Monday, November 12th, 2007 by Adam Wagner
Craig Wilson Wants In. Should the Pirates Let Him?
Craig Wilson wants to be a Pirate again, according to multiple sources. Wilson, who was known for his flowing locks more than his consistently .264 batting average over parts of six seasons in the Pirates’ organization or his 29 home runs in 2004, is looking for a job. He is coming off of a horrendous stretch in his career where he suffered through a .172 batting average in Atlanta, shoulder surgery, and a .180 batting average for Chicago’s AAA Charlotte team.
Wilson seems to believe that some of his problems last season were injury-related and that he still has a chance to be solid major league player. He realizes that he is not at all a hot commodity and that he may need to accept a minor league contract in order to return to major league baseball. The fact that he wants to do this in Pittsburgh is interesting.
For instance, Wilson could provide a cheaper alternative to Josh Phelps, allowing the Pirates to save some money (even though they probably should tender Phelps) by non-tendering Phelps and allowing him to become a free agent. Phelps is simply a younger Wilson, but he is also better off the bench than Wilson ever was.
Wilson would probably not hit the major leagues next season, but the Pirates had 37 minor league free agents this offseason and, if Wilson is willing to take a minor league contract, Wilson is someone who seems willing to accept a two-way contract and play at AAA. There, he would take the place of a nonexistent prospect, hit his 25 home runs, and be able to maybe revitalize his career.
On top of that, Wilson is a right-handed hitter, something that the Pirates have a disproportionately high number of. He simply does not fit in with the hitters trying to adapt to the stadium by going more left-handed, so he really does not fit in with the organization’s vision of themselves in the future.
He would just need to realize that if he wanted to play in the major leagues again, it would not be with the Pirates, but that Indianapolis might be a good place to revitalize his career. The Pirates need to realize that they need warm bodies to fill spots in the minor league system and that Wilson, who has a track record of past successes, wants a shot here.
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