4 Pirates trade rumors fans hope come true, 2 they don't

The Pittsburgh Pirates are expected to be trade deadline buyers for the first time in close to a decade. Ben Cherington's plan, it would seem, has worked — albeit a year or two after he initially intended.

Pittsburgh is above .500 and within striking distance of an NL Wild Card spot. Much of that is thanks to moves Cherington himself made, whether it be signing Ryan O'Hearn or trading for Brandon Lowe. The Pirates rotation is one of the best in baseball, headlined by Paul Skenes, Braxton Ashcraft and Jared Jones.

Their bullpen, however, is abysmal. That's the weak spot, and something Cherington will do his best to improve over the next few weeks.

The time of the baseball season is ripe for rumors. Some of those prove to be true, while others were misleading for a reason. FanSided's Robert Murray projects the Pirates to buy and search for relief help. That's not exactly breaking news to the fanbase, but I tend to believe Murray specifically, who is rarely in the business of baseball gossip.

4 Pirates trade rumors fans hope are true

Pirates to finally be aggressive at the MLB trade deadline

This — and I cannot stress it enough — is the most important rumor for the Pirates 2026 trade deadline. If Cherington makes a poor trade, or one of his acquisitions falls flat on his face, at least the Pirates are in position to buy. And, more importantly, they're actually following through.

This sounds simplistic because it's meant to be. Far too often Pirates fans have been forced to say goodbye to their favorite players due to financial constraints. That shouldn't be the case this season.

Pirates linked to Padres closer Mason Miller

I find it hard to believe the Pirates will trade for Mason Miller, if only because the Padres asking price for his services is so high. Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Padres could want at least two top-100 prospects in return for Miller. For the Pirates, that would mean trading the likes of Seth Hernandez, Edward Florentino and Murf Gray.

Miller is a tremendous player and arguably the best closer in baseball. But the Pirates bullpen also won't be fixed by one player, no matter how productive he is. It's a fun thought, though, as Miller is a Pittsburgh native.

Pirates could add a big bat like Adley Rutschman

The Orioles are in play for an AL Wild Card spot, so this rumor is also a bit too good to be true. But if it were, the Pirates would be a lot better off with Adley Rutschman in their lineup.

Yes, the Pirates have one of the best lineups in MLB already, but Rutschman is a sound defensive catcher with an above-average OPS — something Pittsburgh doesn't currently possess. Endy Rodriguez is fine when healthy, while Henry Davis is one of the worst draft busts in recent memory. Rutschman is a three-time All-Star who still has another year left on his contract, and Jeff Passan linked the Pirates to him just this week.

Pirates won't trade top prospect Seth Hernandez

Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline doesn't think the Pirates will make Seth Hernandez available at the trade deadline. This is undoubtedly the right decision, as Hernandez is a top-5 prospect in baseball by most accounts. FanSided's Eric Cole ranked Hernandez No. 3 on Thursday.

"If you were to argue that Hernandez deserves the top overall spot, we wouldn’t argue with you very hard. The stuff is absolutely elite, and he has been laying waste to the minor leagues this year. He will need to cut the walks down a bit, and it is worth monitoring Hernandez once he starts getting close to 100 innings for the first time. However, this is the best pitching prospect in baseball, and only one other arm is even close," Cole wrote.

Florentino or Gray can be had in a trade for top talent, but Hernandez ought to be off-limits given the tools listed above.

2 Pirates trade rumors fans hope are false

Pirates listening to offers on Oneil Cruz

Why the Pirates would trade Oneil Cruz I do not understand, but that didn't stop Bob Nightengale of USA Today, who suggested the Pirates could do so to free up payroll to use on a relief pitcher.

“They do have outfield depth. Can they trade Oneil Cruz to get some bullpen help? They need bullpen help as much as any contender out there. They can use another starter too. So I think they’re going to listen to offers on Oneil Cruz to see if they get the other pieces," Nightengale told Foul Territory.

Cruz has an .822 OPS on the season, and makes just $3.3 million in 2026. He's also been injured for the last few months, and will be a helpful addition if he's able to come back after the trade deadline. I'm not really sure what Nightengale is getting at here, but it'd be disastrous for Cherington.

Bob Nutting refuses to increase Pirates payroll at the trade deadline

This is the big one. While Bob Nutting has given Ben Cherington permission to add at the MLB trade deadline, that could come with one major caveat. Per Nightengale (so take with a grain of salt), Nutting would much prefer the Pirates make any additions with payroll in mind.

What makes that decision (if true) even more infuriating is that Cherington chose to spend $12 million on Marcell Ozuna this past winter. The Pirates have a 25-36 record with Ozuna in the starting lineup, and now could be stuck with a bad bullpen all season long as a result.

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