Pittsburgh Pirates: Two Jose Quintana Trades to the AL

The Trade Deadline is just a few weeks away.  The Pittsburgh Pirates have one of the best rotation pieces that likely is on the trade block.

When the Pittsburgh Pirates signed Jose Quintana this past offseason, there were three reasons as to why.  First, for him to effectively cover innings across the 2022 season.  Also, the team was set to have a very young pitching staff, adding a veteran like Quintana can be invaluable.  The third was to hope he would regain some of his form and be worth something in a trade.

Well, Quintana checked all of those boxes for the Pittsburgh Pirates. The left-handed starter has had his best season in years.  His current ERA is 3.59 which is obviously very good.  However, this is the lowest ERA he has had since 2016, which is the last time his earned run average was below 4.  He is also eating up innings, averaging over 5 innings pitched a start, which is exactly what teams want from their starters nowadays.

The last note on Quintana is that he is on an expiring contract, so he would be strictly a rental for any team acquiring his talents.  The good news is that his contract was only worth $2,000,000 which makes him very affordable for any teams who are not adding payroll or might be up against the Luxury Tax line.

Add this all together and the Pittsburgh Pirates have one of the top trade chips for this year’s trade deadline.  There is the idea about giving the left-hander an extension, but at 33 years old and him having a renaissance season, there is too much risk in the extension.  So here are a few teams and trade ideas for the veteran pitcher:

The AL Central leaders have had trouble with their starting rotation this year.  Their team ERA is middle of the road at 3.79 which is just outside the top 10 in Major League Baseball.  They also have had trouble keeping their staff healthy with a number of their starters spending time on the IL. Also, the smaller market Twins will have no issue with taking on Quintana’s contract.

For the Pittsburgh Pirates, they gain a couple of much-needed pitching prospects.  Simeon Woods Richardson has been a popular prospect name over the years.  He was originally in the New York Mets organization before being dealt to Toronto for Marcus Stroman.  The Jays then flipped him as part of the package sent to the Twins for Jose Berrios.

The 6’3” right-handed pitcher has a solid 3-pitch mix which gives him the upside to be an effective starter.  He has a fastball that sits in the 91-94 range while he has plus changeup and curveball.  His fourth pitch, which is his slider, remains a work in progress but shows flashes of being a putaway pitch. The former Top 100 prospect has not performed particularly well since joining the Twins organization so they may be willing to move on from him.

Sean Mooney being the second piece is perfect for the Pittsburgh Pirates.  While their starting staff needs help, their bullpen could use some change as well.  Mooney looks to have the makeup of a really good future bullpen arm.  He has a fastball that sits 92-95.  His other offerings include a changeup and a slider, with both being considered effective.