ESPN just reporterd (3:00pm EST) that the Pittsburgh Pirates have dealt left-handed first baseman Adam LaRoche to the Boston Red Sox for a pair of Minor Leaguers. Pittsburgh gets Double-A shortstop Argenis Diaz and Class A right-hander Hunter Strickland, an 18th-round draft pick two years ago.
Diaz, a 22-year-old known for his outstanding defense, is hitting .253 with no homers and 24 RBIs in 76 games during his sixth pro season, at Portland.
Strickland, 20, is 5-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 18 games, including 12 starts, at Greenville of the South Atlantic League. He has only 13 walks in 83 1/3 innings.
This appears to be another case of the Pirates dumping players, and while I’ve thrown LaRoche’s name out as a player the Mets could go after this offseason, I’m glad they didn’t go after him right now. LaRoche has been in the middle of a GIANT slump, going 0-for-22 at one point, and I’d rather let Murphy play 1st Base until Delgado returns to see if we need to sign a guy like LaRoche in the offseason or if Dan can really be the Man for us next year.
I am curious as to why Omar Minaya has not contacted the Pirates about anybody on their roster at this point. While a team that is suffering like the Pirates are doesn’t exactly scream “great players for sale”, particularly when they’ve already moved so many of their top players, I think it’s at least worth a phone call.
