Infielder Jake Elmore has refused his outright assignment to Indianapolis, electing to become a free agent instead. Elmore was designated for assignment when the Pittsburgh Pirates made the Jung Ho Kang signing official back on January 20th. He cleared waivers on Thursday and the Pirates assigned him to Indianapolis. His role was going to be infield depth, but the Pirates also have Pedro Florimon and Justin Sellers on the 40-man rosters and both could fill that same role. Florimon has no options left, so the Pirates could also lose him if he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster.
Jake Elmore Elects Free Agency
John Dreker
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.