The Pittsburgh Pirates cut seven players today, according to Rob Biertempfel. Those players were Brian Bass, Vinnie Chulk, Jeff Karstens, Steven Jackson, Jeremy Powell, Anthony Claggett, and Luke Carlin. The Spring Training tracker is updated with the cuts. These cuts pretty much mean that the Pirates' 25-man roster is almost set.
There are only seven healthy bullpen options remaining in camp, with Jose Ascanio and Joel Hanrahan also in camp, but expected to begin the season on the disabled list. That confirms that D.J. Carrasco will win a spot in the bullpen, which isn't much of a surprise. This also means that Jack Taschner will win a spot in the bullpen, assuming the Pirates go with seven bullpen arms.
The Pirates also have Steve Pearce, Ramon Vazquez, Delwyn Young, and John Raynor in camp. They will likely go with Young and Raynor to fill out the final two bench spots, although they could elect to go with an extra bench player for the first few weeks of the season. Pearce has an option, but an extra bench spot would allow them to wait on a decision on Ramon Vazquez.
The extra bench spot is possible because fifth starter Daniel McCutchen is only needed for one start prior to April 24th, at which point the Pirates need to switch to a regular five man rotation. McCutchen can help the bullpen in his time off, or can be sent down to stay fresh at AAA, with a bullpen option coming up to take his place between his scheduled start on April 11th, and his return on the 24th. The Pirates also have Carrasco and Hayden Penn expected to be in the bullpen, with both players capable of racking up a lot of innings.
By April 24th, the Pirates will need five starters, which means they will need seven bullpen arms. That might not mean that Taschner will make the team on April 24th, as Joel Hanrahan will possibly be returning from the disabled list at that point. This will mean that the Pirates will have to make a decision about their bench, which could signify the end of Vazquez, assuming no one like Ronny Cedeno or Bobby Crosby gets hurt in the mean time.
The only other roster decision remaining is the backup catcher role. The Pirates have been considering having Erik Kratz as the backup catcher, with Jason Jaramillo going down to AAA where he can remain fresh. That would allow Jaramillo to easily return to the majors as the everyday starter in the event of a Ryan Doumit injury. It also raises a question as to whether Doumit could be traded this year, although that's a topic for another post.
In short, the final two spots come down to Kratz vs Jaramillo for the backup catcher role, and Taschner vs Vazquez or Pearce for either the final bullpen spot or the final bench spot, depending on what the Pirates go with.
There are only seven healthy bullpen options remaining in camp, with Jose Ascanio and Joel Hanrahan also in camp, but expected to begin the season on the disabled list. That confirms that D.J. Carrasco will win a spot in the bullpen, which isn't much of a surprise. This also means that Jack Taschner will win a spot in the bullpen, assuming the Pirates go with seven bullpen arms.
The Pirates also have Steve Pearce, Ramon Vazquez, Delwyn Young, and John Raynor in camp. They will likely go with Young and Raynor to fill out the final two bench spots, although they could elect to go with an extra bench player for the first few weeks of the season. Pearce has an option, but an extra bench spot would allow them to wait on a decision on Ramon Vazquez.
The extra bench spot is possible because fifth starter Daniel McCutchen is only needed for one start prior to April 24th, at which point the Pirates need to switch to a regular five man rotation. McCutchen can help the bullpen in his time off, or can be sent down to stay fresh at AAA, with a bullpen option coming up to take his place between his scheduled start on April 11th, and his return on the 24th. The Pirates also have Carrasco and Hayden Penn expected to be in the bullpen, with both players capable of racking up a lot of innings.
By April 24th, the Pirates will need five starters, which means they will need seven bullpen arms. That might not mean that Taschner will make the team on April 24th, as Joel Hanrahan will possibly be returning from the disabled list at that point. This will mean that the Pirates will have to make a decision about their bench, which could signify the end of Vazquez, assuming no one like Ronny Cedeno or Bobby Crosby gets hurt in the mean time.
The only other roster decision remaining is the backup catcher role. The Pirates have been considering having Erik Kratz as the backup catcher, with Jason Jaramillo going down to AAA where he can remain fresh. That would allow Jaramillo to easily return to the majors as the everyday starter in the event of a Ryan Doumit injury. It also raises a question as to whether Doumit could be traded this year, although that's a topic for another post.
In short, the final two spots come down to Kratz vs Jaramillo for the backup catcher role, and Taschner vs Vazquez or Pearce for either the final bullpen spot or the final bench spot, depending on what the Pirates go with.
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