PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates will increase their historically low payroll when signing veteran players "puts us over the top," new team president Frank Coonelly said Tuesday.

Coonelly's comment was the first by any Pirates top executive since the early 1990s that the payroll might increase more than minimally. The Pirates' opening day payroll of $38.6 million this season was the majors' fourth-lowest and was about $14 million below that of Arizona, the fifth-lowest.

The current Pirates payroll is nearly the same as it was when the club was winning three consecutive NL East championships in 1990-92. But player salaries dropped substantially in 1993, and Pittsburgh's payroll has remained in baseball's lower tier since then, except for a brief bump when the team moved into PNC Park in 2001.

While the Pirates' salaries are likely to be about $45 million next year, Coonelly said it won't always remain in the $50 million range. This season, half of the 30 major league teams had payrolls of about $90 million.

"We're going to do what it takes to turn this franchise into a winner," Coonelly told The Associated Press. "In my judgment, based on the roster we have today and what we need to build the consistent winner that they've been able to build in Cleveland, I don't see any reason for the payroll to be above $50 million.

"In terms of going forward, when the pieces are in place, and when adding payroll dollars at the major league level are going to put us over the top, that commitment is going to be there" from principal owner Bob Nutting, he said.

Coonelly, hired away from Major League Baseball's front office two weeks ago, said neither he nor new general manager Neal Huntington would have taken their jobs without such a commitment. Huntington was introduced Tuesday as the 12th GM in club history.

"As the roster begins to mature and players become eligible for arbitration, if there are players who are committed to the system, who are producing on the field, we're going to remain committed to them," Coonelly said. "And the payroll will increase closer to the payroll of Cleveland."

The Indians are closing in on the AL Central title even though their opening day payroll of $61.7 million was the majors' eighth-lowest.

As a comparison, the other NL Central opening day payrolls were: Cubs, $99.9 million; Cardinals, $90.3 million; Astros, $87.8 million; Brewers, $72 million; and the Reds, $69.1 million.

"For me, it's not so much the payroll numbers we have available to us, but the continual infusion of quality talent (from the farm system)," said Huntington, a former Indians executive.