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Padres Acquire Rich Hill, Ji Man Choi From Pirates

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4:00pm: The Padres have officially announced the deal.

12:08pm: The Padres are finalizing a trade that will see them acquire left-hander Rich Hill and first baseman Ji Man Choi from the Pirates, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. The Pirates will receive three minor league players in return, per Robert Murray of FanSided. One the prospects is Jackson Wolf, per Heyman. The other two players are Estuar Suero and Alfonso Rivas, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

The Padres spent heavily this winter but currently sport a disappointing 52-55 record that has them five games back in the National League Wild Card race. That puts them in a somewhat similar position to the Mets, who have been busy selling in recent days, flipping players like Max Scherzer, Mark Canha and David Robertson. The Padres, however, have decided on a different path and seem intent on buying. Recent reporting connected them to bats and relievers, as well as starters like Eduardo Rodriguez and Justin Verlander.

Choi, 32, could be the offensive upgrade they seek, though it’s not one without risk. He started the season with a dismal .125/.125/.344 line through nine games before landing on the injured list due to a left Achilles tendon strain. He returned from the IL a month ago and has been on a heater, slashing .268/.295/.634 since being activated. That’s a small sample of just 44 plate appearances, though it’s closer to his previous track record than that early-season slump. From 2017 to 2022, Choi hit .245/.350/.436 for a wRC+ of 120.

Choi played some left field earlier in his career but has been first base only for many years now. That happens to be a spot where the Padres could use some help. Jake Cronenworth has been the regular at that spot this season after hitting .256/.338/.431 in the previous three campaigns but he’s slashing just .219/.310/.365 here in 2023. He has the ability to play the other infield slots, so perhaps he moves into more of a utility role going forward.

Hill, 43, gives the Padres a reliable lefty for the back of their bullpen. He’s obviously been around for many years, but is still fairly effective. He has a 4.76 ERA in 22 starts this season, striking out 19.6% of opponents against an 8.9% walk rate. The Padres already have a strong top of the rotation with pitchers like Joe Musgrove and Blake Snell. The latter is an impending free agent and speculative trade candidate, though it seems the Padres are inclined to hold on and try to compete this year.

As for the rest of the rotation, Yu Darvish and Seth Lugo have a couple of spots spoken for but Michael Wacha has been on the injured list for close to a month due to a shoulder issue. The Friars have since given spot starts to pitchers like Wolf, Adrián Morejón and Ryan Weathers without much success and will now patch that hole over with Hill. Wacha is expected back in mid-August, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune. If everyone is healthy at that point, the club may have to use a six-man rotation or bump someone to the bullpen, but that would likely be considered a good problem to have.

It’s unclear if any money is exchanging hands in the deal. Choi is making $4.65MM this year, his final arbitration season before becoming a free agent, with about $1.53MM left to be paid out. Hill signed a straight one-year, $8MM deal in the offseason, with about $2.62MM left on that. That means there’s a total of $4.15MM going to the Padres unless the Pirates have thrown in some cash considerations. Roster Resource has already added those figures to San Diego’s competitive balance tax figure, which now sits at $280MM. It had been speculated by some observers that the Padres, if they sold, would try to dip under the third CBT line of $273MM. That would have prevented their top 2024 draft pick from being moved back 10 spots, but now that they are adding rather than subtracting, that doesn’t seem likely.

For the Pirates, they started out strong this year but have faded from contention, currently sitting nine games out of a playoff spot. It’s perfectly sensible for them to give up a couple of impending free agents for pieces that could help them in the future. Rivas seems like he could potentially step right in and replace Choi at first base, especially since the Pirates also flipped Carlos Santana in recent days.

Rivas, 26, made his major league debut with the Cubs in 2021 but was released in January of this year and signed a minor league deal with the Padres. Between the two clubs, he has a .245/.330/.323 batting line in the majors, walking at a decent 9.9% clip but striking out in 31.2% of his plate appearances. But he’s hit a much stronger .313/.424/.492 in Triple-A, dating back to 2019. The Pirates could perhaps give him the last couple months of the season to get major league reps and see if he can carry any of that up with him. He can also slot into an outfield corner.

Wolf, 24, was just added to the club’s 40-man roster a couple of weeks ago. He was recently ranked the club’s #11 prospect by FanGraphs and #20 by Baseball America. He posted a 3.39 ERA in Double-A prior to his recent promotion. After one big league start of five innings, he was sent back down and shelled for eight earned runs in another Double-A start, but his ERA at that level still sits at 4.08 for the year. He can provide the Pirates with some immediate rotation depth and perhaps be in line for more time in the big leagues this year or next.

Suero, 17, is a much longer-term prospect acquisition for the Pirates. FanGraphs listed him as San Diego’s #10 prospect last month, but added that he’s probably the most high-variance member of the bunch. They list him as a 6’5″ outfielder who used to be very skinny but has recently gotten stronger. He’s striking out in about 30% of his plate appearances in the lower levels of the minors but has the speed-and-defense combo down. The key question will be whether he hits or not.

With still a few hours to go, the ever-busy Padres might still make a few more moves, while the Pirates might still move someone like Austin Hedges. Players like Mitch Keller and David Bednar have also drawn interest but they each still have years of club control and seem unlikely to be moved.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Rays, Rangers, Diamondbacks Interested In Catchers

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With the trade deadline rapidly approaching, there are still many moving pieces. Joel Sherman of The New York Post (Twitter links) reports that the Rays, Marlins, Rangers and Diamondbacks are in the catching market, with Austin Hedges of the Pirates a speculative fit. It was reported in June that the Marlins were keeping an eye on the catching market.

Hedges, 30, has never provided much offensively, with a career batting line of .189/.247/.323 dating back to 2015. This year’s line of .180/.237/.230 is even lower than his career output. But he’s always garnered attention as a glove-first backstop. He has career tallies of 83 Defensive Runs Saved and a grade of 77.3 from the FanGraphs framing metric. The former figure is tops in the majors for that stretch while the latter places him third.

Despite that strong defensive work, there would be logic in the Pirates moving on. They are currently nine games out of a playoff spot with a record of 47-58. Hedges is on a one-year, $5MM deal and is an impending free agent. They have already traded another impending free agent in Carlos Santana and reportedly have a deal in place to send Rich Hill and Ji Man Choi to the Padres as they approach the open market as well. With catching prospects Henry Davis and Endy Rodríguez already at the big league level, it makes sense to send Hedges elsewhere and let those two take the reins.

The listed suitors all make sense due to recent injuries. The Rays lost Francisco Mejía to a left knee MCL sprain about two weeks ago, leaving them with Christian Bethancourt and René Pinto as the only healthy backstops on their 40-man roster. The Diamondbacks are in a similar position after placing Gabriel Moreno on the IL about a week ago due to shoulder inflammation, leaving them with Carson Kelly and José Herrera. The Rangers recently lost Jonah Heim to the injured list due to a wrist issue and surgery is still possible, leaving them with Mitch Garver and Sam Huff as their health options on the roster.

Any of those clubs would be a sensible addition for extra catching help, as they are each currently in possession of a playoff spot. Apart from Hedges, some catchers that could be available include Yasmani Grandal, Elias Díaz, Joey Bart, Víctor Caratini, Iván Herrera, Tom Murphy and Omar Narváez.

Dodgers Rumors: Verlander, E-Rod, Singer, Keller, Cardinals, Scherzer, Canha, Pham

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The Dodgers have already both added and subtracted from their pitching mix prior to the deadline, acquiring Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly from the White Sox while also shipping out Noah Syndergaard to the Guardians in exchange for Amed Rosario.  Between these moves and the re-acqusition of old friend Enrique Hernandez from the Red Sox, Los Angeles has already checked several boxes on their wishlist with over three days to go until the trade deadline, but more transactions seem likely given the Dodgers’ aggression.

Pitching remains the focus, as while Lynn will theoretically fill one hole, Lynn’s inconsistency and the Dodgers’ relative lack of rotation has put a lot of other hurlers on the team’s radar.  According to Jack Harris and Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times, the Dodgers’ list of targets include Justin Verlander, Eduardo Rodriguez, Brady Singer, Mitch Keller, Jack Flaherty, and Jordan Montgomery.  Beyond Verlander, the Dodgers are also looking at a couple of other Mets players to address their outfield needs, as The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya reports that Tommy Pham and Mark Canha are of interest.

One Met who apparently isn’t under heavy consideration is Max Scherzer, as Harris/Castillo write that “the likelihood…isn’t as strong” of Scherzer heading to Chavez Ravine at another trade deadline.  L.A. memorably landed Scherzer and Trea Turner from the Nationals two years ago, but Scherzer was a rental at the time, just two-plus months away from free agency.  Scherzer implied yesterday that he would be exercising his $43.333MM player option for 2024, and with the Mets likely to ask for a strong trade return, the uncertainty over that player option makes Scherzer a pricey add both financially (he is also still owed $16MM for the rest of 2023) and from a prospect cost.

Given how aggressive the Dodgers have been, a Scherzer reunion might not be entirely ruled out until either the team makes another pitching move, or until Scherzer is potentially shipped elsewhere.  With Verlander, Pham and Canha also apparently under discussion, the Dodgers’ talks with the Mets could go in several directions between now and Tuesday’s 5pm CT deadline.

Similarly, there are plenty of layers to the negotiations between the Dodgers and Cardinals, as Nolan Arenado is yet another star name Los Angeles has explored.  In a move akin to that Scherzer/Turner blockbuster of 2021, the Dodgers could aim to land both a major position player and a rental pitcher (either Montgomery or Flaherty) in the same deal.  Harris/Castillo note that L.A. might also pursue either Montgomery or Flaherty on their own, should the more complicated machinations of an Arenado deal fall through.

Rodriguez has drawn attention from several other teams as the deadline approaches, and the Tigers left-hander’s status is also impacted by a contractual option.  Rodriguez has the ability to opt out of his contract after the season, leaving three years and $49MM on the table in search of a richer and longer-term deal.  An opt-out seems like a distinct possibility the way E-Rod has been pitching, yet an injury or a drop in form (with the Tigers or a new team) could certainly still occur post-deadline, leading to a change in his thinking.  If this did happen after a trade, a new club could find itself on the books for $49MM of a suddenly distressed asset, which surely factors into the thinking of the Dodgers and any other team considering the southpaw.

Beyond these veteran rental players, the Dodgers are also slightly expanding their perimeters to look at more controllable pitchers.  The Pirates have arbitration control on Keller through the 2025 season, while the Royals have Singer arb-controlled through 2026.  Keller seems like the longer shot, as Pittsburgh is perhaps only listening to trade offers out of due diligence, and would command a huge prospect return in any deal.  While Los Angeles is one of the teams with the prospect depth to perhaps get the Pirates’ attention, it doesn’t seem likely that the Bucs will move Keller anywhere at the deadline or even in the near future, as Pittsburgh may have an eye on fully turning the corner back into contending in 2024.

“No traction toward a deal has materialized” between the Dodgers and Royals, so Singer is probably also not on the move.  The former first-rounder has a breakout season in 2022 but has struggled to a 5.46 ERA over 113 2/3 innings this year, albeit with a somewhat more favorable 4.41 SIERA.  It is possible that L.A. was looking to buy low on the righty (who turns 27 next week), just in case Kansas City was considering a wider-range rebuild in the wake of its disastrous 2023 season.  The Royals are in a tough spot given the lack of production from almost all of their projected cornerstone young players, yet while it isn’t clear what the next step will be for the franchise, it does seem too soon for K.C. to give up on Singer, one of the few members of that group who has had some level of success in the majors.

Returning to Verlander, he would also bring a bit more control than a rental player, as he owed $43.333MM in 2024 and he can earn a $35MM player option for 2025 if he pitches at least 140 innings in 2024.  It’s a steep price tag for a pitcher who turns 41 in February, as even though Verlander has pitched closer to his vintage form in the last few weeks, he missed time earlier this year due to a teres major strain and was then shaky in his first few starts of 2023.

