Pirates Eyeing Twins (No, Not Those Kind of Twins)

By Paul Sporer

The rumor mill has quieted a bit for the Pirates the last few days with a pair of Twins popping up as the latest players of interest for the ballclub.  First it was Kevin Slowey in a passing mention on Tuesday night reiterating something Jon Paul Morosi wrote about a while back.  Then today Jayson Stark pointed out that the team has cooled on the likes of Carlos Pena and Josh Willingham, instead focusing on Jason Kubel, though in the next breath he mentions that Twins GM Bill Smith believes his team is in contention sitting 5.5 games back with two months to go.  I understand that in theory, but they would have to pass three teams and then there is the fact that they just aren’t a very good team.  Scott Baker is their only reliable starter and the lineup is a mess.

Of course a general manager might say something publicly to fend off his fans while still considering a deal in private.  I would love to see the Pirates make a move to get either or both of these of these players by Sunday’s trade deadline.  Kubel has only played 58 games this year so his numbers might underwhelm, but after a bit of a lull last year (.326 wOBA, 102 wRC+) on the heels on his career year in 2009 (.383 wOBA, 133 wRC+) he is back to producing at a high level again (.366 wOBA, 133 wRC+).

A left-handed bat who mashes righties, Kubel would fit well in the middle of the starved-for-power lineup.  He could go to rightfield and allow Garrett Jones to play first alleviating Lyle Overbay of his daily duties of performing inadequately.  Or Kubel could be hidden a bit more in leftfield since he isn’t much of a defender at all.  Hell, maybe he could try first base and remove Overbay himself since both Jones and Xavier Paul has been defensive positives according to FanGraphs so far this year.

Kubel is probably more of a .275-.280 hitter as his .314 batting average this year is a bit inflated by a career high .376 BABIP, but his power production is the real asset and at an 8% home run per flyball rate, he is well below his career mark of 13% so a power uptick could reasonably be expected over the final two months especially since PNC Park favors lefties a bit more than his current home, Target Field.  As a rental set to become a free agent after the season, his price tag should be reasonable once Smith realizes he should be selling and focusing more on 2012 for his ballclub.

Slowey, meanwhile, would be a short-term and long-term asset who is very underrated in my opinion.  Injuries have limited him to just 15 unimpressive innings out of the bullpen, where he is horribly miscast, and after his recent activation from the disabled list, he was sent to the minor leagues.  He has made it known that he wants out of Minnesota as they appear dead set on starting the likes of Nick Blackburn over him which is laughable so he expects to get his wish by Sunday.

Slowey not only has brilliant control (career 1.5 BB/9; high of 1.7 in 156 IP last year) we are used to seeing out of the likes of Jeff Karstens (1.5 BB/9 this year; 1.8 career), but pairs it with a much better strikeout rate (career 6.8 K/9) and a move to the National League could push it up further.  Home runs have always been an issue, even in spacious Target Field last year (1.2 HR/9), and that is understandable as he pounds the zone without great stuff (mostly 90 MPH fastballs) so mistakes will be crushed.  The home run issue has consistently left his ERA well above his FIP and xFIP marks, but he would move away from lineups with a DH and would no doubt be a value-add especially if the Twins don’t value him properly and simply want to move on.

At 27 years old, he is still under team control through the 2013 season and while he isn’t an ace by any means, he is a solid mid-rotation option who could shore up the rotation both now and in the future especially since the team could definitely use another arm who misses bats at a six or better clip per game to go with James McDonald (7.7 K/9) and as Kevin Correia’s stock of smoke and mirrors continues to dry up rapidly.  Another off-the-field tidbit that the Morosi piece mentioned a few weeks back is that “Slowey would probably welcome a trade to Pittsburgh, since he grew up in the area”.  Neither move would be a blockbuster, but either or both can offer the kind of incremental gains that would shore up the club without mortgaging any of the key parts for the future.  Of the two, I would be more interested in Slowey because of the value beyond this season.