Pittsburgh Pirates and Francisco Cervelli Agree to 3 year, $31 million Extension
The Pittsburgh Pirates have been busy early this season locking down their most valuable players – first Gregory Polanco and now, star catcher and fan favorite Francisco Cervelli to a three-year, $31 million contract extension.
Cervelli was expected to be hotly sought after on the free-agent market at the end of this 2016 season, as the catcher offerings are slim. He’s hinted in multiple interviews that he would like to stay with the Pirates and it looks like today, his agent Rafa Nieves and the Buccos were about to seal the deal.
Here's where I want to be so i decided stay here…….. #IAmAPirate @PlRATES
— Francisco Cervelli (@fran_cervelli) May 17, 2016
https://www.instagram.com/p/BFg7aP8M0vy/?taken-by=mlb_agent
Cervelli’s story seems custom-made to the Pirates history books – the Italian-Venezuelan catcher was signed as an international free-agent by the Yankees in 2003 and made his MLB debut with the Yanks in 2008. He served as a back-up catcher on the Yankees in 2011 to former Pirates catcher Russell Martin, who in a strange twist of fate only made in baseball, vacated his post with the Pirates in 2015, which allowed Cervelli to fill the hole and get his first opportunity to serve in a full-time role.
Cervelli career statistics
| Year | Age | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | CS | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 22 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| 2009 | 23 | 42 | 101 | 94 | 13 | 28 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 11 | .298 | .309 | .372 | .682 |
| 2010 | 24 | 93 | 317 | 266 | 27 | 72 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 1 | 1 | 33 | 42 | .271 | .359 | .335 | .694 |
| 2011 | 25 | 43 | 137 | 124 | 17 | 33 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 22 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 29 | .266 | .324 | .395 | .719 |
| 2012 | 26 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .500 | .000 | .500 |
| 2013 | 27 | 17 | 61 | 52 | 12 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 9 | .269 | .377 | .500 | .877 |
| 2014 | 28 | 49 | 162 | 146 | 18 | 44 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 41 | .301 | .370 | .432 | .802 |
| 2015 | 29 | 130 | 510 | 451 | 56 | 133 | 17 | 5 | 7 | 43 | 1 | 1 | 46 | 94 | .295 | .370 | .401 | .771 |
| 2016 | 30 | 33 | 140 | 116 | 11 | 32 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 21 | 25 | .276 | .386 | .319 | .705 |
| 9 Yrs | 413 | 1435 | 1255 | 155 | 356 | 53 | 10 | 17 | 153 | 8 | 8 | 131 | 254 | .284 | .360 | .382 | .742 | |
| 162 Game Avg. | 162 | 563 | 492 | 61 | 140 | 21 | 4 | 7 | 60 | 3 | 3 | 51 | 100 | .284 | .360 | .382 | .742 | |
Until that time, his career was plagued with injuries included concussions, broken wrists/hands and feet. He was sent down to AAA Scranton/Wilkes Barre in 2012. He got called back up to the majors in 2013, where he was named starting catcher – a role he only kept until April 26, when a foul tip fractured his right hand. It was as he worked to recover from that injury that he got mixed up the in the Biogenesis scandal and served a 50-game suspension.
The Pirates signed him in November 2014 – sending pitcher Justin Wilson to the Bronx in the deal. On January 15, 2016, after performing beyond expectations in his first year on the team (he went .295/..386/.401 and …..) Cervelli signed a 1-year extension worth $3,500,000 to stay in Pittsburgh.
This extension today gives the Pirates seven players under contract through 2018.
Read the Pirates complete release on the deal here.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
