Pirates sign Francisco Liriano 2yrs/14mil

[joncarlos]

Really? I don't even know what to make of this. But I do think he's a good fit for PNC Park.

Liriano
Burnett
J-Mac
Wandy
McPherson or Locke for the 5th spot

That's not a terrible rotation. It's not great either, but it's not terrible.

[revo]

they also traded for Andy Oliver. I agree, not a bad rotation at all. Probably their deepest in decades.

[Mithrandir]

I like the signing..Imagine that.

[joncarlos]

they also traded for Andy Oliver. I agree, not a bad rotation at all. Probably their deepest in decades.

Honestly, the rotation depth hasn't really been the problem.

Last year they had too many starters - AJ, Karstens, Correia, J-Mac, Bedard, and I honestly don't remember the 6th guy... I think it was Morton before he got hurt.

But yeah, this year they will eventually get Morton back (they tendered him), they have Oliver/Locke/McPherson for the 5th spot, they have Justin Wilson and a couple other potential guys in the high minors, and Gerrit Cole isn't that far away.

Hopefully whoever doesn't make the rotation can contribute in the bullpen, which is pretty thin after Grilli, but has a lot of potential in young guys like Justin Wilson, Jared Hughes, Bryan Owens, Victor Black, etc (I'm assuming Hammer is gone)

[Hornsby]

I am so sorry for you...really.

[Sharky]

I am so sorry for you...really.

Why? JC dumped the Buccos and is a Yankees fan now. That's the reason to be sorry for him!

[Hornsby]

Why? JC dumped the Buccos and is a Yankees fan now. That's the reason to be sorry for him!

Yeah, but did he really need this unholy trinity?

[Don Quixote]

PNC will help him. However, that doesn't make this a good signing, as the Liriano we saw last year was not close to adequate.

[Moonlight J]

Not so fast

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/01/08/injury-puts-francisco-lirianos-deal-with-pirates-in-jeopardy/

Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune Reviewreports that Liriano suffered an arm injury in December, adding that the Pirates “continue to talk to his agent” and “no deal is imminent.”

[madducks]

Not so fast

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/20...s-in-jeopardy/

It's an injury to his right (non-throwing) arm.

[joncarlos]

And we're back on

Per @Ken_Rosenthal: #Pirates and Francisco Liriano reach a 2-year deal. Liriano gets $12.75M if he doesn't re-aggravate right arm injury.

@Ken_Rosenthal: If misses no time due to specific right arm injury, still gets original 12.75M. 1st yr salary would reduce if misses time

[madducks]

So, Pirates rotation is now:

RHP - A.J. Burnett
LHP - Wandy Rodriguez
RHP - James McDonald
LHP - Francisco Liriano
RHP - Jeff Karstens

Definitely some potential there.

[revo]

ahaaaaaa

"In the long history of dumb injuries suffered by athletes away from the field, this might go down as one of the dumbest.

Francisco Liriano admitted Monday that his broken right arm was not the result of a slip and fall in the bathroom, but the by-product of a prank gone wrong.

For some reason, one known only to Liriano, the former Twins and White Sox pitcher thought it would be fun to startle his kids on Christmas Day by slamming his arm against a door.

It wasn’t fun, as Liriano, who must’ve gotten his dates mixed up and thought it was Halloween (who scares their kids on Christmas?), broke his arm and is facing four weeks of rehab before he can throw off a mound again.

The good news here is that the injury was sustained to his non-throwing arm, but that doesn’t mean he’s getting off scot-free — the blunder could cost the Pirates pitcher $12.75 million.

Liriano and the Bucs had initially agreed to a two-year $12.75 million contract earlier this offseason, before he broke his arm. But that deal was never finalized, and Liriano signed a different deal with the Pirates over the weekend, one that guaranteed just $1 million but could escalate all the way up to $13.75 million via health-based incentives, the AP reported Sunday.

But those bonus bucks appear to be out of reach now with Liriano expected to open the season on the disabled list."

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/bad-break-liriano-breaks-arm-horsing-kids-article-1.1261254