MLB Offseason Round Up: News And Notes From PiratesFest

This is one in a series of daily articles highlighting the latest news and notes from the MLB offseason. 

It was a cold and snowy Saturday in the city of Pittsburgh, but that didn’t stop thousands of fans from pouring into the David L. Lawrence Convention Center for the return of PiratesFest.

Pirates’ players, coaches and team executives had the chance to interact with the fans in all sorts of different settings — from playing video games and racing pierogies to signing autographs and holding question and answer sessions.

The Q&A session between fans and team president Travis Williams, general manager Ben Cherington and manager Derek Shelton was among the most popular items on the agenda.

There was some pre-PiratesFest controversy when it was revealed that questions would be screened for approval prior to the start of the event. To the Pirates’ credit, the brass showed some transparency and answered some harder-hitting questions from the attendees.

Cherington revealed the the Pirates are still active in looking for outside additions and the club remains “engaged on a number of fronts,” and are hoping for more acquisitions before the start of spring training.

Notably, the Pirates are still interested in adding to their starting rotation. Two players on the free agent market they have been linked to include left-handed pitcher Sean Manaea and Cuban righty Yariel Rodríguez.

Cherington noted the Pirates have offered starting pitchers multi-year deals this winter, but no takers yet.

In addition to their starting rotation, the Pirates have been lurking in the position player market. Recently, they’ve been linked to ex-Bucco Carlos Santana and outfielder Michael A. Taylor.

It’s been a busy offseason for the Pirates in terms of activity, and it doesn’t appear they are done just yet.

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