Pittsburgh Pirates Add Two Players to Their 40-Man Roster

On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Pirates added two players to their 40-man roster, confirming that these players will make their Opening Day roster

Friday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates will finally kick off their 2020 season. When the team travels to St. Louis on Friday, they will carry an active roster of 30 players. This number will drop to 28 two weeks into the season.

With the start of the season quickly approaching, manager Derek Shelton and his coaching staff must determine which 30 players they wish to take to St. Louis on the active roster. On Tuesday, they took another step toward this by adding a pair of minor league free agent signings to the team’s 40-man roster.

The two players added to the 40-man roster by the Pittsburgh Pirates were left-handed reliever Robbie Erlin and catcher John Ryan Murphy. Neither of these moves came as a surprise. Dating back to spring training, Erlin seemed like a safe bet to make the team’s roster as a left-handed reliever.

As for Murphy, once it was announced on Monday that Luke Maile underwent hand surgery it became clear Murphy would make the roster. With Maile set to miss the abbreviated 60-game season, Murphy will now serve as the back up to Jacob Stallings.

To be honest, it was a surprise that the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to land Erlin and Murphy to minor league contracts. Especially with the constant need around baseball for left-handed relievers and catching depth. While Erlin will be a free agent again at season’s end, Murphy remains under team control through next season.

Erlin and Murphy being signed to minor league contracts could both prove to be bargain signings for the Pirates. To be honest, Murphy could prove to be one of the best back up catchers in all of baseball in 2020.