News Roundup: Pirates, Jack Wilson Discussing Extension

by Charlie on Mar 29, 2009 9:02 PM EDT Comment 57 comments

-P- Jack Wilson and the Pirates are talking about an extension, the Post-Gazette reports. This news is so far out of leftfield it's hard to know where to begin, but--what? A few years ago, Wilson implied that he planned to retire after 2010 anyway; if that's still the plan, it's possible that the extension he wants could be a cheap one-year deal designed to allow him to retire a Pirate. If he's playing well in late summer, I guess that's worth considering, given the Bucs' lack of good shortstop prospects in the high minors. Beyond that, I can't believe the Pirates' management would consider anything more than one year and a few million dollars.

-P- The Tigers have returned Rule 5 pick Kyle Bloom to the Pirates. Bloom was one of the Pirates' few starting pitching prospects, and I gave the team a hard time for losing him because it really wasn't necessary, but no harm, no foul, I suppose.

-P- Ronny Paulino has officially entered the journeyman phase of his career after being flipped from the Phillies to the Giants to the Marlins within a span of a few hours. If he sticks with the Marlins, Paulino should be the short side of a platoon with John Baker.

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Brian Bixler

Hasn’t Bixler had a fairly good spring? Or is he still not a viable long term option at shortstop?

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 29, 2009 10:05 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Bixler

.345/.397/.483 this spring.

Pretty good, but I don’t really know if you can take anything from those. He has had the 4th most AB’s of anyone this spring (58), so he’s definitely capitalized on his opportunities.

I think the Pirates still see him as a long-shot possibility for a long term option, but he’ll have to definitely improve on the way he’s looked when called upon. Thus far, his ML career has not been too promising. Plus, he’s 26, so it’s time to show up now, or he may never do it.

North Side Notch

by northsidenotch on Mar 29, 2009 11:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think we’re on the same page here. I wasn’t saying that one good spring has made Bixler the second coming of Honus Wagner. Just seems that the PBC should see what he can do in the majors (again) before getting this extension done.

Didn’t realize he was that old either.

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 30, 2009 12:58 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Can't show up...

if you are sent away. I figure that Bixler is gone in the next few days. Bet they keep Cruz…even though none of his numbers at any level indicate he’s better than Bixler.

by Thunder on Mar 30, 2009 7:07 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not even a few days

Bixler’s gone now. With NH saying that Phillips is going to open in AAA, that means Cruz probably has made it. That means one empty roster spot.

by WTM on Mar 30, 2009 9:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I have a sneaking suspicion...

…that they might be waiting for Robert Andino to show up on waivers. Cruz probably shouldn’t unpack his bags just yet.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 9:18 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bixler Versus Wilson

Wilson is probably the better, and steadier, defensive player.

But Bixler is better than Wilson, or Wilson’s equal, in every other measureable category.
I’m certain that the Pirates’ W-L record in 2008 was just as “good” (!) when Bixler was at SS as it was when Wilson was there. Check it out.

The fact that the Pirates might even be considering a Wilson extension makes me worry a great deal about Team Coonington.

by thegunner on Mar 30, 2009 12:23 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Bixler started 32, 15 were won (by my count)
Wilson started 80, 26 were won (by my count)

Keep in mind though that most of Bixler’s “wins” came early in the season when Nady/Bay were still around.

In addition I’m pretty sure that this is an absolutely meaningless. Having watched the games last year, there is no way you can convince me that Bixler was more valuable at shortstop than Wilson defensively or offensively.

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 30, 2009 1:11 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Bixler's 2008 zMLE:

.246/.305/.334. Which, while terrible, is still significantly better than the .157/.229/.194 he put up in the majors.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 9:17 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't get too worked up

Just yet anyway. NH’s comments on his radio show yesterday were less than effusive. He confirmed that Jack approached them about a contract extension and stated that the team viewed it as a complement as it signals excitment and approval of the direction of the team.

I didn’t hear NH say that the team was excited to lock Jack up for a longer term or anything other than that Jack approached the team.

Good day.

by Uncle Nate on Mar 30, 2009 10:23 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yeah, i think that’s the takeaway here. if the team had much interest in resigning it’s most recognizable player they would have clearly indicated so. reading NH’s statement left me with the impression that they’d still prefer to deal him but can’t openly say so because of fan backlash. he can’t say we’re giving up on the season and trying to deal the vets a week before opening day. bixler’s surprising success (and NH’s assurance that he’ll see the big leagues this summer) only makes it more likely that jack gets dealt, assuming of course that he’s worth anything to anyone.

by johnnycuff on Mar 30, 2009 10:38 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

hmm

i think its kinda cool we got bloom back in the system

I GOT MY STREET BUZZ BEFORE I GOT MY PEACH FUZZ

by omar moreno on Mar 30, 2009 11:27 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Andrew McCutchen and Brian Bixler

sent to AAA.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09089/959329-100.stm

by patthatt on Mar 30, 2009 11:57 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

We just missed a good one on waivers:

Joe Koshansky, waived by Colorado, claimed by Texas. Big moose of a lefty 1B, 27 this year, had one option left (which the Rangers just used).

Has huge power, but was blocked in Colorado by Helton. He’s a minimum-salary starting-caliber 1B right now, which would be a good thing to have on hand if we trade LaRoche or let him walk at the end of the year. Sigh.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 12:11 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

What could possibly be the reasoning for this?

by GTrain on Mar 30, 2009 3:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

A vote of confidence in Steve Pearce? :)

No seriously folks. The only negative I can see on Koshansky is that he’s a little old and that this’ll be his 3rd full year in AAA. I don’t see why the PBC didn’t jump on him.

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 3:16 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Grabbing him...

…would’ve involved either bumping Pearce up to the majors or screwing Larry Broadway, in that Koshansky can only handle 1B and DH, and we already have guys at both of those spots in AAA. Still, I think it would’ve been worthwhile.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 3:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I've Seen Koshansy Play ...

and he is a AAAA player.

by thegunner on Mar 30, 2009 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If you don't like him...

…then that only confirms that he would’ve been a good claim.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 5:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

LOL

Nice one, Vlad!

by patthatt on Mar 30, 2009 7:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Keep Watching Koshansky, Vlad ...

and you’ll soon discover that he is a AAAA player.

by thegunner on Mar 31, 2009 1:34 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The last time I watched him...

…was at the Futures Game here, a few years ago. He moved well around the bag and nearly put a ball in the river.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 9:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ah ha! “Nearly,” you say! That just PROVES he’s a AAAA player. That and the secret information I have that I can’t share with you now.

by WTM on Mar 31, 2009 9:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ehh

His AAA numbers are inflated a ton by playing in Colorado Springs and the PCL — the .300/.380/.600 line from last year translates to .244/.310/.459 in PNC Park. Along those lines, PECOTA projects him to .234/.310/.435 in Coors Field. Starting-caliber is a stretch; Pearce is younger, almost as good now, and has more upside.

by shayborg on Mar 31, 2009 1:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That PECOTA is much, much lower than most other systems.

For example…

CHONE: .256/.335/.469
ZiPS: .275/.342/.503
*[Both in Coors, so knock down for our park/league.]

.244/.310/.459 for his MLE last year is pretty reasonable as an estimate, and that’d be useful for us, especially if you give it a little bump for continued offensive development as he enters his age-27 season. But even if you don’t, a .769 OPS is basically what we got out of Xavier Nady in 2006, and I didn’t hear many people complaining about that then.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 9:29 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Pearce

I like the guy, and I don’t think that 2008 is representative of his true level of ability… but it still MLEs out to a .228/.281/.375 line. And yes, Pearce is younger… but by less than a year. I think you can make a good case for Koshansky being the better prospect at this point (assuming you can ever call someone of that age a prospect, of course). And since Pearce is a righty and Koshansky is a lefty, they would’ve been a viable platoon, if we’d wanted to go that direction in 2010.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 9:34 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Koshansky vs. Pearce and Nady

2008 isn’t really a fair comparison; it was Koshansky’s career year — in his second go-round at AAA — and Pearce’s worst by far, as you noted. I do agree that Koshansky is better today, but Pearce has shown significantly better on-base skills and plate discipline in the minors, so despite his age I still think he is more likely to be a productive major league hitter.

