Pittsburgh Pirates: Ranking the Team’s Best Trade Chips

After the July 30 MLB trade deadline passes the Pittsburgh Pirates roster will likely look much different. Who are the team’s best trade chips as the deadline approaches?

The 2021 MLB trade deadline is just slightly over a month away. Leading up to the July 30 trade deadline, the Pittsburgh Pirates will likely be one of the busiest teams in all of baseball. This is due to the Pirates being out of contention and having multiple quality trade chips.

As the trade deadline approaches there are few players on the Pirate roster who will be off limits in trade talks. Having a large contingency of players available will help general manager Ben Cherington as he continues to reload the Pirate farm system.

This list will not includes players who it would make no sense for the Pittsburgh Pirates to trade, but instead build around. This includes the likes of Ke’Bryan Hayes, Bryan Reynolds, JT Brubaker and David Bednar. All four of these players would carry a ton of value on the trade market, but the Pirates doing anything other than making these four players part of their core moving forward would be silly. Also, the odds of the Pittsburgh Pirates trading any of these players are about zero. Due to this, none of them cracked the list.

Number 5 – catcher Jacob Stallings

The thought of the Pittsburgh Pirates exploring a Jacob Stallings trade is likely an unpopular one with many Pirate fans. After all, Stallings has become one of the more underrated and under-appreciated players in baseball. While also consistently coming through in the clutch for the Pirates.

Stallings is one of the best defensive catchers in all of baseball, leading MLB catchers in Defensive Runs Saved (+10) entering play on Saturday. He is also a plus pitch framer and has thrown out attempted base runners at an above average rate (28%).

Offensively, Stallings has been slightly below league average. On the season he his hitting for a .226/.311/.387 slash line to go with a wRC+ of 96. While this wRC+ puts Stallings 4% below the league average of 100, it is still solid for a catcher.

All of this has led to Stallings being worth a 1.2 fWAR through the first three months of the season. This puts Stallings on pace to be close to being a 3.0 fWAR player this season which would put him among the best, most valuable catchers in baseball.

The biggest factor in the potential trade value Stallings could have is that he is controlled through the 2024 season. While 2024 is likely to be among the early seasons of the next Pirate window of contention, top catching prospect Endy Rodriguez should be MLB ready by then. Additionally, moving Stallings could help the team add young players/prospects who could help speed up that next window of contention.

Teams are always looking for catching help. A catcher that carries 3 and a half year of team control, while being one of the best defensive catchers in the game and a close to league average hitter could carry a ton of trade value. This is why Stallings is among the most valuable trade chips the Pirates have.

Number 4 – starting pitcher Tyler Anderson

This past offseason the Pittsburgh Pirates signed veteran left-handed starting pitcher Tyler Anderson to a one-year contract. When Anderson was signed it appeared he could become a strong trade chip for the Pirates. His performance thus far this season has only solidified this.

Overall, Anderson owns a 4.82 ERA and a 4.48 FIP He’s walked 6.3% of batters faced, struck out 20.5% and has allowed home runs at a 1.57 HR/9 rate. These results have come across 80.1 innings pitched in 14 starts.

On the season Anderson has had essentially 2 poor innings. The 1st inning of a start against the Washington Nationals and the 4th inning of a start against the Atlanta Braves saw Anderson allow a combined 9 earned runs. If you wake away these 2 innings his ERA on the season drops to 3.92.

Anderson is a left-handed veteran who can give a team innings and, for the most part, has pitched well this season. Anderson will also come at a very cheap financial commitment from his new team. All of this will lead to him generating plenty of trade interest in the next month.

Number 3 – relief pitcher Richard Rodríguez

There will be few relievers on the market more coveted this trade season than Richard Rodríguez. This season Rodríguez has emerged as the closer for the Pittsburgh Pirates. While being a ‘closer’ is overrated, it is something that teams will value on the trade market due to Rodríguez’s experience pitching in high-leverage situations.

Rodríguez has pitched 30.1 innings in 29 outings this season. The righty owns a 1.78 ERA, 2.09 FIP and a pristine 2.4% walk rate. While his 24.5% strikeout rate is the second lowest of his four-year Pirate career, it is still better than league average.

So far this season Rodríguez has also done a good job of overcoming the biggest bugaboo he has had in his career – the long ball. Rodríguez has allowed just 1 home run this season, coming out to a home run rate of 0.30 HR/9. This is, by far, the lowest home run rate of his career. The past two seasons he has had a home run rate of 1.16 HR/9 and 1.93 HR/9. His previous career low was a 0.65 HR/9 in 2018.

It would be a major surprise if the Pittsburgh Pirates do not trade Rodríguez between now and the July 30 trade deadline. He can pitch in high leverage situations for a contender and has a multi-year track record of pitching well in this role. Also, as Robert Murray discussed on Rum Bunter Radio, the Pirates came very close to trading Rodríguez to the San Diego Padres in the offseason.

Number two – relief pitcher Chris Stratton

When people think of Pirate relievers on the trade market most will immediately think of Rodríguez and for good reason. After all, as we covered above, Rich Rod is having an excellent season for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

That said, the Pirate reliever who may carry the most trade value is righty Chris Stratton who is under team control through 2023. Like Rodríguez, Stratton can pitch in high-leverage situations, and successfully, out of any team’s bullpen.

One of the big differences between the two, however, is Stratton’s ability to pitch multiple innings if asked to do so. Additionally, Stratton also has a four-pitch mix, as opposed to Rodríguez who throws almost exclusively fastballs.

Stratton’s stuff is also better than Rodríguez as he possesses some of the best spin rates in all of baseball. Stratton also does a much better job limiting quality contact allowing a 36.2% hard-hit rate to Rich Rod’s 43.8%. His exit velocity (88.3 MPH vs 91.5 MPH) is better as well.

After pitching a scoreless inning in Saturday’s loss Stratton owns a 2.59 ERA this season. Stratton has walked 8.3% of batters faced, struck out 21.4% and has allowed just 4 home runs. Stratton has also been one of the best relievers in the NL since the start of May, posting a 0.96 ERA since May 1.