MLB

Pittsburgh Pirates Should Consider Trading Mark Melancon

Fresh Videos

By @Tweets_ByJ

Mark Melancon

Getty Images

Since being eliminated from the playoffs a few weeks ago, the Pittsburgh Pirates have been in full offseason mode. That means that they will be entertaining all kinds of trade offers and scouring the free agent market. One move in particular that the Pirates should consider is a trade involving closer Mark Melancon.

At first glance, this idea seems insane. Melancon has been an excellent set up man and closer for the Pirates the last two seasons and still has years of control remaining on his contract. That being coupled with the Pirates having a pretty mediocre bullpen last year will make many people scratch their heads with this idea. But on a deeper level, this idea makes a lot of sense.

The Pirates are a small market team and that means that they can’t afford to pay a lot of money for players who don’t play very often. That would consist of bullpen pieces like Melancon, who pitches one inning a game at most. Melancon is eligible for arbitration, so that means his price is going to go sky high over his final years as a Pirate. This is exactly what happened when the Pirates traded Joel Hanrahan and I could easily see the same happening with Melancon.

Another reason to trade Melancon is that he would bring in a boatload of prospects. He is one of the best relief pitchers in all of baseball and some teams value that at a very high level. When the Pirates traded Hanrahan to the Boston Red Sox, they received two former top prospects, a super utility guy and Melancon himself. This was a great deal for the Pirates as they filled some of their holes and already had a replacement ready for Hanrahan in the form of Jason Grilli. And if the Pirates decide to go down this same path, they have a multitude of replacements with Tony Watson and John Holdzkom ready to take on higher roles.

The Pirates have a lot of moves they need to make this offseason and a Melancon trade is not one of them.  But if they get a call and an offer that is too good to refuse, they should pull the trigger and get high value for their closer.

Justin Broyles is a Pirates writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @Tweets_ByJ, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

Share Tweet
Trending Now on