Nick Yorke's toolsy start proves Pirates can't afford to let veteran steal his roster spot

When the Pirates brought back Adam Frazier, many fans thought, "What is Ben Cherington thinking?" Given the emergence of Nick Yorke, there really was not a need to bring in another backup middle infielder. One could make the case for a left-handed bat, sure, but Frazier's 63 wRC+ from 2024 really does not move the needle.

Frazier could work out, of course. His Statcast metrics have remained consistent from his 2021 All-Star season. If he does work out positively, great, but still, he is blocking off Yorke, a very underrated prospect heading into 2025. In fact, the Pirates are working on ways to find him into the lineup with experiments at first base, a puzzling quick fix that shouldn't be happening.

Yorke has continued to prove his worth this spring though with some impressive tools displayed. He may not have gotten any hits in his first few appearances, but he is continuing to smoke the ball, including a 109.4 and 108.6 mph exit velocities in Tuesday's game against the Braves. Sure, they were outs, but the fact that he is consistently hitting the ball hard is a really good sign. Yorke brings some very strong metrics to the table, which show how great he really can be with his bat.

Nick Yorke is showing some very good signs for the Pirates, which makes this Adam Frazier addition hurt even more.

Yorke is able to play multiple positions across the field, but with how the roster is constructed, he may have to start the year in Triple-A. Frazier will undoubtedly make the roster given his major league contract, Jared Triolo will make it as an infield utility guy, the backup catching spot is up for grabs, and that leaves just one more spot. Josh Palacios is out of minor league options, so he is either to be DFA'd or in Pittsburgh to start the year. Still, the odds seem very unlikely at this point that Yorke will fit.

With the offensive struggles this team faces, keeping a guy down who really can breakout in 2025 and make a huge contribution to the team does not make a whole lot of sense. Yet, the roster constraints the Pirates have put in place created this problem. Adding Frazier is truly blocking Yorke off from the big leagues, and that may hurt the Pirates early in the regular season.