Pirates should claim recently DFA'd right-hander from Angels (with hidden potential)

The Pirates recently released Trey Cabbage, as he wanted to play in Japan instead, which opened another spot on the 40-man roster (currently sitting at 36 players). The majority of the moves Pittsburgh has made this offseason have been geared towards replenishing their depleted depth in the minor leagues.

As they await the signing of Elvis Alvarado becoming official, they should look to add another arm to the 40-man through the waiver wire. The Angels recently acquired Chuckie Robinson, but in the process, they designated Davis Daniel for assignment.

Although Daniel is not a player that would jump into a high-leverage role with the Pirates or crack the starting rotation, he brings value that would help them win games in a lower leverage spot, possibly as a long relief option.

Pirates should consider former Angels pitcher Davis Daniel as a possible long relief option.

Last season with the Angels, Daniel posted an earned run average (ERA) of 6.23 with a FIP of 4.16 and struck out 28 batters across 30.1 innings. Opponents batted .307 against him and he walked hitters at a 4.5% clip.

Some of those numbers are solid, like his walk percentage and FIP, but the ERA and opponent average were tough. Statcast indicates that both should have been significantly lower. His expected ERA was at 4.34, and his expected opposing batting average was at .278; Daniel certainly seems to have gotten unlucky.

Additionally, his opponents' average exit velocity was excellent at just 87.2 miles per hour, and his chase rate was at 32.1%. Both of those would rank very high, but he did not throw enough innings to qualify for the rankings.

At the age of 27, Daniel could turn into a "diamond in the rough" type of acquisition. The Angels decided to move on from him, but the Pirates should take full advantage of their decision by picking him up off of waivers.

There have been plenty of these type of situations for the Pirates in recent memory. Ryan Borucki and Dennis Santana are both players the Pirates took in and turned into relievers that they could count on. They should try to replicate history and bring in Daniel to fulfill one of their needs in the bullpen.