According to the Pittsburg Post-Gazette, free agent reliever Octavio Dotel is atop the Pirate’s wish list.  The team made a $3 million plus games finished incentives offer to Dotel in late December, but no deal is imminent.  Pirate’s general manager Neal Huntington and Dotel’s agent Dan Horwits remain in contact.

The Detroit Tigers, Toronto Blue Jays, Florida Marlins and Oakland Athletics have been seeking a closer.  It was reported yesterday that free agent reliever Jose Valverde had received four offers to be an unknown team’s closer.

In 11 seasons, the 36-year-old Dotel has compiled a 46-39 record with a 3.73 ERA and 83 saves over 770 1/3 innings pitched.  You can see Dotel’s complete statistics here.