Selling Point: Pittsburgh Pirates Who Could Get Traded At The Deadline

With the deficit growing between the Pittsburgh Pirates and a playoff spot, all signs point towards the front office selling at this year’s trade deadline.

The idea of a team selling at the trade deadline can be a difficult pill to swallow for any fan base. And for a franchise, the decision to wave the white flag with 60 games left to play being nine games back in the division and a Wild Card spot is never easy.

However, with this year being the first year in which the July 31st trade deadline is now the only trade deadline, with the MLB getting rid of the August 31st waiver deadline, the Pirates front office is forced to make a choice within the next week: to sell, buy, or stand pat on the trade market.

At the All-Star Break, the Pirates were in position to potentially add a couple pieces that could at least marginally help push this team closer to a playoff spot. However, after dropping 11 out of 14 since the Mid-Summer Classic, the writing on the wall suggests that this team isn’t ready to compete, not without some major reinforcements.

Sure, going out and adding players like Marcus Stroman, Madison Bumgarner or Will Smith could exponentially improve this team. But since general manager Neal Huntington made a big splash with the last minute Chris Archer trade last year, it’s highly unlikely that he takes another big risk like that and further deplete the minor league system, especially with the team on a cold streak and unlikely to climb back into the playoff race.

With all of that being said, the most likely course of action is to sell at the deadline in some capacity. What is that capacity? Who knows. It depends how strong the front office feels about the core of this team. Let’s evaluate the likelihood of potential trade pieces being traded prior to the deadline.