Bleacher Report's 'realistic' mock trade with Pirates and Red Sox is quite the opposite

One of the Pirates' biggest needs entering the offseason was first base, but at the Winter Meetings, they addressed that by acquiring Spencer Horwitz from Toronto. Even after acquiring a left-handed first baseman, Bleacher Report still believes they should add another left-handed bat at the same position.

Maybe such a redundant move would make sense if the Pirates needed a designated hitter, but that was already addressed with fan favorite Andrew McCutchen.

In any case, Bleacher Report pitched the Pirates on sending Jared Jones over for Triston Casas and David Hamilton. Sending a young, rising pitcher in Jones for another controllable first baseman and a defensive middle infielder does not make any sense for Pittsburgh.

The issue with B/R's proposal is not just that the Pirates' target goes against their "realistic" claim, but the trade in general just does not make sense for the current state of the Pirates organization, even if it were realistic.

Bleacher Report's mock trade of Triston Casas and David Hamilton for Jared Jones is not realistic for the Pirates.

Trading Jones would be a massive mistake for the Pirates; he is a player that they need in order to push for a playoff spot in the future. He is also a player that they should consider extending, as he pairs with Paul Skenes very well as a great one-two punch at their young age.

Additionally, the Pirates should have a lot of trust in Horwitz moving forward. Although he was an old rookie a season ago, he still would have been a very productive upgrade in Pittsburgh's lineup during the 2024 season. Therefore, acquring another one in Casas just would not improve the team.

The speedy Hamilton was also a part of the Pirates' proposed return for Jones. He is a defense-first middle infielder with not a lot of offensive upside, though he did manage to steal 33 bases in 294 at-bats last season. He was the 29th-ranked prospect in Boston's organization in 2023, and has not performed better than Nick Gonzales in a similar amount of time.

That package of Casas and Hamilton doesn't fill the Pirates' needs, and feels too light for Jones. The right-hander has a ton of upside and displayed a lot of great signs of the future in 2024. The Pirates would be foolish to trade him, but especially for a package as bizarre as this one.