Perhaps more relevant to August 1, Verlander has a full no-trade clause in his contract, and said earlier this week that “I’m focused on being a Met.  I want to win here…Obviously it hasn’t gone according to plan just yet, but I didn’t sign a one-year deal.”  Since the Mets have already started to trade veterans and look ahead to 2024, it is possible Verlander might change his mind should a contender make an offer, and there has been a connection between Verlander and Los Angeles in the past.  The Dodgers pushed to sign Verlander in free agency last winter, with Harris/Castillo writing that L.A. offered the future Hall-of-Famer two years and $80MM.

Pirates Receiving Trade Interest In Hedges, Hill, Holderman

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July 28: Catcher Austin Hedges has also drawn trade interest, Heyman tweets. While the veteran backstop provides nothing on the offensive side of the game — Hedges is a career .189/.246/.323 hitter who’s batting .181/.234/.231 this year — he’s long been regarded as a premier defender at a critical position. A club looking to add a defensive-minded backup could perhaps have interest in Hedges, who’s earning $5MM this season and still has about $1.77MM of that sum still to be paid out.

Moving Hedges makes sense for a Pirates club with two of the sport’s top catching prospects, Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez, both ready for a legitimate audition in the Majors. Both are already on the big league roster, and Davis has seen some action in right field to get his bat in the lineup. A Hedges trade would clear out more playing time for each youngster. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette spoke with Hedges yesterday about the possibility of a trade and his shift toward a mentor role for the younger Davis  and Rodriguez. Both young backstops lauded Hedges for his eagerness to take them under his wing as they continue their development.

July 27: The Pirates have received some trade interest in starter Rich Hill and setup man Colin Holderman, tweets Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Hill, in particular, seems a good bet to move within the next few days.

Pittsburgh signed the 43-year-old southpaw to a one-year, $8MM free agent contract last offseason. Hill has continued to offer the kind of back-of-the-rotation production not far off that of his past few seasons. He owns a 4.82 ERA over 21 starts and 114 innings. His 19.1% strikeout rate is a bit below average, while he’s issuing walks at a roughly average 8.7% clip.

It’s not overwhelming production, but teams have valued Hill’s general stability at the back of a staff and veteran clubhouse presence. He’s been on six teams within the past five seasons, generally working at the end of a contending rotation.

For a while, the Bucs seemed as if they’d stick in the postseason picture. They’ve gone cold of late and fallen out of the mix, setting the stage for at least a moderate sell-off. Veteran first baseman Carlos Santana was shipped off to the Brewers this afternoon. Hill is in the same spot as an impending free agent who could have modest appeal to a contender. He’s due around $2.67MM from here forward.

The Pirates can set a loftier ask on Holderman. Acquired from the Mets for Daniel Vogelbach at last summer’s deadline, the right-hander has somewhat quietly developed into a quality reliever for the Bucs. He struggled down the stretch last summer but has solid numbers across the board this year.

Holderman, 27, owns a 3.71 ERA through 34 innings. His 23.3% strikeout rate is fairly typical, while he has above-average control and a quality 51.5% grounder percentage. He’s handling hitters from both sides of the plate, mixes three pitches and has picked up 15 holds in a leverage role for Pittsburgh.

That’s valuable production, and Holderman’s affordability only adds to the appeal. He surpassed one year of MLB service this season. He won’t be eligible for arbitration until after next year and is controllable through the 2028 campaign. Every contender could fit him on the books and into the middle innings, but the Bucs also have zero urgency to deal him for a suboptimal return.

Of course, the Bucs’ top potential trade candidates would be mid-rotation starter Mitch Keller and All-Star closer David Bednar. Heyman reported earlier this week the Pirates were willing to consider offers on those players. Both are under arbitration control for multiple seasons beyond this one (Keller through ’25, Bednar past ’26). The ask on each will be very high as a result, and deals seem significant long shots. Robert Murray of FanSided wrote yesterday that a Keller or Bednar trade was very unlikely, characterizing the openness to offers as standard due diligence for GM Ben Cherington and his staff.

Brewers Acquire Carlos Santana

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4:00pm: The Brewers have now officially announced the deal.

