Jose Tabata To Play Winter Ball In Venezuela

Pirates rookie outfielder Jose Tabata will play this winter in Venezuela, ESPN's Jorge Arangure tweets. As El Duce at Bucs Dugout points out, a few weeks ago Rob Biertempfel of the Trib wrote that the Bucs didn't want Tabata playing winter ball. Dejan Kovacevic at the Post-Gazette said the same thing. It appears, however, that there's no stopping Tabata, who takes pride in playing in his home country.