And a SLG-heavy .769 OPS out of a first baseman, particularly one who is a butcher in the field, is well below average as you know. Nady was mediocre in 2006. The appropriate comparison is LaRoche, the definition of the average major league 1B, and Mario has been consistently better than Koshansky would be. I hadn’t seen the ZiPS and CHONE projections. They are mighty rosy, but given his MLEs I’d take the under on both of those, even in Coors.

I agree Koshansky could have been a useful player to have around, but I don’t know if he’s worth a 40-man spot, and I certainly wouldn’t want to see him starting.

by shayborg on Mar 31, 2009 1:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't think 2008 is Koshansky's career year.

He fell one HR short of setting a team record at Tulsa in 2006, for example (a record that had held for 23 years), and in his first go-round at AAA he put up a .897 OPS. It’s not like his 2008 success came out of nowhere. He added about 100 points of OPS, almost all of it power, but as you note that’s pretty much what you’d expect from a 26-year-old level repeater whose game is focused on power.

I don’t know that it’s fair to characterize Pearce as having better OBP skills and plate discipline. Pearce’s edge in career minor-league BA, for example, is a whole four points, and Koshansky’s last three seasonal walk totals are all higher than Pearce’s career high (52, in 2007). I agree that Pearce is a much better contact hitter, so he’ll probably keep more of his BA as he transitions to the majors, but it’s not like Koshansky is going to be down in the Monroe Zone.

I’m also not sure why you seem to think that Koshansky is “a butcher in the field”. He’s a big guy, but he’s pretty smooth and athletic for his size. He was Virginia’s top starter as a college senior, in addition to his slugging exploits, and BA has always given very positive reviews of his defense. He wouldn’t cover enough ground to handle an OF corner, but we aren’t talking about Ryan Howard here…

The Nady comparison I made seems perfectly reasonable to me. Koshansky will turn 27 this year, and Nady was 27 when we traded for him in 2006. Koshansky is a 1B, and Nady spent more defensive innings at 1B for us that year than any other position, functioning as the team’s primary starter there after the trades of Casey and Craig Wilson. People were perfectly happy to put up with Nady’s 2006 performance, and I don’t see any reason why they wouldn’t be happy with a similar line from Kochansky. Particularly if one of the potential alternatives involves Pearce not looking good and us getting stuck with a random minor league free agent.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 2:06 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Waivers

But, didn’t we have a lower waiver priority than Texas because they were terrible last year?

by bishopmp1 on Mar 30, 2009 1:14 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Waivers are restricted by league.

To get to Texas, he had to pass through the entire National League first, since Colorado is a NL club.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Loved the ESPN story on Paulino

Jayson Stark interviewed 4 ML scouts on the Phillies’ Ronny Ballgame trade.

They all voted it a steal for the Phillies. “Good thing the Phillies traded Paulino when they did,” said one. “The more they showcased him, the worse he got.”

Tell me about it.

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 3:19 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Somehow, the idea of “showcasing” Ronny Paulino strikes me as the equivalent of putting an old refrigerator in your front yard when you’re trying to sell your house.

by WTM on Mar 30, 2009 3:35 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Are you suggesting that Ronny Paulino lacks “curb appeal”?

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

More like he’s a “fixer upper.”

by WTM on Mar 30, 2009 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’d call him a “tear down”.

by WstCstBucco on Mar 31, 2009 11:43 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Fantasy

What does everyone think of this team…http://fanzak.com/fzrants/My_Fantasy_Baseball_Team

by duke9295 on Mar 30, 2009 4:03 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Seems kind of short on pitching.

What format?

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Especially since Lackey won’t be pitching for at least a month.

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 30, 2009 9:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Does anyone know anything?

About the minor league pitcher the PBC acquired from the Indians today?

His name is Shawn Nottingham.

Another Indian farmhand. Is he a flamethrower with control problems?

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 6:03 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Not so much, no

FB only touches 90, 3.3 BB/9 for his career. Moved to the pen last year, got shelled, dropped from AA to A+.

I think they’re going to need Davidson’s roster spot at some point this spring, and I think they picked up Nottingham to be a lefty at Altoona on the off chance that Davidson gets claimed when he shows up on waivers.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Clever

So what do you think, Vlad? Will PBC need to remove Davidson from 40 man roster due to a trade or a waiver pickup?

You thinking Robert Andino?

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 7:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Could be either.

Or for a non-roster player in camp, like Monroe.

Perrotto today said that we’re still in on Andino, Baker, and Niemann. All three would need a spot on the 40-man, if acquired.

by Vlad on Mar 30, 2009 8:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Grabow for Jeff Niemann would be sweet, IMHO (though it may be too much to give up). Niemann has tons of service time left (but no options, which is reportedly why Rays are shopping him), and looks like he has a far better upside than Karstens to me.

I’d rather see Huntington go after a potential high ceiling guy like Niemann (if his elbow is OK), than spend all his effort trying to nab a RH middle IF bench warmer who’ll be off the team in a year or two.

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 9:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't think we're getting Niemann for Grabow.

When Tampa was talking about Niemann with San Diego, they were asking for young power arms they could stash in the minors. We don’t have anybody who exactly fits that bill, but Sues and Uviedo are probably the closest two (albeit a little light on value in both cases). If Tampa thinks they can fix Moskos or Gorzelanny, they might work too.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 9:38 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dunno

According to this report, the Padres have turned down the Rays request for the 14th, 16th and 21st prospect in their system in return for Niemann.

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/03/padres-talks-for-niemann-reach-stalemate.html

Grabow seems to me to be as good as 3-4 mid level prospects, unless the Padres have some kind of insanely good minor leaguers.

Rays are smart to wanna rack up prospect arms, but nobody seems to want to play with them. With them maybe having to waive Niemann real soon, they’re hardly operating from a position of strength.

by WstCstBucco on Mar 31, 2009 11:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think Tampa was asking for one of those guys...

…not all of them. Could be wrong, though. The bit isn’t written as clearly as it might’ve been. None of those guys are top 100 types, but they’re all legit prospects.

I still don’t think Grabow works, though. Tampa likes Niemann and Hammel quite a lot. The only reason they’re looking at a trade is because they can’t fit all of their talent onto the 25-man roster. Since Grabow is out of options, he’d need a 25-man spot, and they’d be right back in the same boat they were in when they started. That’s why I floated Gorzelanny as an idea – he’s already been optioned to the minors, so they could carry him for a year at AAA if necessary and then re-evaluate in 2010.

If we’re trying to move Grabow for him, it’d more likely be in a three-way deal with a team that wants Grabow and has a prospect that Tampa can live with.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 12:04 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Grabow would not be enough to get Niemann

Maybe Grabow and Shelby Ford, or something like that. It will be interesting to see who Tampa gets for him, but I think he ends up staying with the Rays, if, for no other reason, that TB can’t get what they think he’s worth.

by God Loves on Mar 31, 2009 9:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Ohman now officially a Bum

Signs with Dodgers for $1.35M + incentives and an option year. Dodgers deal is a minor league contract, PBC had offered ML contract

http://community.post-gazette.com/blogs/pbc/archive/2009/03/30/ohman-chooses-dodgers-not-pirates.aspx

by WstCstBucco on Mar 30, 2009 9:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I'm ticked

that McCutchen is going back to Indy.

At this point, I don’t give a damn about one year’s time differential with McCutch reaching arbitration and unrestricted free agency.

We deserve something to be excited about, and traditionalists like Huntington and Frank Coon won’t let it happen for small financial issues.

Looking forward to watching Nyjer hit .205 in the everyday lineup, now.

by Suffering Buc on Mar 30, 2009 11:29 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I care about a year’s differential when it means the difference between McCutchen playing on a 100 loss team now or on a playoff team in a few years.

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 31, 2009 1:08 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If you want to be excited about something...

…you could pick Nate. Or Doumit. Or one of the LaRoches. And there’s nothig that says you can’t enjoy following Cutch in AAA.

by Vlad on Mar 31, 2009 9:39 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wake Up Chester

You must be dreaming!

by thegunner on Mar 31, 2009 1:33 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Naw most of my dreams involve lots of nude women and sandwiches. The Pirates going to the playoffs is way too “out there” for my psyche to consider even in a dream.

I made most of my life decisions at a Foghat concert... I stand by them.

by Chester J Lampwick on Mar 31, 2009 9:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs