imgreat95
01-30-2003, 03:17 AM
Well.. only about 3 years AFTER I said they should pursue him.. but hey... better late than never.
Meanwhile, the Pirates' list of center-field possibilities dwindled by one when Jose Cruz Jr. signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants. It is the one remaining position the Pirates had hoped to upgrade before spring training.
Free agent Kenny Lofton, who played in the World Series with the Giants last year, is still being pursued as a one-year solution. Cruz, 28, a switch-hitter, agreed to a $2.8 million, one-year contract with the Giants. He hit .245 with 18 homers and 70 RBIs for Toronto in 2002 but wasn't tendered an offer by the Blue Jays.
If Lofton cannot be signed, there is still an option of acquiring a corner outfielder -- a more readily available commodity-- and shifting Brian Giles to center. As of now, Giles is the left fielder, and such a move would only be considered if all else fails.
Giles is amenable to such a switch, as long as he not shuttled from one position to another and then back again. Littlefield said there would be no position hopping.
"I just want to play one position," Giles said yesterday from San Diego. "I actually feel more comfortable out there [in center]. I wouldn't mind it. That would be fine."
Meanwhile, the Pirates' list of center-field possibilities dwindled by one when Jose Cruz Jr. signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants. It is the one remaining position the Pirates had hoped to upgrade before spring training.
Free agent Kenny Lofton, who played in the World Series with the Giants last year, is still being pursued as a one-year solution. Cruz, 28, a switch-hitter, agreed to a $2.8 million, one-year contract with the Giants. He hit .245 with 18 homers and 70 RBIs for Toronto in 2002 but wasn't tendered an offer by the Blue Jays.
If Lofton cannot be signed, there is still an option of acquiring a corner outfielder -- a more readily available commodity-- and shifting Brian Giles to center. As of now, Giles is the left fielder, and such a move would only be considered if all else fails.
Giles is amenable to such a switch, as long as he not shuttled from one position to another and then back again. Littlefield said there would be no position hopping.
"I just want to play one position," Giles said yesterday from San Diego. "I actually feel more comfortable out there [in center]. I wouldn't mind it. That would be fine."