Diaz to Pittsburgh

In a deal that highly resembles the Ryan Church move from last season, the Pirates added outfielder Matt Diaz on a two year contract Tuesday night. With Lastings Milledge non-tendered, the Pirates had room on their roster, if not in their starting lineup for another outfielder. Diaz will see his playing time in the corner outfield, whether it comes as a starter, or, more likely, in a platoon situation. Although contract details are unknown as of this writing, it’s difficult to imagine that Diaz brought in much of a haul for his services. Over the past five seasons, Diaz’s performance has fluctuated wildly. Since 2006, Diaz has posted wRC+ marks of 115, 128, 51, 139, and 100, and, similarly, WARs of 2.2, 3.0, -0.8, 2.6, and 0.6. Part of this is merely the nature of his part-time role with the Braves; another part is likely due to his wild platoon splits. In 798 plate appearances vs. left handed pitchers and 849 against right handed pitchers, the right handed Diaz h...