Abandon Ship? What do the Pittsburgh Pirates do next?

Just a little over two days until the trade deadline and the speculation machine grinds to a halt. What do the Pittsburgh Pirates do before then?

There will be buyers (some make more sense than others) and there will be sellers, and this year, the difference between the two classes is starker than ever.  Yet there will still be a few teams – like the Pittsburgh Pirates – that sit in the grey area between those two poles.  Teams that don’t have the record for a rental, the payroll for a big addition, or the pieces for a sell-off.

Paging Dr. Roger… Dr. JOLLY Roger…

Ok, that was lame, I get it.

But still, what the hell do you do if you’re in the Pirates front office?

A team that was once firmly in the mix for a competitive NL Central is now careening down a path of self-destruction, putting together a Cleveland Browns like 2-14 since the All-Star break, and without any slam-dunk trade options as the deadline approaches.

Here are some thoughts…

Trade Felipe Vazquez

This is the most obvious move they could make.  Relievers are always in demand, and Felipe Vazquez could bring home a pretty decent haul for an otherwise middling farm system.

He wouldn’t cost a lot of money (Approx. $4MM this year) and is having a great year, posting a 1.87 ERA and averaging just over 14 strikeouts per 9 innings.  Teams like the Braves, Red Sox, and Nationals could all come knocking for someone of his caliber, and the Pittsburgh Pirates would be well served to deal him to stock up on players for the future.