Phil Gosselin And Max Moroff Are Returning To The Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are going to be making a pair of roster moves

After the Pittsburgh Pirates were defeated by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday afternoon, we found out a pair of roster moves were coming. This was due to the news that Alen Hanson would not be joining the team in New York this weekend, while Gift Ngoepe was being optioned back to Triple-A Indianapolis.

You can read more about the moves with Hanson and Ngoepe here.

Later in the night on Wednesday, we found out the two players that would be replacing Hanson and Ngoepe on the 25-man roster. According to Pirates Prospects’ Triple-A beat writer Brian Peloza, infielders Max Moroff and Phil Gosselin will be joining the Pirates in the Big Apple on Friday.

Both Moroff and Gosselin have spent time at the Major League level this season. Phil Gosselin started the season on the 25-man roster, while Max Moroff had a cup of coffee earlier this month. Moroff went 1-for-9 during his brief stint in the Majors earlier this month, however, he has been having an excellent season at Triple-A with a .385 on-base percentage, an ISO of .300, and an International League best 13 home runs.

As for Phil Gosselin, he was horrible at the Major League level this season. In 30 plate appearances, he owned a -11 wRC+, .152 wOBA, a 20.0 percent strikeout rate, and a -0.5 fWAR. He was also a mess in the field with a -2 DRS at second base and a dWAR of -0.9.

However, he was much better at Triple-A. Gosselin owned a .337 on-base percentage, .330 wOBA, and a 106 wRC+ in 90 plate appearances for the Indians. Hopefully, he has figured something out.

While the Alen Hanson move is not a surprise, optioning Gift Ngoepe to Triple-A is. While Ngoepe had not been great at the plate for the Pirates (74 wRC+) he did show the ability to be patient and get on base (12.7 percent walk rate, .323 on-base percentage). Although, his 41.3 percent strikeout rate is almost unbelievably bad.

The biggest reason the Ngoepe move is a surprise is his defense. He has been a plus defender at both second base and shortstop this season. While Gosselin, Moroff, and Ngoepe all have plenty of questions surrounding their offensive ability, there are no questions about Ngoepe’s defense.

Next: Bucs Lose Wild One In Finale vs DBacks

Hopefully, Phil Gosselin has turned a corner at Triple-A and Max Moroff’s power surge can translate to the Major Leagues. If these things happen, it would be a great assist to a struggling Pirate bench. If not, they will probably return to Triple-A sooner rather than later as that door continues to be a rotating one.