The Pittsburgh Pirates have acquired 27-year old switch hitting IF/OF Corey Wimberly from the Oakland A’s for 23-year old righty reliever Ryan Kelly. Wimberly played in 135 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 151 of 531 (.284 avg, .727 OPS) with 97 runs scored, 3 homers, 57 RBIs and 56 stolen bases. He has now played in 563 games in his first six years in the minors and he is 668 of 2,215 (.302 avg, .736 OPS) with 412 runs scored, 10 homers, 191 RBIs and 259 stolen bases. Ryan Kelly pitched in 38 games (1 start) in A-ball last season and he was 2-3 with 4 saves, a 4.20 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Wimberly will have a shot to make the Pirates’ bench next spring because of his versatility in the field and his speed on the basepaths.

The Pirates have claimed 23-year old lefty starting pitcher Aaron Thompson off waivers from the Nationals. Thompson came into last season as the Nationals’ #12 rated prospect according to Baseball America. Thompson pitched in 27 games (all starts) in AA+AAA-ball last season and he was 5-13 with a 5.65 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. He has now pitched in 128 games (127 starts) in his first six years in the minors and he is 27-50 with a 4.31 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. Lefties sometimes take a little longer to develop so I like this move for the Pirates.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed 31-year old righty swinging 1B/3B Garrett Atkins to a minor league deal. Atkins played in 44 games for the Orioles last season and he was 30 of 140 (.214 avg, .562 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer and 9 RBIs. Atkins has now played in 817 games in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 835 of 2,928 (.285 avg, .799 OPS) with 399 runs scored, 99 homers, 488 RBIs and 8 stolen bases. It doesn’t hurt to take a chance on a player like Atkins but it’s starting to look like he can only hit at Coors Field.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have designated 27-year old righty reliever/starter Joe Martinez for assignment. Martinez pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Pirates last season after coming over in the Javier Lopez deal and he was 0-0 with a 3.12 ERA and a 1.62 WHIP. He has now pitched in 18 games (6 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 3-3 with a 6.16 ERA and a 1.87 WHIP. Martinez has given up 72 hits in 49 2/3 innings so he has had issues missing bats in his career. I don’t think the Pirates are going to miss him one bit.

UPDATE: (1/4/2011) - The Pirates have dealt Joe Martinez to the Cleveland Indians for either a player to be named later or cash.

The Pirates have re-signed 33-year old righty reliever Tyler Yates to a minor league deal. Yates did not pitch last season due to injury. He last pitched in a major league game with the Pirates in 2009. He pitched in 15 games (0 starts) for the Pirates in 2009 and he was 0-2 with a 7.50 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP. He has now pitched in 239 games (7 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 12-17 with 4 saves, a 5.12 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. The Pirates were smart to take a low risk chance on Yates.