"Unless the Pirates pull in a pitcher from outside their organization, they'll open the season with five right-handers in their starting rotation. That's why they'll meet this week with the agent for veteran lefty Jeff Francis.

The Pirates tried to get Francis last winter, but he signed a $2 million deal with the Royals and went 6-16 with a 4.82 ERA and 1.437 WHIP. Francis' best season was 2007, when he won 17 games for the Rockies and finished ninth in Cy Young voting. Francis, 30, is a workhorse, having made at least 20 outings in each of the past six seasons. His strikeout/nine innings rate, which was 6.9 in 2007 tumbled to 4.5 last season."