The deadline to tender contracts to arbitration eligible players is midnight tonight. DK reports that of the Pirates’ arbitration eligible players — Lastings Milledge, Joel Hanrahan, Ronny Cedeno, Ross Ohlendorf, and Jeff Karstens — only Karstens is in danger of being non-tendered. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but given that Karstens is only first-year eligible and in line for about a million dollars, I hope the Pirates can find a way to hold on to him given the paucity of arms in their system. It’s not that Karstens is great; just that he’s not a bad insurance policy to have around while they wait for Rudy Owens, Bryan Morris, Jeff Locke, and Justin Wilson to be ready.
Meanwhile, Jon Paul Morosi says that the Ryan Theriot and Miguel Tejada signings may open up a slot for the Pirates to trade for a shortstop before tonight’s deadline. The possibilities at this point are JJ Hardy (preferred) or Jason Bartlett (probably an upgrade over Ronny Cedeno, but also probably not much of one). Morosi says that while there’s not much going on for the Pirates on either front, things could develop quickly.
