Pirates: Still no Liriano deal

The Pittsburgh Pirates still have not reached terms on a new deal with pitcher Francisco Liriano, and GM Neal Huntington is "non-commital" about the likelihood of such a deal, the Pittsburgh Tribune reports.

The Pirates first agreed to a two year/$12.75M deal in December, but the pitcher suffered a broken bone in his right (non-pitching) arm shortly after that deal was first rumored and concerns about the injury have prevented the two sides from reaching a new agreement since. Earlier this week, Ken Rosenthal of Fox sports had reported a new deal was in place, with protections relating to the injury included, but that report appears to have been premature. The injury means Liriano will miss spring training and he is doubtful to be ready for the start of the season as well.

The 29 year old lefty made 28 starts last season with a 5.40 ERA in 156 innings while pitching for the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago White Sox. He also pitched in relief in six games. Liraino was a Cy Young Candidate as recently as 2011, when he finished 11th in the voting after throwing 191 innings with a 3.62 ERA and the second best strike out rate in the American League. However, he has been hampered by injuries since then and control has been a major issue for him over the past two seasons.

Hungtington says that the process is continuing but he was unwilling to speculate on the likelihood of a deal with the pitcher:

"We have ongoing conversations. I'm not an oddsmaker, so I don't know if it is likely or unlikely that we will add another pitcher."