Pirates lose Andrew Oliver in Rule 5 Draft

Following up on Wilbur's post from this morning, the Pirates didn't take anyone in any portion of the Rule 5 Draft today. (I wonder if they might have taken Marlins first baseman Mark Canha if he had been available, but the Rockies took him first.) The Bucs lost Andrew Oliver to the Phillies in the big-league portion, then lost Luis Urena and Tyler Waldron in the minor-league portion, which is no big deal.

Oliver had never shown much indication of fixing his control problems, so as good as his arm is, the five-percent chance he becomes a good big-league pitcher isn't worth worrying about. He was the Phillies' second pick of the Rule 5 Draft, too (infielder David Herrera of the Rangers was the other), so the Pirates could get Oliver back anyway, not that anyone outside the Indianapolis clubhouse would have noticed if he had simply departed via minor league free agency.