Pittsburgh Pirates Rumors: More Notes on Quintana and Cutch

Today rumors of a possible Jose Quintana acquisition are being discussed on twitter.  Every hour more and more information breaks regarding the Pittsburgh Pirates interest along with other possibilities.

Many Pittsburgh Pirates fans are excited about the possible acquisition of Jose Quintana.  Here is the latest updates on the potential deal.  ESPN Insider Buster Olney has the inside track on all things Pittsburgh Pirates, Quintana, and other pitcher rumors.

This morning Olney tweeted this to set off Pittsburgh Pirates fans in regards to possibly acquiring Quintana:

"The Pirates have worked hard to try to make a trade for Jose Quintana, whose modest contract is perfect for their budget size."

Olney said if the Pirates are able to deal for Jose Quintana then it could actually motivate them to trade McCutchen.  This in a way would make sense as they would try to recoup some of the lost prospects.  At the same time if the Pittsburgh Pirates acquire Quintana, does it make sense to deal arguably your best hitter?  Here is Olney’s tweet:

"Ancillary benefit of a Quintana trade for PIT: It would give them cover to deal McCutchen. Could say (rightly) they are trying to win in ’17"

Olney than expanded in an article on ESPN regarding the Quintana talks and another pitching target of the Pittsburgh Pirates.  He mentions that while the Pirates are working on the Quintana front, the Bucs are still engaged with Ivan Nova and trying to bring him back.

"The Pirates have worked hard to try to make a trade for Jose Quintana work, with the attraction obvious: He’s an excellent pitcher with a contract that would be perfect for small-budget Pittsburgh. Including team options, Quintana is under team control for the next four years, for $36.6 million. The Pirates have had talks with Ivan Nova, as well.More from Rum BunterPittsburgh Pirates Prospect Stockwatch: Outfielder Tres GonzalezPittsburgh Pirates Podcast: Rum Bunter Radio Talks Winter Meetings FalloutPittsburgh Pirates: Potential Leadoff Hitters in 2023Pittsburgh Pirates: The Rotation is not being ImprovedPittsburgh Pirates Make Vince Velasquez Signing Official"

One thing that is not clear is whether or not the Pirates would look to acquire both pitchers.  On one hand it would be great.  If the Bucs added those two with Cole and Taillon they would have an incredible rotation.  However, the Pittsburgh Pirates front office may feel if they acquire Quintana they would be better off spending their left over money else where.

Also there is other news regarding recently acquired pitcher Daniel Hudson.  Hudson signed a two-year deal with 5.5 million per season.  He can also earn incentives based on how many games he finishes.  This was all announced two days ago.  However, the Pittsburgh Pirates never made an official announcement.  Finally they did today.  The Bucs announced the deal and designated recently claimed Brady Dragmire off the 40 man.  This makes the second time this off-season that Dragmire has been DFA’d by the Pittsburgh Pirates.  The Bucs obviously like him enough to continue and claim him, it will be interesting to see if he clears waivers this time.

Related Story: What would the Chi Sox want?

Stay tuned for more updates as the Quintana situations continues to play out.  If Olney is talking about it chances are other insiders will weigh in on what they have heard.  Regardless we will have all the updates here on the site if there is any of note.  It seems that the Pittsburgh Pirates hot stove is finally starting to heat up.  Any news is better than no news!