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First Pitch: How Being a Contender Changes Spring Training Decisions

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The next few weeks might introduce uncharted territory for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In previous years around this point in Spring Training, we’d see at least one of the following scenarios playing out:

1. The Pirates would be picking up players via trade or waivers from teams that had too many options and couldn’t possibly keep all of those players.

2. The Pirates would construct their roster in a way where they could keep everyone, with no worry about losing anyone.

3. The position battles for the final roster spots would include a lot of projects and players who seemed like high risk/high reward options.

This year things are different. The Pirates are now one of the teams with too many options. They probably will construct their roster in a way to keep as many players as possible, but there’s no possible way that they can keep them all. And they’re not having to fill the roster with a lot of high risk bets, but they’ve got a legit roster, with those high risk guys likely being on the outside looking in when it’s all said and done.

Stolmy Pimentel is probably the biggest representation of the change. Last year the Pirates kept him on the roster, betting on his upside. A few years before that, he might have even been given a shot in the rotation. This year? I really don’t see him making the team, which means the Pirates are going to have to hope he clears waivers if they ever want him realizing his upside in their organization.

Then there’s Pedro Florimon, who is out of options, and is another guy who would have probably claimed a bench spot in previous years. This year the Pirates spent a lot more on their bench, leaving them with one open spot, and I highly doubt that Florimon gets that spot.

It’s possible that the Pirates could make some moves this year to bring talent in at the deadline. One year ago today, they added Vance Worley to as little fanfare as you could possibly have for a Spring Training trade. In that same way, they added Keon Broxton a week later in another minor trade. This off-season they’ve made about a billion waiver claims and minor trades to improve the organization. I could see them making minor trades using the players who are unlikely to make the roster, but I also wouldn’t be surprised if they add a depth piece to play in Indianapolis.

All of this is what happens when you become a top contender. Your roster becomes so good that you lose players who could help teams that have more time to display patience with those players. You have fewer spots for projects, or for players who are out of options. It’s not like these are bad things. They’re definitely good problems to have. But since the Pirates have never been in this situation before, it’s going to be interesting to see how they handle it all.

**We’ve got a big announcement tomorrow morning.

**We are down to our final case of the 2015 Prospect Guide from the final shipment. I don’t anticipate ordering another shipment this year. That means once the current stock is gone, the paperback version will be sold out. You can order your copy of the book on the products page of the site.

**Pirates Prospects Is Looking For Paid Writers In Altoona And West Virginia. We’re looking for new writers to cover the home games in Altoona and West Virginia, and to provide prospect reports.

**Notes: The Upcoming Cuts, McCutchen Returns, Stewart Rehab Update

**The Roster Situations That Could Impact The Makeup Of The Pirates Bullpen

Tim Williams
Tim Williams
Tim is the owner, producer, editor, and lead writer of PiratesProspects.com. He has been running Pirates Prospects since 2009, becoming the first new media reporter and outlet covering the Pirates at the MLB level in 2011 and 2012. His work can also be found in Baseball America, where he has been a contributor since 2014 and the Pirates' correspondent since 2019.

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