Mark Melancon has done a respectable job since replacing Jason Grilli as Pittsburgh’s closer, but Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes that the Pirates could consider making a trade for Padres closer Huston Street.
It’s unclear whether the two teams have actually had trade talks, but Biertempfel writes that the Pirates have focused most of their attention on pitchers, both for the rotation and the bullpen. The Padres figure to be one of a handful of sellers leading up to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, so Street is a logical target for any team on the lookout for a late-inning arm. The 30-year-old owns a fantastic 1.09 ERA and 34/7 K/BB ratio over 33 innings this season. He’s making $7 million this season while his contract includes a $7 million option for 2015, so the asking price figures to be pretty steep.
Ernesto Frieri has struggled since coming over from the Angels for Grilli, so the potential addition of Street would allow Melancon to move back into a set-up role. Jonathan Papelbon, Joaquin Benoit, Chad Qualls, and Joakim Soria are among the other late-inning arms who could be moved this month.
