With trade deadline looming, Pirates' Ben Cherington hopes to uncover `opportunities that make sense'

Ben Cherington offered no specific details Sunday when he appeared on his radio show on 93.7 FM and was asked about the upcoming trade deadline.

But the Pittsburgh Pirates general manager indicated trades are an important component in rebuilding the team.

“We have to stay focused on adding talent and adding young players that can have a chance to grow with us and help us win,” he said. “My hope is that we can find opportunities that make sense for us … players that have a chance to be with us for a while.”

But Cherington tempered his remarks with this: “We don’t need to make a trade for the sake of making a trade. You just have to evaluate every situation as it comes. We don’t need to force it.”

Meanwhile, he promised the people in his office will be busy as the 4 p.m. Friday deadline approaches.

“We have a great team of people in baseball operations working around the clock,” he said. “All hands on deck. It will be an exciting week.”

Mitch Keller still in Indy

Cherington said there’s no timetable for Mitch Keller to return to Pirates from Triple-A Indianapolis, but he’s confident he’ll “earn his way back.”

“We know how talented he is,” Cherington said. “We really appreciate how he’s gone back to Indy with a great attitude. He’s going to earn his way back.

“There’s no timeline for it. We’ll see. We’re confident of that at some point. We need lots of good pitching to go where we want to go and very confident Mitch will be part of that group.”

Keller, 25, was the Pirates’ second-round draft choice in 2014, but he’s 5-13 with a 6.31 ERA in 28 major-league starts. He was sent to Indianapolis on June 12. In Triple-A, he is 1-1 with a 3.21 ERA, 38 strikeouts and 13 walks in 28 innings.

Crick lacked consistency

Relief pitcher Kyle Crick was designated for assignment July 19, and Cherington pointed to a lack of “consistency in terms of execution and strikes.”

“Kyle is a talented guy. People know about the slider and how well he spins it. That’s something that not a lot of guys can do,” Cherington said.

“He’s a guy who’s not a length-type pitcher. He’s a guy to come in and get into a sticky situation or heart of the order. When he’s right in leverage situations, he gets right-handers out.

“He’s been good at that in the past. He just wasn’t as consistent and some of those leverage opportunities started to go to other guys. We felt it might be best for him to get a fresh start somewhere else. I hope he does and wish him well.”

Crick’s departure might mean more opportunities for Austin Davis and Kyle Keller, Cherington said.