Rum Bunter
FanSided

Pittsburgh Pirates: Locks to be Removed From the 40-Man Roster

By Marty Leap

NEW YORK, NY - JULY 9: Jared Oliva #14 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the dugout before taking on the New York Mets at Citi Field on July 9, 2021 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JULY 9: Jared Oliva #14 of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the dugout before taking on the New York Mets at Citi Field on July 9, 2021 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Adam Hunger/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 5
Next
PITTSBURGH, PA – OCTOBER 03: Cody Ponce #44 of the Pittsburgh Pirates steps off the mound as Joey Votto #19 of the Cincinnati Reds rounds the bases after hitting a three run home run in the fifth inning during the game at PNC Park on October 3, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA – OCTOBER 03: Cody Ponce #44 of the Pittsburgh Pirates steps off the mound as Joey Votto #19 of the Cincinnati Reds rounds the bases after hitting a three run home run in the fifth inning during the game at PNC Park on October 3, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /

Right-handed pitcher Cody Ponce

Cody Ponce came to the Pittsburgh Pirates from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Jordan Lyles at the 2019 trade deadline. Since then Lyles has made 20 MLB appearances with the Pirates, with 5 of them being starts.

In these 20 outings Ponce has pitched 55.1 innings, posting a 5.86 ERA and a FIP of 5.47. Ponce has walked 6.9% of batters faced, struck out 19.6% and has allowed home runs at a woeful 2.11 HR/9 rate.

Ponce has struggled throughout his MLB career. He also does not possess any plus level pitches, or any tools that would appear to set him up for long-term success in the Major Leagues. Due to this, Ponce would appear to be an odd man out with the upcoming 40-man roster purge.

Next. Why Each Team Connected to Bryan Reynolds Can't Afford the Price. dark

Ponce will turn 28-years-old in April and is no longer a young prospect. Often times the past two seasons it has appeared that the Pirates were using Ponce to eat innings and lessen the workload of younger pitchers more than anything else. If that is all they view Ponce as, then pitchers like like that can be found easily.

Home/Pirates News