GM Huntington has been faced with the task of rebuilding a bullpen year after year

According to Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune Review, Joel Hanrahan is being shopped by the Pirates and will most likely be traded. Jason Grilli is a free agent and is being pursued by over a dozen teams according to his agent Gary Sheffield. Chris Resop has already been traded to the Athletics.

The Pirates currently have two reliable bullpen guys- Jared Hughes and Tony Watson, neither of which are capable of closing. Judging by those factors, one would assume the Pirates bullpen is in trouble heading into the 2013 season, but some would say this is right where the Pirates front office feels most comfortable.

Since Neal Huntington was named the Pirates General Manager in 2007, his regime have been rightfully criticized for many strategies.

Draft tactics, development of players, trades, free agency and even public relations are all topics that can debated with this regime.

One aspect critics have not been able to question Huntington on is the construction of his bullpen throughout his tenure.

Year in and year out, Huntington has been faced with the task of rebuilding a bullpen, normally due to trading off the one-year rental power arms acquired in the winter or spring before.

We have an organizational philosophy that values appropriating our resources to other parts of the roster and building a bullpen from a variety of options,” Huntington said. “We obviously like relievers with power stuff.” –Neal Huntington, courtesy of The Tribune Review

Since 2009, Huntington has gone after low-profile power arms and for the most part has walked away with a very reliable bullpen, to only see them dismantled halfway through the season in trades, as the Pirates have been sellers for most of these seasons.

Lets take a look at how Huntington has gone about rebuilding bullpens from day one with the Pirates.

Bullpen Acquisitions:

2009

Joel Hanrahan- Hanrahan fell out of favor in Washington and was traded to the Pirates along with Lastings Milledge. After a solid season with the Pirates, Hanrahan became the “hammer” and has since made two consecutive All-Star appearances.

2010

Octavio Dotel– Dotel recorded 21 saves and a 10.8 k/9 ratio, which was good enough for Huntington to trade him to the Dodgers for starter James McDonald.

D.J. Corrasco- Corrasco was as reliable as anyone in middle relief for the Pirates in 2010 (3.88 ERA, 55.2 innings) and was eventually traded to the Diamondbacks for catcher Chris Snyder.

Javier Lopez– Lopez was a great left-handed specialist for the Pirates in 2010 and was traded mid-season to the Giants.

Brendan Donnelly– Donnelly led the way for many young pitchers on this Pirates team. His stats did not live up to his leadership capabilities, but the former hard-throwing righty was still a good signing.

Chris Resop- Midway through the 2010 campaign, Huntington claimed Resop off waivers and was a solid contributor for the Pirates for two seasons.

2011

Jose Veras– Although not many fans miss Veras, he was solid for the Pirates in 2011, recording 79 strikeouts through 71 innings pitched with a 3.80 ERA.

Jason Grilli-Grilli just might be the prized free-agent-scrap-heap-signing over the past four years for Huntington. Since being claimed off waivers from the Phillies midway through 2011, Grilli has done nothing but impress.

2012

Juan Cruz– Cruz was excellent for the Pirates through the first couple of months in 2012, even recording three saves in that time span.

2013???

So here the Pirates stand at the winter meetings with the 2013 season approaching and the Pirates have traded Resop, seem to be on the verge of trading Hanrahan and will most likely get outbid on Grilli.

That leaves the 2013 Pirates with only Tony Watson and Jared Hughes as experienced relievers that are locks to return to the team. Neiisther are closer material as of now and it seems as if Huntington has his work cut out for him more now than ever.

Expect Huntington to address the closer situation much sooner than the other pieces in the bullpen. Huntington will most likely not put together the entire bullpen for several more weeks, as he did not sign any of the above names until well into the winter.

Available Closers

Rafael Soriano-Not in Pirates price range

Brian Wilson– Wilson is coming off his second major arm surgery and really has not been reliable for two seasons now. Wilson will be looking for an incentive-laden contract this offseason, but still might be out of the price range for the Pirates. Wilson lives in California and most likely would not be interested in coming to Pittsburgh. Then again, if the Pirates were to offer him the closer job without any competition, he would be hard pressed to turn that down.

Jose Valverde– Valverde is most likely not in the Pirates price range, as the closer made $9 million last season, but Valverde also struggled down the stretch of 2012. Valverde has switched over to Scott Boras, so he is sure to be represented highly, but let’s see if a team out there is willing to spend big money on an unreliable closer.

Brett Myers– Myers saved 19 games for the lowly Astros last season, but a 5.6 k/9 inning ratio will not be something Huntington will be looking for.

Francisco Rodriguez– “K Rod” is only 30 and still strikes batters out, as he posted a 9.0 k/9 inning ratio last season, despite a 4.38 ERA. Rodriguez has been a setup man in Milwaukee, but it would be safe to say he still wants to close.

Matt Capps– Capps made $4.5 million last season and had another down season while only appearing in 30 games. Capps would not cost that much to bring back, but Huntington would have to be fairly desperate for a closer to reach out to Capps. Capps has seen his strikeouts drop since leaving Pittsburgh from 7.6 to 5.5 k/9 ratio.

If the Pirates can get a reliable closer via free agency, the team can and most likely will fill out a majority of the bullpen internally. The Pirates have Chris Leroux, Jeff Locke, Bryan Morris, Justin Wilson and Kyle McPherson that are all capable of increasing roles.

Look for the Pirates to bring in two veteran relievers that would be capable of giving solid outings from the bullpen. These names mentioned yesterday, could be viable options for the Pirates bullpen as well.