Pirates Could Reach Into Minors For Bullpen Help

The Pirates could continue to reach into their own minor-league system to find help for their suddenly-struggling bullpen, the Post-Gazette notes.

Huntington said he continues to scour the waiver wires in search of a bullpen arm -- or anybody else that can help the team over the next two months. But the best options might come from within the organization, Huntington said.

"We've got some guys internally that can answer some questions for us," he said, naming players such as Tim Wood, Chris Leroux and Danny Moskos.

The Pirates recently sent Tony Watson, who had been pitching pretty well, to Class AAA in order to recall Brad Lincoln and have him pitch longer stretches out of the bullpen. Watson will probably be back in about 10 days, which is the earliest he can return unless someone gets hurt.

I wouldn't mind seeing more of Leroux, who was pitching very well until he got demoted in order to make room for the inferior Jason Grilli. Moskos has pitched very well for Indianapolis. Wood pitched horribly for the Pirates and probably doesn't deserve another look, although he'll surely get one when rosters expand September 1. 

Ultimately, one problem the Pirates have had is that they've used the wrong pitchers in the wrong situations, going to guys like Grilli in high-leverage spots rather than their excellent closer, Joel Hanrahan. Perhaps the surest route to a sounder bullpen would be for Clint Hurdle to use his players better. But there's no doubt that reinforcements will be needed in the coming weeks.