Pirates avoid arbitration with 9, including Harrison

Jan 16, 2015 - 10:49 PM Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The Pittsburgh Pirates agreed to terms with nine players on contracts for the 2015 season, including All-Star Josh Harrison.

The Pirates also avoided arbitration by coming to terms with catchers Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli, outfielder Travis Snider, infielder Sean Rodriguez and relievers Tony Watson, Mark Melancon, Jared Hughes and Antonio Bastardo.

Harrison finished ninth in the voting for NL MVP after batting .315 with 13 home runs, 52 RBI, 18 stolen bases and a .347 on-base percentage in 143 games -- all career highs.

He finished four points behind NL batting champion Justin Morneau of Colorado and one point ahead of teammate Andrew McCutchen for second place.

Snider batted .264 with 13 homers in 140 games last season and Stewart hit a career-high .294 in 49 games.

Cervelli, the longtime Yankees backup who was acquired in November for pitcher Justin Wilson, hit .301 with a .370 on-base percentage in 49 games.

Watson tied for the NL lead with 78 appearances out of the bullpen, finishing with a 10-2 record and 1.63 ERA. Melancon pitched in 72 games out of the pen, compiling a career-high 33 saves in 37 chances with a 1.90 ERA. Hughes had a 1.96 ERA in 63 appearances.

Last month, the Pirates acquired Bastardo from Philadelphia and Rodriguez from Tampa Bay, both for minor league pitchers. Bastardo had a 3.94 ERA in 67 games out of the bullpen during his sixth season for the Phillies.

Rodriguez clubbed 12 homers with 41 RBI despite a meager .211 average in his fifth season with the Rays. He was acquired from Tampa Bay in December for a player to be named later, which ended up being minor league pitcher Buddy Borden.