Pirates Rumors: Paul Maholm Says Bucs Didn't Even Make Offer

Former Pirates pitcher Paul Maholm says in a radio interview that he had discussions with the Pirates but ultimately did not receive a contract offer with the team before ultimately signing a one-year, $4.25 million deal with the Chicago Cubs.

That's odd, because the contract to which the Cubs signed him appears to be a bargain, given that Maholm has proven to be a competent starting pitcher who can eat innings. Perhaps (as a commenter at Bucs Dugout points out) the Pirates don't believe his shoulder is healthy. If that's not the reason, though, I don't know what would be. Maholm says in the interview that he figured the Pirates had moved on once they signed Erik Bedard, which again is odd. Health considerations aside, Bedard is a much more talented pitcher than Maholm, but Bedard isn't a great bet to pitch even 100 innings in any given years, and it isn't as if the Pirates have a wealth of starting pitching ready to step in if Bedard goes down.

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