Brink: Alvarez Contract A Good Value
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The Fan) - The Pirates avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to one-year contracts with Pedro Alvarez, Neil Walker, Gaby Sanchez, Mark Melancon and Vin Mazzaro on Friday.
They also agreed to a one-year contract with Travis Snider the day before.
Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said Alvarez's contract probably is the best value of the group.
"Four-point-five million dollars for somebody who tied for the league lead in home runs last year, the power's not going anywhere, he's probably going to hit 30-35 again this year," Brink said. "That's going to be a value for them."
Douglas asked Brink if now is the time for Walker and the Pirates to come together on a long-term contract.
"It's possible, and I think a little bit of it is going to depend on his performance and his health this year," Brink said. "I don't know that they're necessarily willing to jump in on a big three-, four-year deal until they make sure he can play 155 games like he did the first couple of years he was up."
Listen the full interview below: