The Pirates have made contact with Aubrey Huff, the most prominent left-handed power hitter remaining in free agency, and are one of a handful of teams considered to be in the running for his services.

The others are the Texas Rangers, Cleveland Indians and Baltimore Orioles.

Huff, who turned 30 Wednesday, batted .266 with 21 home runs and 65 RBIs last season, which he split between the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Houston Astros. In the previous three seasons, all with Tampa Bay, his home run totals were 34, 29 and 22, his RBI totals 107, 104 and 92. He can play first base, third base and the corner outfield spots.

Agent Seth Levinson did not return phone calls yesterday, but Huff is thought to be seeking a three-year contract in the range of $23 million. That is down from his original asking price of $9 million annually.

The Pirates' approaching Huff could represent yet another sign that trade talks have been cooling with the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees, each of whom has discussed sending a hitter to Pittsburgh in exchange for closer Mike Gonzalez.

General manager Dave Littlefield's stated preference has been to find a hitter who fits best into the Pirates' young age group, which is why he made a priority of pursuing trades. But Huff would be only two years older than the Pirates' other middle-of-the-order hitters, Jason Bay and Freddy Sanchez. And, if signed to his desired three-year term, Huff would have his rights owned by the Pirates through 2009, just as long as most of their core.

Littlefield is believed to have inquired about Huff's availability through trade early last year, while Huff was with Tampa Bay.

The Pirates are projected to have roughly $12 million to spend this offseason.

NOTES -- The Pirates' official payroll for the 2006 season was $43.4 million, according to figures released yesterday by Major League Baseball for all 30 teams. That reflects all money paid to major-league players, including buyouts, bonuses and prorated salaries paid to players who were traded, released or acquired in midseason. The total, which ranked 28th in MLB, represented an increase of $8 million from 2005. The Pirates are projecting a payroll slightly above $50 million for next season, which would bring a similar increase but still would rank among the three or four lowest in the game.