As the clock ticks down on the MLB non-waiver trade deadline, you must wonder what Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Neal Huntington has up his sleeve.
The general feeling around baseball is Huntington is shopping for a controllable starting pitcher and reliver, which won’t come cheap.
With the Pirates likely not involved with the talks on Tampa starter Chris Archer, you now must wonder if this deadline comes down to Baltimore’s Kevin Gausman or bust for Huntington.
Keep in mind Huntington doesn’t have to do anything at this deadline unless it makes sense for the future as well, which Gausman and potentially reliver Mychal Givens would accomplish.
Also keep in mind that Huntington has brought in something at the deadline every year since 2011 and most of those times it was moves that no one talked about as the Pirates front office keeps things very quiet.
But what about Gausman makes sense?
Why Gausman?
First off, he has top of the rotation stuff.
His four-seamer produces ground balls and his splitter is one of the better pitches in the game today. He also throws a slider and a very rare change.
His numbers aren’t pretty, owning a 5-8 with a 4.43 ERA tis season, but he’s pitching in the American League East. A move to the National League Central and PNC Park should do a lot to help those overall numbers.
Then there is the fact that Gausman is controllable.
He’s making $5.6 million this season and is arbitration eligible for the next couple of years. He can’t become a free agent until 2021.
He’s got the stuff and a nice contract.
That alone makes him a prime target for Huntington.
Why not Gausman?
I like the pitcher, but something about this screams desperation and I don’t like that.
The Pirates shouldn’t make a move just to make a move and certainly shouldn’t pull the trigger on something just to please a fan base who is going to complain regardless.
That’s not the reason to make a move.
Gausman is a guy with talent and does have a couple of postseason starts under his belt, but how much better does he make the Pirates right now?
If they get Givens also then maybe my tune changes a bit, but for now I’m skeptical on a potential deal for Gausman.
What would the cost be?
It’s going to be high as many have reported the Orioles want Shane Baz as a headliner in a potential deal.
That alone would make me want to pump the brakes.
Huntington has never traded away a Top 10 prospect, so I have a hard time of seeing him do it now for Gausman when he’s had plenty of other opportunities.
The Orioles are in a full rebuild so they wouldn’t necessarily have a problem dealing controllable assets such as Gausman and Dylan Bundy for the right price.
But also keep in mind that they don’t have to deal either guy, so the price is going to have to be right.
If I’m Huntington I walk way from this one unless I also get Givens in a deal to bolster the pen as well.
At the end of the day this should upgrade the Pirates needs but I’m still skeptical.
It feels like making a trade just for the sake of making a trade and if that’s the case then Huntington should walk away.
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