Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that the Pirates are one of many teams interested in Padres hitter Chase Headley.
Among the teams pushing hardest for Headley are the Pittsburgh Pirates (Headley has a .333 batting average at PNC Park in Pittsburgh) and the Baltimore Orioles. But the list of candidates ranges from the Dodgers and Diamondbacks from the National League West to the rebuilding Seattle Mariners.
Center writes that the Padres could get "top two prospects" for Headley, which seems reasonable -- Headley only makes $3.475 million this year, and he isn't eligible for free agency until after the 2014 season. His stat lines (he's hitting .266/.363/.421 this year) don't look all that impressive, but those are good numbers in the pitchers' paradise in San Diego.
It's unclear how the Pirates might use Headley. He's a better defensive third baseman than Pedro Alvarez, but it would probably be more likely that the Bucs would play Headley in the outfield, given their problems there.
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