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Pirates immediately validated by decision to trade Joe La Sorsa to Red Sox

Back to Triple-A he goes!
Feb 18, 2026; Bradenton, FL, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Joe La Sorsa (54) poses for a photo during media day at Pirate City. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Feb 18, 2026; Bradenton, FL, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Joe La Sorsa (54) poses for a photo during media day at Pirate City. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Even when a team trades a player that has been struggling, there is a worry that suddenly that player will have a total turnaround and make his original team regret dealing him. Fortunately for the Pirates, their decision to trade Joe La Sorsa from a beleaguered bullpen to the Red Sox for cash seems to conclusively be a win.

La Sorsa had not made an appearance with the big-league club in Pittsburgh when he found himself packing his bags for Boston earlier this month. The lefty had worked a 3.46 ERA with Triple-A Indianapolis in 22 appearances. This increased his value enough to warrant a trade to Boston. With the Red Sox, La Sorsa found his way onto the roster and into the volatile rivalry with the Yankees.

La Sorsa, a WBC standout for Team Italy, started his Boston career inauspiciously. On Sunday, he entered to relieve Justin Slaten with runners on first and second. He faced Jazz Chisholm, who had struck out three times so far in the game. Chisholm borrowed Aaron Judge’s bat and did what Judge usually does: hit a home run.

La Sorsa responded by striking out Jose Caballero to end the inning and La Sorsa’s outing. On Monday, La Sorsa found himself back at Triple-A.

Pirates were right to trade Joe La Sorsa amid their own bullpen struggles

The trades of La Sorsa and fellow reliever Justin Lawrence come at an odd time for the Pirates. Gregory Soto and Evan Sisk are having strong seasons, but the bullpen as a whole has underperformed. Things came to a head when Carmen Mlodzinski balked at being removed from the starting rotation and placed in the bullpen. 

So it’s been a tough couple weeks for the Pirates’ relievers and for the wheelers and dealers in charge of constructing a roster. There are assurances that the team is looking for an upgrade (and the recent signing of Yunior Marte can’t possibly be it).

For now, the only comfort that Pirates fans can find is the schadenfreude of seeing a former player give up a dinger in his first outing for his new team. It looks like Pittsburgh made the right move this time.

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