After closer Mike Capps and lefty Damaso Marte the Pirates bullpen looks pretty week. 24-year old righty Mike Capps will reprise his role as the closer in 2008. He pitched in 76 games (0 starts) for the Pirates last season and he was 4-7 with 18 saves, a 2.28 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. The Pirates are hoping that 2007 was not a mirage for Capps.

33-year old lefty Damaso Marte is just a downright nasty pitcher. He pitched in 65 games (0 starts) last season for the Pirates and he was 2-0 with a 2.38 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. Marte whiffed 51 batters and only allowed 32 hits in 45.1 innings last season for the Pirates. The Pirates will need to increase Marte’s workload in 2008.

29-year old lefty John Grabow will be the 2nd lefty in the pen. He pitched in 63 games (0 starts) last season for the Pirates and he was 3-2 with 1 save, a 4.53 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. The Pirates might look to trade Grabow this season if they can get good value for him.

26-year old righty Franquelis Osoria will also be heavily worked in 2008 if he can handle it. He pitched in 25 games (0 starts) for the Pirates last season and he was 0-2 with a 4.76 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP.

30-year old righty Tyler Yates was very busy in Atlanta last season. He pitched in 75 games (0 starts) for the Braves last season and he was 2-3 with 2 saves, a 5.18 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Yates will be really busy for the Pirates in 2008.

25-year old righty Evan Meek made the Pirates Opening Day roster. He pitched in 44 games in AA-ball last season and he was 2-1 with 1 save and a 4.30 ERA. Meek has pitched in 114 games (39 starts) in his minor league career and he is 16-12 with 2 saves and a 5.12 ERA so don’t expect miracles out of him.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C-

The Pirates have acquired 30-year old righty reliever Tyler Yates from the Braves for prospect Todd Redmond. Yates pitched in 75 games (0 starts) for the Braves last season and he was 2-3 with 2 saves, a 5.18 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Yates has now pitched in 152 games (7 starts) in his major league career and he is 6-12 with 3 saves, a 5.15 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. This was a good trade for both teams as the Pirates needed help now and the Braves needed some possible help later. Redmond is a 23-year old righty who has pitched in 70 games (69 starts) in the minors for the Pirates in his career and he is 22-21 with a 3.27 ERA.

The Pirates should have a decent starting rotation for the 2008 season. 26-year old righty Ian Snell will be the #1 starter for the Pirates this season. He started 32 games for the Pirates last season and he was 9-12 with a 3.76 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. He has the stuff and the attitude to win 12-15 games this season as long as the Pirates give him some run support.

25-year old lefty Tom Gorzellany has the best stuff of any of the starting pitchers on the Pirates and he could step up and be the ace of the staff as early as this season. He started 32 games last season for the Pirates and he was 14-10 with a 3.88 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. If he shows more control this season he will win more games than he did last year for the Pirates.

33-year old righty Matt Morris will be the #3 starter for the Pirates this season. He started 32 games for the Pirates & Giants last season and he was 10-11 with a 4.89 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. The Pirates hope that Morris has something left in the tank as he has pitched in 302 games (271 starts) in his major league career and he is 121-88 with a 3.91 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP.

26-year old lefty Paul Maholm will be the #4 starter for the Pirates this season. He started 29 games for the Pirates last season and he was 10-15 with a 5.02 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. He has the potential to be much better than he is but he has to throw more strikes.

25-year old lefty Zach Duke will be the #5 starter for the Pirates in 2008. He started 20 games (19 starts) for the Pirates and he was 3-8 with a 5.53 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP. He won’t keep his job in the rotation long if he pitches like he did last season.

27-year old righty Brian Bullington might get another chance to pitch in the majors this season. He pitched in 5 games (3 starts) for the Pirates last season and he was 0-3 with a 5.29 ERA and a 1.71 WHIP. He also started 26 games in AAA ball last season and he was 11-9 with a 4.00 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.

28-year old righty John Van Benschoten was a disaster in the majors last season for the Pirates. He pitched in 11 games (9 starts) for the Pirates last season and he was 0-7 with a 10.15 ERA and a 2.15 WHIP. He did pitch well in the minors last season as he started 19 games and he was 10-7 with a 2.56 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP.

26-year old lefty Phil Dumatrait was also pathetic in the majors last season. He started 6 games for the Reds last season and he was 0-4 with a 15.00 ERA and a 2.83 WHIP. Dumatrait was effective in AAA however as he started 13 games and he was 10-6 with a 3.53 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.

25-year old righty Ty Taubenheim started 1 game for the Blue Jays last season and he was 0-0 with a 9.00 ERA and a 1.80 WHIP. He also pitched in 24 games (21 starts) in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 6-8 with a 5.24 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON: C+