Pirates, Jeff Karstens agree to terms

The Pirates have agreed to terms with Jeff Karstens on a one-year deal, Bill Brink reports.

I can't find anything official about the financial terms yet. In any case, though, the complaining about the Pirates' decision to drop Karstens can now officially cease. I hated the non-tender too, so there's little to say except that I'm glad to have Karstens back, and if it turns out the Pirates signed Karstens for less than the $4 million or so he would have made in arbitration, pretty much the entire fanbase (including me) will have to eat some crow.

It's unclear how having Karstens back in the fold will affect the Pirates' pursuits of Shaun Marcum and Francisco Liriano, but I'd be pleased to see the Pirates sign one of them. There's still space. Jeff Locke and Kyle McPherson will get their chances.

UPDATE: Brink reports that Karstens' deal is "believed to be worth about $2.5 million." If that's true, there's nothing to do but give it up for Neal Huntington. He got the market for Karstens right. We didn't. I'm not entirely sure why he got it right, and Karstens is worth one year and $2.5 million while Kevin Correia is worth two and $10 million, and I hope Karstens remains healthy. Given what we know for sure, though, this looks like a great deal.