2:06pm: The Brewers and Pirates are in agreement on an intra-division trade that’ll send first baseman Carlos Santana from Pittsburgh to Milwaukee, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Twitter link). Minor league infielder Jhonny Severino is headed back to the Pirates in the deal.

Santana, 37, signed a one-year deal worth a guaranteed $6.725MM in Pittsburgh over the offseason. He’s still owed about $2.42MM of that sum between now and season’s end. Milwaukee has a need at first base with Rowdy Tellez on the injured list, and the veteran Santana has outplayed Tellez this season anyhow.

In 393 trips to the plate, the switch-hitting Santana is batting .235/.321/.412 with a dozen homers, 25 doubles and six stolen bases. He’s been almost exactly league average at the plate (99 wRC+), whereas Tellez has struggled to a .213/.285/.388 batting line in 288 trips to the plate. Santana is also one of the game’s top defensive first baseman; despite the fact that he’s never won a Gold Glove, he’s amassed 17 career Defensive Runs Saved and 20 Outs Above Average at first base — including respective marks of plus-6 and plus-2 in 2023. Tellez has graded below average (-1 DRS, -3 OAA).

Santana has been particularly productive at the plate as the season has shifted to summer. Dating back to June 1, he’s hitting .244/.319/.470 with nine of his 12 homers and 11 of his 25 doubles. He’s sporting a characteristically strong walk rate (11.5%) against a lower-than-average strikeout rate (17.6%) and has nearly identical platoon splits on the season. Brewers general manager Matt Arnold spoke this week about not wanting to subtract from the team’s defense in order to improve the lineup, and acquiring Santana gives the Crew a solid bat and improved defense at one of their weakest positions this season.

In Tellez’s absence, Milwaukee has been deploying utilityman Owen Miller at first base. The right-handed-hitting Miller has performed reasonably well, batting .266/.305/.378 with above-average defense at multiple positions. The acquisition of Santana will allow him to revert to a multi-position role, slotting in at second and third base in addition to occasional time around the outfield.

In return for the final few months of Santana’s 2023 season, the Pirates will acquire the 18-year-old Severino — one of Milwaukee’s top signings during the 2021-22 international free agency period. Severino has played in parts of two minor league seasons since signing, turning in a combined .264/.324/.432 batting line with seven homers, 13 doubles, a pair of triples and 15 stolen bases. He’s walked at a six percent clip in his young professional career and fanned in 26% of his plate appearances — most of which have come against older and more advanced competition. He opened the 2023 season with the Brewers’ affiliate in the Arizona Complex League, where he’s about two years younger than the average player.

Both Baseball America and MLB.com ranked Severino among the top 30 prospects in the 2021-22 international class, and the Brewers accordingly paid him a $1.23MM bonus at the time of his signing. BA’s Ben Badler touted the switch-hitting Severino as an offensive-minded infielder who’d likely end up moving off shortstop but has plus raw power from both sides of the dish and an advanced hit tool as a right-handed bat. MLB.com’s report on him noted his above-average arm strength and strong frame, all of which could point to a third base profile. Of course, as a teenager who’s just now getting going in Rookie ball, Severino is years away from having any sort of impact at the MLB level. He’ll add some power potential to the lower tiers of the Pirates’ farm system.

With Santana now in Milwaukee, the Bucs figure to give Ji-Man Choi and/or Connor Joe increased reps at first base — although both Choi and Joe themselves are trade candidates. Should the Pirates move one or both players, it’d open more opportunity for the Pirates to get top catching prospects Endy Rodriguez and Henry Davis into the lineup on the same day. They could also conceivably take another look at former Yankee Miguel Andujar, whom they’ve twice passed through waivers since acquiring him. Andujar isn’t currently on the 40-man roster but has obliterated Triple-A pitching, slashing .343/.405/.545 in 333 plate appearances. He can be controlled another two years if he’s added back to the roster.

Pirates Outright Wil Crowe

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The Pirates announced a few transactions before tonight’s matchup with the Padres. Pittsburgh selected the contract of infielder Alika Williams to make his MLB debut, as reported this morning. Infielder Tucupita Marcano is going directly on the 60-day injured list with ligament damage in his right knee, clearing both active and 40-man roster space. Additionally, reliever Wil Crowe was sent outright to Triple-A Indianapolis after clearing waivers.

