Pirates, Jaso agree to 2-year contract

The Pittsburgh Pirates beefed up their offense Wednesday afternoon by agreeing to a two-year deal with John Jaso, the former catcher who has quietly established himself as one of the game's more unheralded hitters.

According to multiple reports, Jaso will earn a total of $8 million over the next two seasons and will replace Pedro Alvarez as the left-handed complement to Michael Morse in the club's first-base platoon despite logging just five innings at the position since his 2008 debut.

"John is enthusiastic about playing in Pittsburgh and developing as a first baseman," Pirates general manager Neal Hungtinton said in a statement. "We feel he has the ability to play the position at the Major League level, while adding significantly to our offensive production."

Jaso, who turned 32 in September, has spent the majority of his career behind the plate, but concussion problems forced him to relocate in 2015, wherein he played primarily at designated hitter and in the outfield for the Tampa Bay Rays.

Still, despite battling health problems in recent years, Jaso boasts a career .767 OPS (116 OPS+) over parts of seven seasons in the majors. Though he didn't spend any time behind the plate this past summer, and hasn't caught more than 54 games in a season since 2011, Jaso is tied with Joe Mauer with the fourth-highest wRC+ (120) among catchers over the last six years.

"We feel like it's a very nice addition to our offense and recognize that we are taking a calculated risk on the defense," Huntington added.

Last season, Jaso was limited to just 70 games due to a wrist injury sustained on Opening Day, but the former 12th-round pick still managed a career-best .286 batting average, while posting an .839 OPS (132 OPS+) with a 13 percent walk rate for Tampa Bay.