OnlyBucs

03313D3D291B38313C393631500 wrote: I still wonder if something fell through.  If the plan was to add Vogelsong (not saying that's a GOOD plan) you'd have thought they would have done it then, not in a panic weeks later right before ST started.
IMHO, the Pirates, like many fans, had seen enough of the inconsistent, usually disappointing, and often injured Morton and had no intention of paying him another 8 million in the final year of his contract if they could find a taker. Few could blame them. So I think he was gone no matter what. I guess we'll never know if something else fell through but I doubt it would have made any difference in the decision to move Morton.

2D262E2227263D787E093028212626672A26490 wrote: I still wonder if something fell through.  If the plan was to add Vogelsong (not saying that's a GOOD plan) you'd have thought they would have done it then, not in a panic weeks later right before ST started.


I think they just wanted a stop gap until Taillon came up.  They didn't even start Vogelsong at the beginning of that season.  Morton and Vogelsong had pretty similar 2015 seasons.



9-11 4.67 ERA, 184 IP, 7.2 SO/9, 3.9 BB/9

9-9   4.81 ERA, 129 IP, 6.7 SO/9, 2.9 BB/9



I also expected someone better to be brought in. 


Yes but when Vogelsong was acquired, NH said they planned to start him. But in ST, he did poorly and Nicasio was lights out so the plan changed.



And while Morton was 31 in 2015, Vogelsong was 37 that year. Also his IP in 2015 was 135. The 184 IP you cited was actually his 2014 number. I do recall NH indicating in ST that they expected pitching help from within that year, presumably Taillon. So Vogelsong was likely acquired to be a placeholder. Bad plan to expect a 38 year old to contribute in the rotation until a rookie comes up later to bail them out. Had they added a better pitcher than Vogelsong and then wound up with the nice problem of too many good starters if a rookie came thru later in the season, there's always a mid-season market for a good pitcher. Just a no-win concept from the start.

I think their plan was to start Vogelsong for 2-3 months, tops. I may not be remembering this correctly, but I though he had a pretty good first half the previous year.

12202C2C380A29202D282720410 wrote: I still wonder if something fell through.  If the plan was to add Vogelsong (not saying that's a GOOD plan) you'd have thought they would have done it then, not in a panic weeks later right before ST started.


I looked up the timing. Morton was dealt to the Phillies on December 12, 2015.



Vogelsong was signed on December 18, 2015.

735554435545360 wrote: I still wonder if something fell through.  If the plan was to add Vogelsong (not saying that's a GOOD plan) you'd have thought they would have done it then, not in a panic weeks later right before ST started.


I looked up the timing.  Morton was dealt to the Phillies on December 12, 2015.



Vogelsong was signed on December 18, 2015.


Wow, I was wrong. I thought that was a ST signing.

I was thinking the same thing, Sammy.  I also forgot who we got for Morton and had to look it up- RHP David Whitehead, who appears to be out of baseball now.

383D3A3C343E273A3320262B520 wrote: I was thinking the same thing, Sammy.  I also forgot who we got for Morton and had to look it up- RHP David Whitehead, who appears to be out of baseball now.


David Whitehead's Minor League Career Stats. Looks like he did not play in 2017.

I don't think anyone had any illusions that it was a non-return. I just thought it was in order to create roster space.

093B37372311323B36333C3B5A0 wrote: I don't think anyone had any illusions that it was a non-return.  I just thought it was in order to create roster space.


on the bright side, the team traded Morton and freed up $8 million salary space without including a prospect with him.