The Pittsburgh Pirates made a trade yesteday afternoon. They acquired Francisco Cervelli from the New York Yankees in exchange for left-hander reliever Justin Wilson.
Cervelli had a excellent .350 batting average total from this past season for the the Yankees. As most have said before, including this writer, the thought process would be for the Pirates that they would still pursue Russell Martin. Now that will not happen, according to sources.
Martin wants a five-year, $85 million deal much like catcher Brain McCann received from the Yankees this past offseason. However, even with Martin being out in Pittsburgh he may be there more this upcoming season than the Pirates would like. The Chicago Cubs are meeting with Martin and his agent in just a few days to talk about contract negotiations. The Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly going to be very involved as well.
In 2013 Justin Wilson was one of the most effective relief pitchers in baseball posting a 2.08 ERA in 73 2/3 innings. However, the 27-year-old went downhill in 2014 posting a 4.20 ERA through just 70 innings and was neglected to the minor leagues, ultimately writing his way to the trade block where the Yankees snagged him up.