The Pirates have announced the signings of two free agents, first baseman Daniel Vogelbach and right-handed pitcher Heath Hembree. Both are one year deals.
Vogelbach had nine home runs last season for the Milwaukee Brewers. The 29-year-old hit .219 with eight doubles and 24 RBI in 93 games last year.
In 2019 Vogelbach was named to the American League All-Star team, hitting a career high 30 home runs with 76 RBI.
Over six-year career with Milwaukee, Seattle and Toronto, Vogelbach has a .209 average with 131 RBI, 192 hits and 49 home runs. He has struck out 280 times in 337 games played.
Vogelbach told the Post-Gazette’s Jason Mackey his thoughts on joining the Pirates.
Hembree had a career-high in strikeouts with both the Reds and Mets last season with 83 over 60 relief appearances.
He also had nine saves and right-handed hitters had a .181 average against him in 2021.
In nine seasons with San Francisco, Boston, Philadelphia, New York (NL) and Cincinnati, Hembree has a 4.19 ERA over 331 games with an 18-12 record, 375 strikeouts and 128 walks.
To make room for Vogelbach and Hembree on the 40-man roster, the Pirates have placed right-handed pitchers Blake Cederlind and Nick Mears, both with right elbow injuries, to the 60-day injured list.