40-Man Settled, Arb Approaching, Minor League Deals...

 Three to the 40-Man, Arb Cases Piling Up and Minor League Signings...

• Joely Rodriguez & Alen Hanson were added to Pirates 40 man roster, per their agents, LA Sports Management. Ben Badler of Baseball America tweeted that Gregory Polanco also was put on the list, and if that's all the additions, the 40-man roster sits at 39 players with a lot of flexibility. EDIT - Tim Williams of Pirates Prospects said that RHP Casey Sadler was also added to the roster, filling it at 40.
• The next upcoming deadline is December 2nd, when the Pirates have to decide whether or not to tender their unsigned arbitration-eligible players: Pedro Alvarez, Garrett Jones, Vin Mazzaro, Mike McKenry, Mark Melancon, Charlie Morton, Gaby Sanchez, Travis Snider and Neil Walker.
• Pittsburgh has signed RHPs Collin Balester, Jake Brigham, Jay Jackson, Josh Kinney and Seth McClung to minor league contracts. Brigham, Jackson, and Kinney will be non-roster invitees to major league camp; Balester and McClung will be assigned to a minor league team in the spring. Kinney, 34, has appeared for the St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox and Seattle Mariners.  Balester, 27, a fourth-round pick by the Montreal Expos in the 2004 draft, pitched with the Washington Nationals and Detroit Tigers. McClung, 32, hasn't pitched in the majors since 2009. Brigham, 25, and Jackson, 26, both starters, haven't tossed at the MLB level yet.