The Pittsburgh Pirates sign Francisco Liriano
The Pirates have signed 29-year old lefty starting pitcher Francisco Liriano to a 2-year, $12.75 million dollar deal. Liriano pitched in 34 games (28 starts) for the Twins and White Sox last year in which he was 6-12 with a 5.34 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP. He has now pitched in 168 games (141 starts) in his first seven years in the majors and he is 53-54 with 1 save, a 4.40 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Liriano has given up 781 hits and 356 walks in his first 840 innings pitched so far this year while whiffing 846 batters, showing what kind of stuff he has. The Pirates are hoping that Liriano can be this year’s version of A.J. Burnett.
On May 19, talented rookie Francisco Liriano entered the starting rotation. He pitched well enough to earn an All-Star berth, finishing with a 12-3 record and a minuscule ERA of 2.16. Unfortunately, he was sidelined after the All-Star break with elbow problems. He did not pitch at all in 2007, as he was recovering from Tommy John surgery . Boof Bonser had an up-and-down season, but finished strong with a 7-6 record and 4.22 ERA. This earned him a spot in the postseason rotation. Matt Garza was the team’s top pitching prospect, but was inconsistent during his first partial year in the majors.