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Huntington: Pirates Could Move Starter

Pirates general manager Neal Huntington told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the team could move a veteran starting pitcher like Paul Maholm or Zach Duke by tomorrow's trading deadline for the right price.

"If the package is appropriate for one of our starting pitchers, we are willing to consider a move," Huntington said in an interview with the Post-Gazette. "If the interest is in one of our starting pitchers who is one year away from free agency, that shifts the tolerance accordingly as we would be able to re-invest their potential dollars into a major-league starting pitcher -- via trade or free agency -- and add valuable multiyear pieces to our major-league club and/or system. Again, we will need to feel good about the return to make a move."

He also added later...

"We do not see moving a core piece."

Read: Veteran starters are not core pieces.

It still appears unlikely that the Pirates will move any of their veteran pitchers considering the dearth of ready starting pitching talent in the upper levels of the minor leagues and the lack of talent in the back end of the major league rotation. That said, and this could all be posturing, it looks much more likely than at this time yesterday, and certainly looks like a possibility the Pirates will think about.


Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.