As the day that pitchers and catchers report grows closer, it seems like Pedro Martinez is reaching further and further down the food chain in his search for a new ballclub. After expressing some interest in the Marlins last week, he's apparently had some very preliminary talks with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Like the Marlins' rumor last week, there's probably not much to this one unless the Mets become uninterested in Martinez (as noted by Dejan Kovacevic). Then again, there's actually more to this one than meets the eye. Shortly after the season ended, the Pirates hired Joe Kerrigan as their pitching coach. Kerrigan was Pedro's pitching coach in both Montreal and Boston in the late 1990s and early 2000s, so it's possible that that relationship is playing a role in these early discussions.
It's also true that the Pirates are looking for a veteran starter to give some competition to a young staff that seriously underachieved last year and to eat some innings. Martinez could certainly fill the first requirement there, but I'm not so sure what kind of inning-eater he'd be at this point in his career. Of course, until New York (who will, you know, actually contend) and Florida (Pedro's got a house in Miami) bow out of the bidding, these things probably aren't worth worrying over for Pirate fans.
