If the Marlins continue to sell, the Pirates should target these two players

The Miami Marlins were one of the worst teams in baseball during the 2024 season. That pushed them to sell at the MLB Trade Deadline, including a deal with the Pirates that did not work out for Pittsburgh at all. Miami is not done yet in their quest to rebuild their team, as they have traded Jake Burger and Jesús Luzardo this offseason.

Since they expect to not be in contention in 2025, the Marlins could consider selling even more of their team for prospects, and that could work out for the Pirates. Two areas of need on Pittsburgh's roster are a corner outfield spot and left-handed relievers. With that in mind, the Marlins could help solve some Pittsburgh problems.

These two Marlins players should be targetted by the Pirates to fill holes on roster.

To solve the glaring hole in right field, the Pirates should target Jesús Sánchez, an underrated left-handed bat with great exit velocity and bat speed. Getting another hitter with pop is just with this lineup is missing. Pittsburgh had just five guys with double-digit home runs last season, so adding Sanchez, who hit 18 last season, would positively impact the offense.

Along with his 18 home runs, Sanchez belted 25 doubles and a triple to make a slugging percentage of .417. That paired with an on-base percentage of .313 to create an OPS of .731. Additionally, he put together a wRC+ of 100, which is the league average, and struck out at a below-average rate of 26.1%.

His statcast metrics are also impressive, bringing together a hard-hit rate of 51.3%, an average exit velocity of 92.5 miles per hour (MPH), and a top bat speed of 75.2 MPH. Those three numbers all ranked within the top 10% of the league. On top of that, his expected slugging percentage was signficantly higher than his actual mark at .468. That is a huge .051 difference.

He is average at best in the field, but nonetheless, is a bat the Pirates would want in their lineup. He is not great against lefties, but the Pirates have platoon options on their roster that they can pair with him. Sánchez will not be a free agent until after the 2027 season, so this appears to be a perfect fit.

Another target from the Marlins is Andrew Nardi, a left-handed reliever who generates a lot of swings and misses, but has struggled to put it all together in reality. His Statcast metrics are phenomenal, while his actual numbers are not great.

Last season, Nardi posted an earned run average (ERA) of 5.07, while his expected ERA was dramatically lower at 2.75. Similarly, opponents batted .230 against him, but his expected opponent average was just .190. He also put together a WHIP of 1.25 and a FIP of 3.33.

Nardi's stuff is very great too, as he generates a strikeout percentage and chase rate of 33.3%, along with a whiff rate of 31.1%. He limited opposing batters to an average exit velocity of 88.2 MPH and a hard-hit rate of just 34.7%. Each of these marks are significantly above average.

Both of these players would be very productive additions to the Pirates roster. If they decided to make a trade for both, the Pirates may need to give up a top prospect like Braxton Ashcraft, who is likely to be dealt this offseason, and possibly more coveted names. Either way, Pittsburgh should try to acquire at least one of these two players from Miami.