Pirates GM Neal Huntington was a little naive when he came into this season thinking the Pirates could compete. While Paul Maholm and Ian Snell may be on verge of stardom, the offense cannot support the pitching, especially a lineup without a power hitter like Jason Bay. The Pirates will likely trade Jack Wilson and Freddy Sanchez to clear up some payroll, as well as bring in a couple prospects in return. It is possible the Mets could be a suitor for Freddy Sanchez. They currently have Luis Castillo in the spot, but they are reportedly looking to trade him. Bringing in Sanchez wouldn't cost the Mets more than a pair of Double-A prospects, along with a player like Angel Pagan. As for Wilson, he will likely be dumped for a Double-A prospect and cash. Because he is 31, and has a high salary, it should bring down his value. Nonetheless, a team that misses out on Rafael Furcal or J.J. Hardy (through trade), could be in on Wilson. The Orioles, Tigers, and Blue Jays are possible suitors.
The Pirates are still several years away from being a contender, but they should start building up their minor league system in preparation of competing in four or five years. One way they can do this is by trading their big salary guys, and putting some of that money towards drafting better players. They did that somewhat in this draft by drafting Tanner Scheppers and Pedro Alvarez. Scheppers is injured and that dropped his value from a Top 10 guy to an early second rounder, a great pick by the Pirates.
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