The Pittsburgh Pirates announced on Tuesday morning that they have signed first baseman Daniel Voglebach and right-handed pitcher Heath Hembree to one-year deals. To make room on the 40-man roster, both Blake Cederlind and Nick Mears were placed on the 60-day injured list.
We have signed RHP Heath Hembree to a one-year deal. pic.twitter.com/AxpeDgUfl8
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 15, 2022
and
We have signed INF Daniel Vogelbach to a one-year deal. pic.twitter.com/MlX6FOTmkO
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) March 15, 2022
Vogelbach is an interesting signing in that if he works out, the Pirates will still hold his rights for two more seasons after 2022. He has played parts of six seasons in the majors, but his three partial seasons amounted to less than one full year of service time. He is a career .209/.336/.403 hitter in 337 games. The 29-year-old was an All-Star in 2019 when he hit .208/.341/.439 for the Seattle Mariners, with 30 homers and 92 walks. Vogelbach played 93 games for the Milwaukee Brewers last year, putting up a .730 OPS and a -0.2 WAR. He is extremely slow (hasn’t attempted a stolen base in the majors) and his best position is DH, which works out well with the DH being added to the National League this year. He can also play first base, though he’s below average defensively.
Hembree is a 33-year-old reliever with a 4.19 career ERA in 332.2 innings over 331 games in nine seasons. He has a 4.49 FIP, a 1.30 WHIP and a 128:375 BB/SO ratio. He split the 2021 season between the New York Mets and Cincinnati Reds, posting a 5.59 ERA in 58 innings, with a 4.34 FIP, a 1.19 WHIP and 83 strikeouts. He picked up nine of his 11 career saves last year. He had a 9.00 ERA in 19 innings during the shortened 2020 season, but he was a fairly consistent solid middle reliever prior to these last two years, putting up a 3.70 ERA in seven seasons with the Boston Red Sox.
Jon Heyman with contract details for Vogelbach. Hembree got $2.125M according to multiple sources.
Daniel Vogelbach to Pirates. $1M MLB deal. 2nd year option $1.5M. 400K incentives.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 15, 2022
UPDATE: Looks like Chase De Jong is back on a minor league deal
Yoshi Tsutsugo, whose arrival to camp was delayed because he was in Japan, was in the Pirates clubhouse today. So was RHP Chase DeJong, who's at spring training as a non-roster invitee. DeJong (1-4, 5.77 ERA) had 39 K/19 BB but gave up 11 HR in 43.2 IP in 9 GS for Pirates in '21.
— Kevin Gorman (@KevinGormanPGH) March 15, 2022
UPDATE #2: Cederlind is still in TJ surgery recovery, while Mears had minor elbow surgery recently, which won’t keep him out all season. He should/could be ready to go by the time his 60 days are up.
