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Three Off-Season Goals for the Pittsburgh Pirates

By Noah Wright

CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 26: Jared Oliva #76 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrates with his teammates after the Pirates defeated the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on September 26, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Pirates defeated the Indians 8-0. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 26: Jared Oliva #76 of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrates with his teammates after the Pirates defeated the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on September 26, 2020 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Pirates defeated the Indians 8-0. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /
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WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 22: Brock Holt #27 of the Washington Nationals plays first base against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first game of a doubleheader at Nationals Park on September 22, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 22: Brock Holt #27 of the Washington Nationals plays first base against the Philadelphia Phillies during the first game of a doubleheader at Nationals Park on September 22, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

Depth, Lots Of It

Adding depth to the roster needs to be another priority for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Aside from the middle infield, the Pirates lack a decent amount of outfield depth and pitching depth that is MLB ready.

Last off-season, the Pirates signed seven minor league deals. Mostly, they were position players, and the only two pitchers they signed were Derek Holland and Robbie Erlin. Now granted, you shouldn’t expect them to make any big deals when it comes to free agency this winter. But right now, the Pirates need to be looking for cheap veterans they can sign to minor league deals that have some potential upside.

Guys like Brock Holt, Billy Hamilton, Jake Lamb, Steven Souza Jr., Joe Panik, or Adeiny Hechavarria would be good low cost utility men that may or may not turn into something notable. On the pitching side of things, Jeff Samardzjia, Tommy Milone, Alex Wood, Chris Devenski, Jared Hughes, Luis Avalian, Ross Detwiler, and Andrew Chafin might also turn into solid minor league signings.

Aside from making a handful of minor legue deal signings, this team needs a durable starting pitcher. They need an innings eater, and signing someone like Mike Minor or Julio Teheran on a cheap, one year ‘rebuild your value’ kind of deal would be great.

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