Crowe had been designated for assignment last week. The righty had been on the shelf since April due to discomfort in his throwing shoulder. Rather than bring him back to the 40-man roster once he was healthy, the Bucs designated him for assignment. He’s gone unclaimed and will stick in the organization as a non-roster player, since he doesn’t have the service time to test free agency.

A former second-round pick who was acquired from the Nationals in the Josh Bell trade, Crowe has spent two and a half seasons in Pittsburgh. He struggled as a starter in 2021 but found a bit more success after a bullpen conversion last year. Through 76 innings, he posted a 4.38 ERA while inducing grounders on nearly half the batted balls he allowed.

Marcano, meanwhile, seems in danger of missing the rest of the season. He’ll be out until at least the middle of September. The left-handed hitter posted a .233/.276/.356 line over a career-high 220 plate appearances prior to the injury, which occurred when he awkwardly tried to avoid a tag while running the bases in last night’s win over San Diego.

Pirates To Select Alika Williams

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The Pirates are selecting the contract of infield prospect Alika Williams from Triple-A Indianapolis, reports Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The 24-year-old will be making his MLB debut whenever he takes the field.

Williams, acquired from the Rays in the trade that sent righty Robert Stephenson to Tampa Bay, was the No. 37 overall draft pick by the Rays in 2020. After a tough stretch in Double-A with the Rays, where he hit .237/.314/.417 (93 wRC+) in 175 plate appearances, Williams is batting .305/.384/.531 (126 wRC+) in 148 Triple-A plate appearances with the Bucs. He’s trimmed his strikeout rate from 19.4% in Double-A to 14.9% in Triple-A, while his walk rate has crept up from 8.4% to 10.1%.

Scouting reports on Williams have typically pegged him as a glove-first option at shortstop with plus speed and minimal power. He’s popped a career-high 12 home runs in the minors this season, however, adding another 19 doubles and a triple. On the basepaths, he’s 6-for-8.

If he’s able to continue that surprising power output at the big league level, it’s possible Williams could eventually outperform the generally modest expectations that peg him as a potential utility infielder at the big league level. Even if he winds up as more of a contact- and defense-oriented infielder, however, his glove at short and ability to handle either second base or third base would give him a good chance to carve out a spot on a big league bench.

The Bucs are dealing with a potential injury of note for utilityman Tucupita Marcano, as Justice de los Santos of MLB.com tweeted last night that Marcano was pulled from the game with what appears to be a ligament injury in his knee. If Marcano is indeed headed to the injured list, Williams could step into his bench spot and see occasional work around an infield that’s currently relying on young options like Jared Triolo (25), Nick Gonzales (24) and Liover Peguero (22) at third base, second base and shortstop while starters Ke’Bryan Hayes and Oneil Cruz are on the injured list.

Pirates Release Drew Maggi

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The Pirates released infielder Drew Maggi, according to reporter Pat Ragazzo (Twitter link).  Maggi didn’t have any hard feelings about the situation, telling Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that Pirates fans are “the best in the world.  And thank you to the Pirates organization.  I’m not done yet!”

Maggi made his MLB debut earlier this season, appearing in three games for the Pirates and getting two hits in six plate appearances.  At age 34, Maggi waited a long time for that cup of coffee in the majors, as he has been in pro ball since he was a 15th-round selection for the Pirates in the 2010 draft.  Maggi bounced around to five other teams’ farm systems from 2015-22 before returning to the Pittsburgh organization last August in a minor trade with the Phillies.

Maggi’s minor league time this season has been with Double-A Altoona, and as Mackey noted, Maggi hasn’t played a game since July 8.  A move to the development list on July 14 hinted that Maggi’s time with the Pirates was nearing an end, and Mackey writes that with so many young prospects in need of playing time, Maggi was the odd man out.

With a reputation as a strong clubhouse leader, Maggi might draw attention from another team looking to add some veteran leadership within its minor league ranks.  Coaching or managerial roles also seem like possibilities down the line, though Maggi isn’t yet ready to hang up his glove.

