Bucs, Nats could strike McCutchen deal

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Andrew McCutchen is still a Pirate, but that could change now that Mark Melancon and Chris Sale will not be Nationals.

The Red Sox made the biggest move of the offseason on Tuesday, acquiring former White Sox ace Sale for a haul of top prospects. On Monday, the Giants jump-started the run on closers by signing Melancon, the former Pirate, to a four-year, $62 million deal.

What does that have to do with McCutchen? Melancon and Sale were rumored to be two of the Nats’ three biggest targets at the Winter Meetings, taking place within range of their home ballpark and fans. The third star they hoped to add? McCutchen, Pittsburgh’s franchise player and its most intriguing tradeable asset.

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Washington targeted Sale, a singularly intriguing pitcher, despite their already-impressive rotation depth. General manager Mike Rizzo said on Tuesday that the Nats will move on after their pursuit of Sale and acknowledged that McCutchen is still an option.

“He’s one of the players that we’re discussing,” Rizzo said. “We’re discussing a lot of different players, lot of different avenues in the trade market, free-agent market. We’ve got our net wide, and we’re looking for any avenue to improve the ballclub.”

It comes as no surprise that the Nationals are resetting their sights on McCutchen. They never broke off talks with the Pirates regarding McCutchen, even as the Nats may have focused their attention on Sale over the past few days. …

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