3 underrated players Pirates are deeply missing (who will return this season)

The Pittsburgh Pirates aren’t off to a good start to their 2025 season, and that’s putting it nicely. But they’ve had their fair share of injuries to open the season. Injuries in spring training, players still recovering from surgeries, and other setbacks have put a sizable dent in the Pirates’ roster. The most notable this year have been Jared Jones (elbow inflammation) and Nick Gonzales (displaced ankle fracture), two 2020 draft picks who showed a ton of promise in their 2024 rookie seasons.

Jones and Gonzales will hopefully be back sooner rather than later, but they’re not the only players the Pirates are deeply missing right now. These three more underrated players will return sometime this year, and will be a massive help for the Pirates in 2025.

3 dearly missed Pirates players we wish we had active in April 2025

3. Spencer Horwitz

The Pirates acquired Spencer Horwitz this offseason with the hope he could be a bat they could rely on for years to come. He could still be that, but he’s yet to play in a game after undergoing wrist surgery before the start of spring training. The Pirates could really use his offense right now, especially at first base.

Horwitz had a quality rookie season at the dish, slashing .265/.357/.433 in 381 plate appearances. He hit for about league-average power with 12 home runs, a .168 isolated slugging percentage, and an 8.1% barrel rate. Notably, he also drew a fair amount of walks with an 11% BB% and only struck out 18.4% of the time. All told, he had a .344 wOBA and 128 wRC+.

Horwitz was grossly underrated in 2024. Only 13 batters had a sub-20% strikeout rate, walked at least 10% of the time, and had an above-average ISO in at least 350 plate appearances; he was among that elite class. He also ranked top three among all rookies in wOBA, OPS, wRC+, and OBP, the fourth of which he led all rookies in who had at least 350 trips to the dish. He could get even better in 2025, given he had a slightly above-average 106 wRC+ in Rogers Centre, but a 147 wRC+ everywhere else. PNC Park is built significantly better for a hitter like Horwitz as well.

Horwitz split his season between second base and first base for the Blue Jays in 2024. He graded out as a below-average defender at the keystone with -5 defensive runs saved, zero outs above average, and -5.2 UZR/150 in 288 innings. On the other hand, he was an average to slightly above-average glove at first base, with -1 DRS, but +1 OAA and a +5.2 UZR/150.

Luckily, Horwitz has the earliest timeline for any of these players. He began base running drills last week, and will likely start swinging the bat soon. The Pirates desperately need his bat in the lineup. Given how well he hit last year, he’d be a huge upgrade, both offensively and defensively, over the patchwork they’ve been rolling out at first base to open 2025.