The Pittsburgh Pirates have agreed to terms with free agent outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall, the team confirmed Tuesday. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the two sides have agreed to a one-year, $2.75 million pact that includes incentive clauses.
Chisenhall, 30, has spent his entire career with the Indians. Last season, he batted .321/.394/.452 (128 OPS+), albeit across just 29 games. In 2017, he was similarly productive in roughly half a season’s worth of plate appearances. The lefty-swinging Chisenhall can produce when healthy, but he has been severely limited over the past two years by injuries to both calves, a concussion, and a shoulder sprain. The key in Pittsburgh will be staying healthy enough to be the primary half of a right-field platoon.
As our own Jonah Keri recently wrote, the Pirates are just a few targeted moves from looking like genuine contenders in 2019, so consider this a positive step.
The Indians, meantime, are also faced with the possible free agency loss of Michael Brantley. That means their outfield could have a very different look in 2019.
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