Brad Hawpe Signed to Minor League Deal; Invited to Spring Training

Brad Hawpe’s name has recently been mentioned on this blog; McCutchenistheTruth took a look at an opportunity involving Hawpe that was missed by Neal Huntington during the 2010 season. This story now has a continuation, as the Pirates have added Hawpe on a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training. 

Neal Huntington and the Story of Brad Hawpe

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I'm an unabashed supporter of Neal Huntington. I believe he should and hope he is the Pirates General Manager for several years to come.  That said, I do not believe that he's without fault.  In fact, he's made plenty of poor moves in his tenure with the Pirates.  He non-tendered Matt Capps who was traded for top prospect Wilson Ramos months later.  The 2009 draft has been a disaster.  His intentions and logic may have been right, but the results have been poor.  Adam LaRoche was traded for Hunter Strickland and Argenis Diaz when his value couldn't be lower.  Huntington's major league free agent signings have been largely been disasters. That said, my biggest gripe with Huntington has been something he's failed to do.