The Pittsburgh Pirates today signed right-handed pitcher
Brian Slocum to a minor league contract with an invitation to big league camp. The 27-year-old Slocum spent a majority of the 2008 season with Buffalo (Indians’ AAA), where he went 3-7 with a 4.85 ERA (85.1ip/46er) in 30 games (11 starts). Slocum also made a pair of relief appearances with the Indians.
Slocum was originally selected by Cleveland in the second round of the 2002 First-Year Player Draft. During the 2004 campaign he led all Carolina League pitchers with 15 wins while tying for the league lead in complete games (2) and shutouts (2). He made his major league debut on April 22, 2006, and has a career record of 0-0 with a 7.78 ERA (19.2ip/17er) in 10 games (two starts) in the big leagues.
The Pirates have also signed outfielder Yohan Silva to a minor league contract and assigned him to Double-A Altoona. The 23-year-old switch hitting outfielder hit a combined .205 (32-for-156) with 11 doubles, three home runs and 10 RBI in 53 games in the Braves minor league system between Myrtle Beach, Rome and the GCL Braves in 2008. Silva was signed by Atlanta as a non-drafted free agent on July 3, 2001.
!-- External, e.g. Omniture, tracking script -->