The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Pirates acquire Dickerson from Rays for Hudson, Gray
Giants’ Melancon really had a dead arm last season.
Tampa Bay traded AllStar designated hitter/outfielder Corey Dickerson to Pittsburgh on Thursday in exchange for reliever Daniel Hudson, minor league infielder Tristan Gray and cash.
The 28-year-old Dickerson was designated for assignment Saturday. He was the AL’s starting DH in last summer’s All-Star game but struggled at the plate the second half of the season. The trade lets the Rays shed Dickerson’s $5.95 million salary.
Hudson is a 30-year-old right-hander who went 2-7 with a 4.38 ERA in a careerhigh 71 appearances in 2017. He’s 37-30 with a 3.98 career ERA over eight seasons with the Pirates, Chicago White Sox and Arizona Diamondbacks.
Dickerson batted .282 with 27 home runs and 62 RBIs last season. He was obtained from the Colorado Rockies in January 2016 and hit .265 with 51 homers and 132 RBIs the past two years.
Gray was a 13th-round pick of the Pirates in 2017. He spent his first pro season with Short-A West Virginia in the New York-Penn League, batting .269 with seven homers and 37 RBIs in 53 games.
Pirates owner Bob Nutting said Thursday the team won’t stray from its roster strategy even if some of its moves are unpopular with fans. Pittsburgh traded away two of its top players, outfielder Andrew McCutchen and pitcher Gerrit Cole, in exchange for six younger players, including pitcher Joe Musgrove and third baseman Colin Moran, who will be on the opening day roster.
The turnover comes after
the Pirates missed the playoffs each of the past two seasons.
“We’ve made a clear directional shift this offseason,” Nutting said. “No question, this team is going to be stronger in 2019 and ’20 than it would have been without those trades.”
Nutting insists the Pirates are not in a rebuilding mode.
“We are not at a point where we need to punt a season to harvest some draft picks,” Nutting said. “I think that’s the wrong approach for the Pirates. Will we need to make some very challenging trades to harvest talent? Yes. Will they be enthusiastically welcomed? No. We will continue to do what we think is right to infuse talent into this organization everywhere we can.”
Giants: Pitchers often talk about a “dead arm” period, when the ball does not seem to feel right or act properly. Closer Mark Melancon
pitched last year with the real thing — dead tissue in a forearm muscle, discovered only during a season-ending surgical procedure Sept. 12. When doctors began a procedure designed to allow the muscle to “breathe,” they found something they did not expect. “It was actually dying off,” Melancon said. “It had turned gray. When they went in, they literally saw it. The muscle was dying from being restricted.” Melancon was one of the best closers from 2014-16, recording 131 saves in 141 opportunities with a 1.93 ERA with Pittsburgh and Washington. Melancon was 1-2 with 11 saves and a 4.50 ERA in 32 appearances last season.
Padres: Manager Andy Green says newly signed first baseman Eric Hosmer won’t play in at least the first two spring games. The Padres open their spring schedule against the Mariners today before visiting the Athletics
on Saturday. Hosmer agreed late Monday to a $144 million, eight-year contract. His first workout with the team was Tuesday.
Yankees: Seahawks QB Russell Wilson is set to join the team’s spring training camp Monday. The Yankees acquired the one-time minor league infielder from the Rangers on Feb. 7 for future considerations. Wilson will spend a few days with the Yankees but won’t play in any games. Wilson was selected by the Rockies in the fourth round of the 2010 amateur draft and was acquired by Texas in the minor league phase of the 2013 winter meeting draft. He participated in Rangers’ spring training workouts in 2014 and 2015. In 93 minor league games between Rookie-level Tri-City (2010) and Class A Asheville (2011) in Colorado’s system, Wilson hit .229 with 19 stolen bases, five homers and 26 RBIs.