A list of 26 players came out on Wednesday, with the names of those that qualify for an extra year of arbitration due to Super Two status. The Pittsburgh Pirates had two players on the list, pitchers Jared Hughes and Vance Worley. The cut-off this year was 2 years and 133 days of service time. Hughes has 2 years and 162 days of service time, while Worley has 2 years and 139 days.
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball.
When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.
Next year might be Hughes last as a Pirate, unless he’s willing to sign deals below what he’d get in arbitration. Worley deserves it, starting pitching is valuable.
I’d like to see one more good season from Worley before getting excited. We’ve seen JMac and Locke both be half-season pitchers. Basically that’s all Worley has given the Bucs so far – just over half a season.
Boy it’s hard to believe Worley needed super two. Seems like he’s been around forever. I really can’t believe Minny dumped him last year. GM signing of the Year. Hughes, meh but he keeps getting things done.