Pirates General Manager Ben Cherington held a season-ending conference call yesterday and said the team will be opening contract extension talks with some players, but he did not identify who. He’s said in the past that outfielder Bryan Reynolds and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes are obvious targets, but Cherington also said much will depend on the new collective bargaining agreement between the players union and the owners. Those negotiations are currently going on.
Other highlights of the GM’s conference included acknowledgement that the performances of pitcher Roansy Contreras and shortstop Oneil Cruz in the big leagues at the end of the season make them candidates for the Pirates in Spring Training next year; and after failing to attract a million fans for the first time since 1995, Cherington admitted that until the Pirates put a winning product on the field, PNC Park will be mostly empty on game nights.
Hayes saw a doctor in Ohio about his injured wrist on Monday and will see another one in Texas, where he lives, when he gets there. Cherington said he thought Hayes would be ready to go for Spring Training.
Comments