Pittsburgh Pirates: Black Friday Shopping 2021
By Marty Leap
Left-handed relievers
A big need for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2022 will be left-handed relief pitching help. Right now the Pirates have Anthony Banda and Sam Howard on their 40-man roster as left-handed relievers. However, both Banda and Howard are candidates to be taken off the 40-man roster this offseason.
So this bring the Pirate need for left-handed relief pitching help to free agency, The first pitcher who could be looked into here by the Pirates is veteran, and one time postseason star, Andrew Miller.
Miller is coming off a 4.75 ERA, 4.50 FIP season with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2021. At this point Miller has made plenty of money in his MLB career. This combined with Miller looking to bounce back in 2022 could make him available on the cheap and at rate the Pirates could afford.
Former Pirate Tony Watson could be a an option too. Watson posted a 3.92 ERA, 3.48 FIP and allowed just 4 home runs in 57.1 innings pitched last season. Like Miller, Watson should not have an overly expensive price tag.
Jake Diekman could be another strong Black Friday purchase by the Pirates. With the A’s, Diekman posted a 3.86 ERA and a 4.46 FIP in 2021. Diekman also struck out batters at a 31.7% clip, marking his second consecutive season with a strikeout rate over 30%.