Pirates Willing To Listen To Trade Offers On David Bednar, Mitch Keller

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4:14PM: The Pirates are also open to hearing what teams might offer for Mitch Keller, Heyman tweets, but like with Bednar, a trade doesn’t seem likely.  It would seem like Pittsburgh is taking a broad, due-diligence approach to the deadline just in case a special opportunity arises, yet moving a building-block type like Keller or Bednar would indeed require a real blockbuster of an offer.

3:25PM: The Pirates are willing to listen to trade offers on closer David Bednar, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post, though he adds that it will likely be difficult to get a deal together.

Bednar, 28, would undoubtedly be of interest to any club around the league, given the way he keeps taking his game to new levels. Across 2021 and 2022, he posted a 2.40 earned run average in 106 appearances, striking out 32.7% of batters faced while walking 7.8%. This year, he’s cut his walk rate to just 5.8%, helping him drop his ERA to 1.15. He earned 19 saves last year and has already matched that figure here in 2023.

On top of his obvious skills, Bednar would have plenty of appeal to MLB clubs based on his status. He came into the 2023 season with two years and 76 days of service time. That means he’ll qualify for arbitration for the first time this winter and won’t be scheduled to reach free agency until after the 2026 campaign. Just about every contending club can use a strong bullpen upgrade at this time of year, bumping every other reliever down one spot in the pecking order.

Of course, the same qualities that make Bednar attractive to the other 29 clubs also work on the Pirates. The club has faded after a hot start and is now 43-56, but they have shown enough potential this year to suggest that maybe contention isn’t too far away. Reliever performance is volatile and there is a school of thought that a club in seller position should be open to moving any member of its bullpen, which makes it fairly logical for the Bucs to listen and see what’s out there. But Bednar’s elite performance and local ties, having been born in Pittsburgh and raised nearby, suggest they will need to be blown away in order for a deal to come together.

It’s important to distinguish between a club that’s willing to listen to offers versus one that is actively shopping a player around. There’s nothing to suggest the Pirates have done the latter, so it’s possible that their open mind to incoming calls is merely due diligence. Perhaps some club makes them an offer they can’t refuse, but it seems the most likely scenario is that he stays in Pittsburgh as they take another shot at contention next year.

Although obtaining Bednar may prove difficult, teams looking for quality bullpen upgrades should have plenty of other options among the potential trade candidates this summer. Some other names that figure to be more attainable include Scott Barlow, David Robertson, Jordan Hicks and many others.

Pirates Designate Wil Crowe For Assignment

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July 21: Pittsburgh officially designated Crowe for assignment Friday afternoon. They also activated Jose Hernandez from the 15-day injured list while optioning righty Yohan Ramirez to Triple-A.

July 19: The Pirates are going to designate right-hander Wil Crowe for assignment, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Crowe has been on the 60-day injured list since April and has been on a rehab assignment of late, but the Bucs evidently don’t plan on putting him back on their roster.

Crowe, 28, was a starter earlier in his career but switched to a relief role last year. He tossed 76 innings over 60 appearances for the Pirates with a 4.38 earned run average. His 20.5% strikeout rate and 11.4% walk rate were both a couple of ticks below average but he kept the ball on the ground at a 49.8% rate. Those solid results moved him up the club’s bullpen chart, allowing him to record four saves and 16 holds on the season.

This year, he made just five appearances before landing on the IL due right shoulder discomfort. He began a rehab assignment a couple of weeks ago and made five appearances in the minors with a 1.59 ERA, but it seems the club doesn’t want to put him back on the 40-man roster. The Pirates have been funneling various prospects to the big league level in recent weeks, which has involved selecting the contracts of players like Henry Davis, Nick Gonzales and Quinn Priester, perhaps crowding things out too much for Crowe.

The Bucs will now have a week to trade Crowe or pass him through waivers. He still has an option year and has yet to qualify for arbitration, which could perhaps give him some appeal to clubs looking for an extra depth arm. If he were to clear waivers, he would not have the right to elect free agency since he has not previously been outrighted in his career and it still shy of three years of major league service time.

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