Pittsburgh Pirates Deal Austin Davis As Deadline Expires

Up against the trade deadline, the Pittsburgh Pirates pieced together a surprise trade with the Red Sox to add depth.

The Pittsburgh Pirates traded left-handed relief pitcher Austin Davis to the American League East Division leading Boston Red Sox for utility man Michael Chavis. The trade was announced around 30 minutes after the 4:00 PM ET trade deadline passed and came with news of another Pirates trade too.

Davis was with three teams in 2020, one of those being the Pittsburgh Pirates. During his time in Pittsburgh, he appeared in 15 games and went 0-1, and carried a 4.73 ERA with 14 strikeouts over the course of 13.1 innings pitched. The Red Sox have four bullpen injuries and added Hansel Robles from Minnesota along with Austin Davis on the day of the deadline.

The 28-year old lefty has struggled throughout his MLB career. This made the Pittsburgh Pirates being able to net any sort of return for him a bit of a surprise.

Michael Chavis mainly plays first base, but has made starts at second base, in left field, and at third base in his career. Chavis had an eventful rookie campaign in 2019 when he hit 18 home runs and collected 58 RBIs while batting .254/.322/.444 over 95 games. His numbers have declined in the last two seasons, however, and, as a result of that, so has his playing time with the Red Sox.

Thus far in 2021 Chavez  has appeared in 31 games and has hit 2 home runs while collecting 6RBIs. He is currently hitting for a .190/.207/.342 slash line in 82 plate appearances.

Michael Chavis, 25, signed a 1-year/$575,500 in March of this past offseason and is scheduled to be a UDFA in 2026 and has arbitrations through 2025. Chavis should earn an opportunity to gain playing time as a utility man for the Pirates down the stretch this season.