Pittsburgh Pirates: What’s Next at Second Base

After trading Kevin Newman last week, what could be the next move for the Pittsburgh Pirates at second base?

Entering the offseason the expectation was that Kevin Newman would not be back with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023. Regardless if it came due to a trade or being non-tendered, few people expected Newman to still be with the team when they report to Bradenton in February.

Well, last Friday, Newman was indeed tendered a contract by the Pittsburgh Pirates. However, just a few hours later he was traded in a rarer inner-division trade when he was sent to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for reliever Dauri Moreta who the Pirates will now look to help harness his plus stuff and turn a corner.

As we said above, Newman being traded came as no surprise. The former first-round pick has struggled defensively in his career at both shortstop and second base, owning a negative Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average at both positions, largely due to his limited range. Outside of his rookie campaign in 2019, which looks like a complete outlier when comparing his minor league numbers and the rest of his major league numbers, Newman has also been a very poor hitter in his career.

Due to all of this, Newman lost his shortstop job to Oneil Cruz. Newman then started to play more second base, but now that Newman is no longer a Pirate what will with the team look to do at second base for 2023?