Neil Walker loses arbitration case

The Pirates prevailed in their arbitration case with Neil Walker.  He had asked for $9M but will instead get $8M.  Either way, the result figured to be close to the $8.6M projected by Matt Swartz at MLBTR.

Walker is coming off a career-best season in which he finished third among all second basemen in wOBA at .356 and in OPS at .809.  He had career highs in HRs with 23 and slugging at .467.  This was the third of four arbitration seasons for Walker, as he was a "super two."  He'll be eligible for free agency after the 2016 season.

The Pirates have two remaining arbitration cases, with Pedro Alvarez and Vance Worley.

In one other minor news item, the Pirates have signed catcher Beau Maggi to a minor league contract.  Maggi is the younger brother of Pirates' minor league utility player Drew Maggi.  Beau was drafted by the Royals in 2012, but was released in mid-2014 after playing only sparingly.  He figures to be an organizational catcher with the Pirates.