Pittsburgh Pirates Rumor Mill – all eyes on Huntington

Jul 24, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Jake McGee (57) throws a pitch during the ninth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Tropicana Field. Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Baltimore Orioles 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Relief Market

The Rays have been mentioned as a team that could trade some relievers, including Brad Boxberger, who has a 3.02 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP this year, and Kevin Jepsen, who has a 2.81 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP this season. Boxberger would be a rental, while Jepsen has one more year of arbitration eligibility remaining. We know Aroldis Chapman and Craig Kimbrel will be big names potentially on the move tomorrow, but if the Pirates make a move for another relief pitcher, it won’t be for a closer. They already did that with the addition of Soria. Francisco Rodriguez of the Brewers and Joaquin Benoit also have an outside shot of being moved. It’s shaping up to be closers on the move tomorrow, but there are so many middle relievers that could be available out there as well. Maybe John Holdzkom will be an internal addition to the Pirate pen later in the season. Also:

Shawn Kelley: 3.19 ERA, 1.12 WHIP in middle relief this year and is a free agent after the season.

Let’s land this plane. Next we take a look at the market for a bench bat and give you a final prediction.

Next: Bench Bats and Predictions