In less than two weeks, pitchers and catchers will report to Bradenton and Spring Training 2020 will be underway for the Pittsburgh Pirates. On Monday general manager Ben Cherington made a move that signal the upcoming 2020 season will be a rebuilding season when he traded star center fielder Starling Marte to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Following the trade of Marte, according to Spotrac, the Pirate payroll for 2020 is projected to be $48,298,500. This will be the third lowest in baseball.
A low payroll is not what fans want to see, even in a rebuilding year.