Pittsburgh Pirates Will They Stay or Will They Go – 2020 Trade Deadline

PITTSBURGH, PA - AUGUST 22: Adam Frazier #26 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in action during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park on August 22, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - AUGUST 22: Adam Frazier #26 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in action during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park on August 22, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
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CINCINNATI, OHIO – AUGUST 13: Keone Kela #35 of the Pittsburgh Pirates throws a pitch in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on August 13, 2020 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OHIO – AUGUST 13: Keone Kela #35 of the Pittsburgh Pirates throws a pitch in the ninth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on August 13, 2020 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

Will they stay or will they go? One last preview and prediction of the 2020 MLB trade deadline for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

At 4:00 PM EST on Monday afternoon, the MLB trade deadline will arrive. Typically, the trade deadline is on July 31st. However, due to the delay to the start of the season due to the coronaviurs pandemic this year’s trade deadline is scheduled for August 31st. Entering deadline day the question is – how active will the Pittsburgh Pirates be?

Entering the trade deadline, the Pittsburgh Pirates, as we have covered here on the site, are expected to be one of the more active teams in baseball. In fact, they have already started to sell this past Friday when they traded Jarrod Dyson to the Chicago White Sox.

Even with Dyson gone, the team still has plenty of potential trade chips. This includes both pitchers and position players. Being one of the few true sellers in all of MLB, and the only true seller in the National League, the market will likely favor the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday.

So, now, we will take a look at players from the Pittsburgh Pirates who could potentially be traded. We will do this while answering the simple question – will they stay or will they go?

CHICAGO – AUGUST 26: Josh Bell #55 of the Pittsburgh Pirates bats against the Chicago White Sox on August 26, 2020 at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Ron Vesely/Getty Images)
CHICAGO – AUGUST 26: Josh Bell #55 of the Pittsburgh Pirates bats against the Chicago White Sox on August 26, 2020 at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Ron Vesely/Getty Images) /

Pirate Hitters

Leading up to the deadline, in terms of Pirate hitters, Dyson appeared to be a no brainer to be traded. This is due to Dyson being a pending free agent. As we have discussed, this trade has happened. Other than Dyson, the next most likely Pirate hitter to be traded appears to be Adam Frazier.

Throughout the off-season Frazier garnered attention on the trade market. His name has been a widely discussed one in recent weeks, too. Despite his slow start to the season, Frazier not being traded today would be a surprise.

Other than Frazier, the team could listen to offers for slugging 1B/DH Josh Bell. However, that appears to be a trade that is more likely to happen in the off-season. Left fielder Bryan Reynolds has been discussed with other teams, but the Pittsburgh Pirates would have to be blown away to move Reynolds.

Other than these three, it is difficult to envision any Pirate hitters garnering much attention at the trade deadline. Although, attempting to move Gregory Polanco and the money left on his contract should not be ruled out, either.

Will they stay or will they go?

Adam Frazier – GO

Josh Bell – STAY

Bryan Reynolds – STAY

Gregory Polanco – STAY

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – AUGUST 28: Derek Holland #42 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the second inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on August 28, 2020 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The day honoring Jackie Robinson, traditionally held on April 15, was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – AUGUST 28: Derek Holland #42 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the second inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on August 28, 2020 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All players are wearing #42 in honor of Jackie Robinson Day. The day honoring Jackie Robinson, traditionally held on April 15, was rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

Pirate Pitchers

This is where things get interesting.

Starting pitcher Derek Holland is all but a lock to be traded. The free agent to be has struggled this season (7.62 ERA, 10.26 DRA), but has a career high strikeout rate. Additionally, left-handed hitters have struggled against him and he could be a quality left-handed reliever with the ability to start if need be for a contender.

Fellow starters Trevor Williams (5.34 ERA, 5.64 DRA) and Chad Kuhl (2.52 ERA, 4.69 DRA) have both been discussed in trade talks. Between these two, Williams would appear to be the more likely to be moved. Kuhl appears to be settling in to being a quality number two or three type starting pitcher, and that is something the Pittsburgh Pirates will not want to part with right now.

Starting pitcher Joe Musgrove is currently on the injured list, but this has not quieted trade rumors about the Pirate righty. It appears that at least one team is interested in Musgrove. Due to his injury, it would likely behoove the Pirates to wait until the off-season to shop Musgrove more aggressively.

Another team that has been discussed is reliever Richard Rodriguez. The team’s current closer, has 3 saves in 4 opportunities this season to go with a career best 32.7% strikeout rate and 5.5% walk rate. While his 4.61 ERA is not the prettiest, his 3.74 DRA paints a better picture. Due to years of control, Rodriguez could quietly be one of the most sought after bullpen arms on Monday.

If he were healthy, Keone Kela would also be a lock to be traded. However, due to currently being on the IL, the odds of Kela being moved appear to be low.

Ultimately, the belief is general manger Ben Cherington will look to be aggressive on Monday. This leads to the prediction that two other pitchers will join Holland in being moved. Even if it is not the two we are predicting.

Will they stay or will they go?

Derek Holland – GO

Richard Rodriguez – GO

Trevor Williams – GO

Chad Kuhl – STAY

Joe Musgrove – STAY

Keone Kela – STAY

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