During this offseason, the Pirates have been receiving a lot of flack about the moves they have made, but when you put the moves under the microscope, you’ll see the logic behind them.

Key Additions/Subtractions

Additions: Antonio Bastardo, AJ Burnett, Francisco Cervelli, Corey Hart, Jung-ho Kang, Brad Lincoln, Francisco Liriano, Radhames Liz, Clayton Richard, Sean Rodriguez

Subtractions: John Axford, Clint Barmes, Ike Davis, Jeanmar Gomez, Russell Martin, Wandy Rodriguez, Gaby Sanchez, Travis Snider, Edinson Volquez, Justin Wilson

As you can see, the Pirates have had a few major losses but it shouldn’t be a cause for concern. In fact, I believe some of the additions this offseason outweigh the subtractions.

According to almost all Pirate fans, the biggest loss of the offseason was Russell Martin, but I don’t agree. Of course, Martin signed a very pricey, five-year deal with the Blue Jays in November, and I’m glad the Pirates didn’t match the deal. You can tell Neal Huntington is relieved too after he said this, “we offered Russell a deal that made us very uncomfortable.”

Martin is an aging catcher and an overrated hitter. Obviously, Martin can get on base, but he lacks the ability to make consistent contact. From 2009-2013, his highest batting average in a single season was .250, that is a fraction compared to his .290 average for the Pirates this year. He’s very treasured defensively, but the Pirates may have another diamond in the rough with Francisco Cervelli.

On the other end of the spectrum, you have newly acquired Cervelli. The downfall he has had throughout his career is his ability to stay on the field. When healthy, he can produce at the plate and get on base at a high clip. Not to mention, he is three years younger than the aging Martin, and Cervelli will get paid under $1 M in 2015.

What many fans don’t realize is that Cervelli can handle himself defensively. According to MLB.com, Cervelli was ranked as the eighth best pitch framer in MLB in 2014. If Cervelli can stay healthy in 2015, he shouldn’t disappoint Pirate fans and should be a very suitable replacement for Martin.

Cervelli wasn’t just handed to the Pirates; they had to give up left-handed flame thrower Justin Wilson to obtain Cervelli.

Wilson will be missed in the Pirates’ bullpen. He was a lefty who could come out of the bullpen and get lefties and righties out. But, I believe the Pirates have found a more established bullpen arm in Antonio Bastardo.

Both guys are very comparable, but Bastardo is more evolved than Wilson. In 2014, both pitchers struck out a lot of hitters, walked a lot of hitters, and limited opponents getting hits.

These stats show the Pirates upgraded the pen:

2014 stats:

Wilson: 60 IP, 49 H, 61 K, 30 BB, 4.20 ERA, 7.35 H/9, 9.15 K/9, 85 ERA+

Bastardo: 64 IP, 43 H, 81 K, 34 BB, 3.94 ERA, 6.05 H/9, 11.35 K/9, 95 ERA+

Bastardo should be the more superior pitcher in 2015, and he will be more of a veteran leader in the bullpen compared to Wilson.

Another player signed with the Pirates this offseason that was rostered as a Phillie last year is AJ Burnett.

Burnett was one of the key pieces that helped turn the Pirates’ fortunes around after twenty years of losing, and after a year with the Phillies, he’s back with the Pirates.

As the numbers show, Burnett had a tough year in 2014, but I believe he’s going to bounce back in 2015.

Not only will Burnett produce in Pittsburgh again, he came at a very cheap price. He declined his big-figured option with the Phillies to come back to the Pirates, and sign for a measly $8.5 M. Also, Burnett has announced that this will be his last year in baseball.

The Pirates lost Edinson Volquez to the Kansas City Royals, but they saved $1.5 M by replacing him with AJ Burnett.

Burnett wasn’t the only pitching additions the Pirates made during this offseason. The biggest of all the signees might just be a pitcher that never left, Francisco Liriano.

Liriano came to the Pirates in 2013, and he hasn’t looked back. Since he’s been here, he’s done nothing but produce and become a leader in the clubhouse. He’ll be a great guy to have come back and be a leader on this team for the next couple years as he signed a three-year, $39 M deal this offseason.

A few other players added to the team that might be able to produce this year are pitchers Brad Lincoln, Radhames Liz, and Clayton Richard.

Lincoln and Liz are both former starting pitchers but have since transitioned into bullpen guys.

Liz, 31, stands at 6’2″, but he can bring the heat. He is hoping to revitalize his career with the Pirates in 2015, and he just might be able to do that with the help of pitching coach Ray Searage.

Former Pirate draftee Brad Lincoln has also signed with the Pirates. He’s hoping to rebuild his once top prospect form with the team he opened his big league career with.

In 2012, Lincoln was just starting to find his way in the Pirates bullpen, but he was shipped to the Blue Jays for Travis Snider and lost the thunder he had built. It’ll be interesting to see if he can rebuild his form as a bullpen arm. I believe Lincoln has more upside in 2015 compared to Jeanmar Gomez.

Another pitcher signed this winter is lefty Clayton Richard. I see Richard as the most intriguing of all the resurrection projects this season. I don’t see him as your run of the mill sign, and he’s in very good spirits coming into the season after tough surgery. Read more about his thoughts on the upcoming season here.

Richard is going to have an opportunity to compete for a rotation spot out of spring training, especially with an injury to Charlie Morton that should hold him out until at least May.

The Pirates lost utility infielder Clint Barmes to the Padres, but they replaced him with Sean Rodriguez. Rodriguez has more upside than Barmes. Rodriguez is not only the younger of the two, but he also has the ability to play more positions compared to Barmes. Not only can you shift Rodriguez to the outfield some games, but he should be able to provide more offense than Barmes provided too.

On the same day, the Pirates acquired Sean Rodriguez, they also DFA Gaby Sanchez, which eventually led to his release.

The sign shouldn’t hurt the team as they have signed Corey Hart to a one-year deal.

Another player the Pirates have recently lost is Travis Snider; Snider was an important piece for the Pirates last year. His role on the team could be filled by Corey Hart, Jose Tabata, Andrew Lambo, or somebody else. So, the loss of Snider shouldn’t hurt the Pirates too much, even though he was a 1.3 WAR player in 2014.

The Pirates lost one other first baseman this offseason besides Gaby Sanchez, and that man was Ike Davis. Davis was brought over to Pirates from the Mets in April, but he didn’t produce the way he was supposed to, and should be easily replaced by Pedro Alvarez at 1B.

The Pirates may have aroused the most attention nationally this year when they signed South Korean shortstop Jung-ho Kang. Kang is going to be used as a utility when the season starts, but he is expected to transition into a starter at some point down the road.

After you evaluate all of the offseason moves to this point, it’s hard not to think that the Pirates have a better team going into this year compared to last year.

Pecotta released their annual predictions for where each team will stand in their respective division at the end of the year today.

According to Pecotta, the Pirates will finish the year at 81-81 and finish third in the division that is respectable, but Pecotta is way undervaluing this team. This team has been to the postseason back to back season, and they aren’t giving them the respect they deserve. The Pirates will prove these “experts” wrong again in 2015.

Pecotta also has the division foe Chicago Cubs sitting at 82-80 which makes sense because the team is young, but they might have overrated them just a bit.

I believe the new additions to this team is going to lead to 90+ wins in 2015, and our beloved Buccos should be hovering around the top of the division all year long again.

Link to the original article: http://buccoblog.net/2015/01/29/pirates-quietly-having-solid-offseason/