2014-2015 Pirates Offseason Thread

[Crankshaft]

Glad that they're not content with Chris Stewart but I'm saddened that they're probably throwing in the towel on Martin.

[pittsports87]

The Pirates have a serious obsession with Yankees' catchers.

Seems solid, but devoid of power at the plate. How is he defensively?

One of the top pitch framers last year. I think he actually ranked right in the middle of Martin and Stewart. He is good at blocking balls in the dirt. He has an accurate, but pretty sub-par arm.

[SolidSnake]

The Yankees catcher factory

[columbia]

The only problem is that he won't get the strike calls from the umps, now that he's not on the Yankees.

[FreeCandy44]

I know nothing of this guy, was he their starting catcher?

[Rocco]

No, that would be Brian McCann, he of the absurd contract that Martin would like to get this offseason.

[MWB]

The only problem is that he won't get the strike calls from the umps, now that he's not on the Yankees.

I see what you did there.

Cervelli can't hit at all, but is a solid back up catcher.

[Dickie Dunn]

The only problem is that he won't get the strike calls from the umps, now that he's not on the Yankees.

I see what you did there.

Cervelli can't hit at all, but is a solid back up catcher.

Batted .301 with an .802 OPS last season. For his career he's .278 and .729. He doesn't have much power, but that's definitely not "can't hit at all". Humberto Cota couldn't hit at all. This guy can at least hit some.

[Mr. Colby]

He can hit passably. Better than Stewart and his .375 BABIP last year

[MWB]

A little extreme on my part, but he's not an everyday player. He would make a good platoon from the right side.

[FreeCandy44]

Stewart was hitting "ok" towards the end of the season.

[MWB]

He can hit passably. Better than Stewart and his .375 BABIP last year

Cervelli's was .408 last year.

[columbia]

Even the most objective viewer can see that the Bucs are trending up with this move.

[Rocco]

Tim Williams
‏@timwilliamsP2
Last two years pitch framing runs per 7000, according to @baseballpro:

Francisco Cervelli - 23.8
Chris Stewart - 16.4
Russell Martin - 14.6

Gee, I wonder why that's the case.

[Mr. Colby]

He can hit passably. Better than Stewart and his .375 BABIP last year

Cervelli's was .408 last year.

****

[Mr. Colby]

Even the most objective viewer can see that the Bucs are trending up with this move.

huh

[columbia]

thatsthejoke.jpg

[ulf]

So when Martin left New York, his replacements were Stewart and Cervelli. lol

[Troy Loney]

I think someone needs to give Rocco a direct line to NH so that he can explain the positive correlation between Yankee catchers and pitch framing ability.

[the errey i breathe]

Overall I think this is a positive move assuming they know they can't meet Russ' demands and they upgrade at 1B. Obviously they're not going to replace Martin's production at C but having a decent option (which Cervelli is) and adding to other areas could offset or actually improve this team. Russ has done a fantastic job for this team but let's not forget the impact that the groundball philosophy and defensive alignments have played in helping these reclamation pitchers pan out. Losing Russ is going to suck, especially going to the Cubs but the team COULD be better off without him, assuming the resources are allocated appropriately.

[Rocco]

With the money saved at C they have more money to throw at Scherzer.

[Dickie Dunn]

Does Tony Sanchez have any place with this franchise? I know he started getting work at 1B in AAA last year, but don't know if that's an actual option for him.

[MWB]

I think its a positive move if they can get someone else to catch as well. Cervelli had 266 ABs one season, and other than that never more than 146. He can't be expected to carry the load. If he is, he will most likely break down.

[Troy Loney]

Does Tony Sanchez have any place with this franchise? I know he started getting work at 1B in AAA last year, but don't know if that's an actual option for him.

assuming the depth chart is:
1: Cervelli
2: Phillips
3: Sanchez

He'll have some sort of role. He's not going to be a full time MLB regular right now, but competent in spot duty. But, we said the same things about Harrison for two years, then he turned a corner

[ulf]

Phillips? You mean Stewart? Or am I missing something?