Pirates acquire Marte, Santos

12/08/2005
DALLAS -- The Pittsburgh Pirates concluded the Winter Meetings with a flurry Thursday. In a span of three hours, the Bucs severed ties with their Opening Day third baseman, added two experienced arms to their staff and traded their long-time supersub.
The chain reaction of transactions began when the Pirates released third baseman Ty Wigginton to clear a spot on their 40-man roster, which Pittsburgh in turn used to pluck right-hander Victor Santos from the Kansas City Royals with the fourth overall pick in the Rule 5 Draft.
The Pirates wrapped up a busy day by sending infielder/outfielder Rob Mackowiak to the Chicago White Sox for former Pirates left-handed reliever Damaso Marte.
Although the Pirates and White Sox will not comment on the deal because both players have physicals pending, a source with one of the teams confirmed the trade, as did Mackowiak.
Mackowiak, 29, overcame long odds to make the Pirates in 2001 after being drafted in the 53rd round four years earlier. In five seasons with the Bucs, the versatile Mackowiak batted .258 with 52 home runs and 221 RBIs.
For Mackowiak, who grew up just outside of Chicago and was a White Sox fan as a kid, it was bittersweet news to find out that he had been traded from the only organization he had ever known to his home town team.
"It's the team you root for as a kid, it's a winning team and you always dream of playing for a team that has a chance at a championship," said Mackowiak. "But it's always tough to leave the place that you have been your whole career. They gave you your chance and you feel like you owe them the world."
Marte, 30, blossomed into one of the top left-handed relievers in the American League after being traded from Pittsburgh to Chicago in 2002. In four seasons with the White Sox, Marte was 14-12 with 31 saves and a 2.81 ERA in 279 appearances.
Marte will earn $2.25 million in 2006, with a club option for $3 million in 2007 and a buyout of $250,000.
Wigginton, 28, joined the Pirates on July 30, 2004, as the centerpiece of a five-player deal that sent Kris Benson to the New York Mets. But after showing promise in New York, Wigginton struggled throughout most of his tenure with the Bucs. In 115 games with Pittsburgh, Wigginton batted .237 with 12 home runs and 49 RBIs.
"It was simply performance," Pirates GM Dave Littlefield said of his decision to cut ties with Wigginton. "We were certainly rooting for it to happen and Ty put forth a great effort. It just didn't work out as well as we hoped or he hoped."
Wigginton, who made just six starts after Sept. 1, wasn't surprised to learn that he was no longer a part of Pittsburgh's future plans.
"You could tell that they were going to go in a different direction, and that's fine," said Wigginton. "I'm excited and a little nervous. I'll see what is out there and find the best fit for me."
Santos, 29, is an atypical Rule 5 selection in that he has five years of big league experience. Santos was 4-13 with 4.57 ERA in 29 appearances with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2005. He has a 17-33 career mark and a 4.57 ERA in 125 games with the Brewers, Rangers, Rockies and Tigers.
Santos will likely compete with Josh Fogg and Ian Snell for the fifth spot in the starting rotation, at least until Sean Burnett is ready to return from his elbow and shoulder surgeries. "[Santos] gives us another option," said Littlefield. "It's a good fit. He's a guy who has had some experience in the big leagues and he's started a fair amount."
The Pirates also tied up some loose ends Thursday by acquiring a pair of players to be named from past deals.
The Bucs received Chad Blackwell, 22, from the Royals to compete the Mark Redman-for-Jonah Bayliss deal a day earlier. In 48 relief appearances with Class A Burlington in 2005, Blackwell went 7-4 with a 2.23 ERA and 14 saves, and he also allowed three runs in two innings with Class A High Desert. Blackwell was Kansas City's sixth pick in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft.
The Pirates closed the book on the Nov. 21 Bobby Hill deal by acquiring right-hander Clayton Hamilton from the San Diego Padres. Hamilton, 23, went 9-6 with a 2.88 ERA in 20 starts with Class A Fort Wayne last season and 2-2 with a 5.14 ERA in seven games (six starts) with Class A Lake Elsinore. The Beaver Falls, Pa., native was San Diego's 17th-round pick in the 2004 First-Year Player Draft.

Source: http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com/