Now that the World Series has ended, it is officially the off-season in Major League Baseball. With that being said, it could be an interesting off-season for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Here are some stats on how the 2011 Buccos improved from the previous year:
- The Pirates finished the season with a 72-90 record, 4th place in the National League Central Division.
- The Pirates won more than 70 games for the first time since going 72-89 in 2004 and showed a 15-game improvement from the 2010 season –the club’s largest increase in wins since 1995 and 1996.
- The Bucs finished the 2011 home seasons by drawing 1,940,429 fans for their 80 game dates (an average of 24,255). They finished with the fourth-best attendance figure in the 125-year history of the club. Pittsburgh’s 21.76 % increase in average attendance was the second-highest in MLB this season (behind Cleveland’s 30.64 %).
- The Pirates pitching staff lowered its ERA from 5.00 last season to 4.04 this season –a difference of – 0.96. That figure represents the second-best improvement in the Major Leagues this season, trailing only Arizona (4.81 to 3.80).
- The Pirates went 35-46 on the road in 2011 –the most victories away from home since 2003 when they went 36-45. The Bucs won a total of 17 road games last season, 22 in 2009 and 28 in 2008.
There were a lot of accomplishments, but with that being said, the Pirates finished below .500 for the 19th straight year proving that there is still a lot of work to do at the Major League level.
“For me, the most encouraging thing about this season has been the core of production that got us to first place on July 25, is going to be here next year, 2013, 2014, 2015 for the most part,“ Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington said during the final home stand of the 2011 season. “As well as the wave of players coming behind to help them get better. We showed some flaws, we showed that we still need to do a lot of work…There’s a lot of good things to grab a hold of.”
It’s a rather weak free-agent market. The Pirates main focuses this off-season are on a starting pitching, a catcher and first baseman. The club could also look to upgrade at shortstop, third base and the outfield as well.
“The free-agent market is a weak one,” Huntington said. “That doesn’t mean there’s not going to be a good fit out there or somebody likes what we’re doing, likes what we’re about and we’re able to find a common financial ground. It may come via trade. We’ve got some prospects we’re willing to talk about to make this club better. We also have a good number of guys coming from within that are going to have to step up…I take it as a step by step, day by day process to make us better and to help this club continue to grow.”
Free-agents: First baseman Derrek Lee, Outfielder Ryan Ludwick
Arbitration eligible’s: Right-handers Jason Grilli, Joel Hanrahan, Jeff Karstens, Evan Meek, Charlie Morton, Ross Ohlendorf, Chris Resop, Jose Veras; first baseman Garrett Jones; first baseman Steve Pearce; Infielder Brandon Wood
*Tim Dierks of MLB Trade Rumors reports that both Jones and Pearce reached super-two status this year.
Options: Left-hander Paul Maholm ($9.75 M); Catchers Ryan Doumit ($7.25 M in 2012, $8.25 M in 2013), Chris Snyder ($6.75 M); Shortstop Ronny Cedeno ($3 M).
Below is a breakdown of the options at each position:
Starting pitching: If the Pirates decline Maholm’s option, they will need to fill a spot in the rotation. Right-handers Kevin Correia, Jeff Karstens, James McDonald and Charlie Morton are locks for next year. However, Morton had off-season hip surgery and is not expected back until mid-April.
- Internal options: Right-hander Brad Lincoln; Chris Leroux, who has been starting in winter ball in the Dominican, could be an intriguing option. Leroux has only appeared out of the bullpen in the Majors. Left-handers Jeff Locke, Aaron Thompson saw starts at the Major League level, but will most likely start the season in Triple-A.
Relievers: There is no question that Joel Hanrahan will be the Bucs closer for next season. Evan Meek is expected back and Jason Grilli, Chris Resop, Jose Veras could return once again. Jared Hughes and Tony Watson could be back in the Majors next year after having impressive rookie seasons.
First base: The Pirates have made it clear that they would love to have veteran Derrek Lee back next season. This position is one of the main focuses this off-season. The Bucs need much better production from first base in 2012.
- Internal Options: Garrett Jones, Matt Hague, Steve Pearce
Second base: Perhaps the only position that the club does not have to worry about. Neil Walker will return to play second next season.
Shortstop: The Pirates have a $3 million club option for Ronny Cedeno.
- Internal options: Pedro Ciriaco, Chase d’Arnaud, Josh Harrison, Brandon Wood
Third base: The Pirates could look for an upgrade at third base from the free-agent market. Pedro Alvarez had a disappointing season and will look to rebound in 2012.
- Internal options: Josh Harrison; Matt Hague has been playing exclusively at third base in winter ball in the Dominican. Hague, who is Rule 5 eligible, could be an option for a corner infield utility rule for the Pirates.
Catcher: The options for both Ryan Doumit and Chris Snyder are expected to be declined. The catching position remains a focus this off-season.
- Internal options: Jason Jaramillo, Michael McKenry, Matt Pagnozzi
Outfield: Jose Tabata and Andrew McCutchen are locks for right field and center field for next year. With Alex Presley’s great season with Pittsburgh, he could be a lock for left field.
- Internal options: Garrett Jones, Xavier Paul
The Bucs are expected to decline the options of Maholm, Doumit and Snyder, freeing up some money for the free-agent market. However, the club faces a lot of arbitration eligible players that will receive salary bumps for 2012.
“The increase in the attendance will certainty get poured right back in the club, right back in the organization,” Huntington said. “As this clubs matures, the payroll will go up. And we’re looking forward to that. We have some free-agent dollars coming off if we don’t resign some guys. We also have some arbitration eligible players that are going to eat up some of that difference so its not as simple as player x comes off for x millions of dollars, you’ll have that money to spend. Joel Hanrahan’s going to become more expensive this year. And that’s a great thing. It’s actually a wonderful thing that these guys continue to grow and develop and continue to be more expensive. That means you’re playing well and that’s what we want to have happen.”
“We’ll have some money to go explore free-agency, we’ll have some money to trade for established Major League players. We’ve got some prospects that we’re willing to trade. And we’ll explore every avenue we can to make this club better. We still have to make good decisions. We still have to keep an eye on the future as we try and build the present.”
In years past, the organization had trouble getting free-agents to want to play in Pittsburgh. However, it could be different this off-season.
“Our belief is you treat people the right way, you take care of them, you help them grow, you become an environment in which people want to join. We’re turning the corner,” Huntington said. ” It will be a much easier recruiting chore this year to draw people here. [Manager] Clint [Hurdle] is an asset in itself. But our young players are going to apply a big role as well. We’re becoming a much more viable destination for free-agents.”
Photo credit: Yahoo! Sports
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