Doug Mientkiewicz Signs With the Pirates

Yesterday afternoon, Doug Mientkiewicz took a step towards effectively ending his career. Maybe he thought that signing a minor league deal with the Pirates would give his career some legs, but he's got a couple things working against him there. First off, signing a minor league deal with the Pirates is a pretty crappy omen. Second off, journeyman vets tend to not really find other places to play after they flounder in Pittsburgh for a year.

That probably seems like hyperbole to you, but the following Jeromy Burnitz, Joe Randa, and Chris Stynes have all had their careers ended by the Pirates since 2004 and Dan Kolb may not be far behind them. Randall Simon had to spend a year out of baseball as penance for his time in Pittsburgh, and his "career" since Pittsburgh consists of 38 at-bats in 2006. Does the Eye Chart fit into the same mold as these players? I'd say yes.

What's really a mystery to me is why Mientkiewicz had to sign a minor league deal with the Pirates. He doesn't have much power, but he's put up OPS's of .770 and .789 in spot duty over the past two years, which is just about league average. He's left-handed and still a decent fielder. The problem for him is that first base is probably the only position the Pirates' don't need a league average player at with Adam LaRoche, Xavier Nady, Ryan Doumit, and prospect Steve Pearce all able to play first and better than Mientkiewicz. It seems insane to me that there wasn't a better situation for him somewhere else in the league.