5 older free agents the Pirates should sign this offseason

Baseball's biggest stars are young guns. But while the sport is a young man's game, plenty of players still remain very effective, even as they enter their mid- or late-30s. The Pittsburgh Pirates should be open to adding any free agent who can make an effective impact this offseason, even if they are getting older.

There are a handful of free agents on the market the Pirates should seriously consider pursuing, but these five fall into the oft-overlooked "age-35 season or older" category approaching the 2025 campaign.

5 older free agents the Pittsburgh Pirates should sign this offseason

Kirby Yates

Kirby Yates was already a late-bloomer, breaking out in his age-31 season in 2018, but he became one of the best relief pitchers in baseball between '18 and '19 with the San Diego Padres. Yates then missed a large chunk of time across the next three years, only managing to toss 11.1 innings from '20-'22.

Yates pitched over 60 innings once again in 2023 with mediocre numbers. Although he had a decent ERA (3.28) and K% (31.5%), he struggled with free passes with a 14.6% walk rate, and allowed a high degree of homers and contact quality, clocking in with a 1.34 HR/9 rate and 10.6% barrel rate. The Texas Rangers still decided to give Yates a shot, which ended up being a huge bargain for the 2023 World Series winners.

Yates owned a 1.17 ERA, 2.50 FIP, and 0.83 WHIP across 61.2 innings in 2024. He improved his K% to 35.9% and his walk rate to 11.8%, but more importantly, he induced a lot better contact. Yates' opponent exit velocity was just 87.5 MPH, among the 81st percentile of hurlers, and his barrel rate was elite at 4.1%, which sat in the 95th percentile.

Now, Yates did benefit from a .211 batting average on balls in play, but nearly every metric says he was still a great pitcher, even with some good batted-ball luck. Yates had a 3.10 xFIP, 2,85 SIERA and was in the 100th percentile of both xERA (1.81), xBA (.145), and xwOBA (.211). It is also the second time he has put up a sub-2.00 ERA in his career.

MLB Trade Rumors estimates Yates will earn a one-year contract worth $14 million. That's similar to what the Pirates handed Aroldis Chapman last year, who is also of similar age. Chapman was in his age-36 campaign this past year, while Yates is heading into his age-38 season. This is the kind of high-leverage arm that would significantly improve the Pirates' bullpen.

Tomoyuki Sugano

Roki Sasaki is the big name coming over from Japan this winter, and you can't entirely rule out the possibility of the Pirates signing the flamethrower. Another noteworthy name from Japan, Tomoyuki Sugano, will also make the jump to MLB. Sugano was originally posted in 2020 after winning his second MVP, but ultimately did not sign. He'll make another attempt this winter to find a home in the United States after coming off another strong season.

Sugano pitched to a 1.67 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 6.94 K:BB ratio throughout 156.2 innings last season. The veteran right-hander has exemplary command and walked 2.6% of his opponents in 2024. Sugano's 18.3% strikeout rate may not look great on paper, but was about league average in the Japan Central League. Sugano also was great at limiting home runs with an 0.35 HR/9 rate.

Even in an ultra-pitcher-friendly league where the average ERA is under 3.00, Sugano still stood out among his fellow pitchers. Sugano had the second-best ERA, WHIP, and K:BB ratio among pitchers with at least 100 IP. He was also the only starting pitcher in the league with a BB/9 ratio under 1.00.

According to Sports Info Solutions, Sugano relies on a wide variety of pitches. The right-hander averages out in the low 90s with his four-seam fastball and two-seamer. His primary breaking pitch is a low-80s slider, but according to ESPN, he also tosses an upper-80s cutter. Sugano's primary offspeed offering is a splitter, and he also dials up an upper-70s curveball. With a sub-3% walk rate and BB/9 under 1.00, it shouldn't have to be said, but Sugano has outstanding command. Career-wise, Sugano's walk rate is just 4.7%.

MLB Trade Rumors has Sugano making $12 million on a one-year deal. 2025 will be his age-35 campaign. Sugano may not have the potent stuff of fellow countryman Roki Sasaki, but his numbers would not have looked out of place on the back of a Greg Maddux baseball card. Sugano could slot right into the Pirates' starting rotation and would let them be more flexible with pitching depth in trade talks this offseason.

(Note that, unlike Sasaki, Sugano is old enough with enough service time that he is allowed to sign a Major League deal.)

Andrew Kittredge

Andrew Kittredge is another older reliever the Pirates should set their sights on. The division rival St. Louis Cardinals acquired Kittredge last offseason from the Tampa Bay Rays. Although the right-hander was a former All-Star, Kittredge missed a good portion of 2022 and 2023, but he rebounded in a big way in 2024.

Kittredge pitched over 70 innings, notching 70.2 frames while working to a 2.80 ERA, 3.96 FIP, and 1.13 WHIP. He had an above-average 23.3% strikeout rate, along with a quality 7% walk rate. Kittredge was prone to the home run occasionally, with a HR/9 of 1.27. Underlying numbers also suggest Kittredge is a solid pitcher with a 3.64 xFIP and 3.50 SIERA.

Kittredge's stuff plays at a high level, and he earned a 116 Stuff+ rating last season. However, a big positive from his campaign was his ability to work effectively in higher leverage. He recorded 37 holds, which was the second-most in baseball. Kittredge's leverage index was 1.72, which was the 25th best among relievers this season with at least 50 innings pitched out of the pen. 

But he was one of the few set-up men with that high of a leverage index. He, along with Hunter Harvey, David Robertson, Yennier Cano, and Ryan Pressley, had a leverage index of 1.70 or greater while recording fewer than 10 saves. Despite his high hold total, he only ended up closing out a single game this year.

MLB Trade Rumors sees Kittredge making $14 million over two seasons for an AAV of $7 million. Next year will be his age-35 campaign, making him just old enough to appear on this list. Not only would the Pirates be adding a decent and affordable set-up man to their bullpen by signing Kittredge, but they'd also be taking one away from the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Andrew Chafin

The Pirates have very little lefty pitching depth in their bullpen. Joey Wentz currently projects to be their only lefty bullpen arm. Luckily, one of the more underrated lefty relievers in the game recently became a free agent in Andrew Chafin. Chafin's season had some mixed numbers, but he has consistently been a decent reliever throughout his career.

Chafin opened the season with the Detroit Tigers, where he had a strong 3.16 ERA, 2.54 FIP, and 1.38 WHIP in his first 37 innings. Chafin's walk rate was just a hair under 10% at 9.9%, but he struck out a whopping 30.9% of opponents. He was also great at limiting homers, posting an 0.49 HR/9 and 6.3% barrel rate.

Chafin was then shipped to the Texas Rangers at the trade deadline, but his numbers took a sharp decline, as he put up a 4.19 ERA, 5.44 FIP, and 1.66 WHIP in 19.1 innings. Chafin's peripherals also looked much worse. His K% was 23.8%, while his walk rate clocked in at a horrendous 17.9%. Chafin became very home run prone with a 1.40 HR/9 rate. His only silver lining was his barrel rate, which remained constant at 6.1%.

Chafin will be in his age-35 campaign next season. The long-time Arizona Diamondbacks southpaw still recorded a dozen holds this past season, and is no stranger to working in higher leverage. Chafin should be affordable and is definitely someone who would improve the Pirates' bullpen, especially given he is a lefty, something the Pirates do not possess.