Pirates starter Ivan Nova, who had a solid Pirates debut last night.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]We saw last night – Nova’s quality sinker, a few good curveballs…we saw quality mistakes. But we love that sinker, and love his ability to induce good counts. We need to temper our enthusiasm…there is a reason surface numbers are what they are. We saw some of those last night, but were reminded that there is a good deal of raw material to work with[/perfectpullquote]On the Players To Be Named Later in the Nova Trade
One of the most intriguing storylines resulting from the trade deadline is the identity of the PTBNLs offered to New York in the Nova trade. We offered our educated guess here. While Huntington was a bit tight lipped, he did give us an idea of the type of player that would be sent to the Yankees.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]They’re [the possible list of players] are not irrelevant. They are going to be players that bring value. The Yankees weren’t going to just give him away. They will be of value, no question about that. We understand that, and are willing to roll through that. We’ll see how the process plays out.[/perfectpullquote]On what that club sees in Drew Hutchison
Huntington’s comments on Hutchison were a bit vague, but the overall impression of the staff’s esteem of Hutchison is a good one.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]Our scouts like his indicators. We love his pitch mix, and love the stuff. We look at Toronto…we would take any four of their primary starters and plug them right in. Then you have a guy like Dickey, who could be an effective starter on many tams. It wasn’t like this guy was pitching behind a bad starting rotation. So, as we looked forward, we see Hutchison being able to help us this year if needed. We are in a transition in our rotation, and he will be given a look.[/perfectpullquote]On the reasons for re-acquiring Antionio Bastardo.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]Well, first – part of his contract next year will be subsidized by the Mets. That is not the primary motivation, but definitely helped. We see teh same stuff that helped him pitch so effectively for us last year. We see the same crispness on his fastball; the same secondary pitches that we liked. Again, he was so effective for us last year. We saw some interesting difference in sequencing and pitch selection. We felt like it was a solid utilization for Niese, who lost his spot and was falling on our depth chart. We felt like Bastardo gives us a legimitate major league reliever that Clint can use anywhere from the sixth inning onward.[/perfectpullquote]On the surprise trade of Arquimedes Caminero
Huntington’s comments on the trade of Caminero hinted towards the move being brought about by the team’s solid back end of the bullpen rather than anything resulting from his own improved performance.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]As we went through the deadline, we felt that if some starters didn’t do well in the bullpen, we would want to keep two long relievers in there. We like Cam; like the arm…he did some great things for us after coming off of the DL. But, with the four we feel great about in the back end of the bullpen, to get something for Caminero – that felt like the right move.[/perfectpullquote]Finally, host Greg Brown gave Huntington the question that many have been asking themselves for the past month.
On bringing Josh Bell back to the majors
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”#000000″ class=”” size=””]The time that Josh was here…it’s hard not to grab a hold of that and think about what he could become. Josh was removed fro ma game recently before the deadline, and I’m surprised that many didn’t think he was traded. But he was removed because of some frustrations he was having in a rather one sided game. So, while the numbers are still very good, [Indianapolis manager] Dean [Trainor] felt like it was important to give him a mental blow. And that’s not the right time to bring up a player like Josh. [/perfectpullquote] [irp posts=”8407″ name=”COLUMN: Half Measures Are No Longer Acceptable for the Pittsburgh Pirates”]Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
