Pirates may have overpaid in trade with Guardians after diving deeper into details

The Pittsburgh Pirates made a surprising splash late Tuesday at Winter Meetings, picking up slugging infielder Spencer Horwitz from the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for a trio of arms in right-hander Luis Ortiz and pitching prospects Michael Kennedy and Josh Hartle.

On the surface, it makes sense. The cost-conscious Pirates have a hole at first base, and Horwitz has six years of team control remaining. They also have plenty of pitching depth, and Cleveland – who had gotten Horwitz in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays earlier in the day – needed arms. It feels like a win-win situation.

But once the initial shock of the Pirates actually doing something, anything, to improve their roster at Winter Meetings wears off, a closer examination of the trade reveals that Pittsburgh may have actually been the loser in this deal.

Pirates may have overpaid in trade with Guardians after diving deeper into details

To be clear, Horwitz isn't a bad pickup for the Pirates. While he split time between first and second base in Toronto, he is primarily a first baseman, and that's where Pittsburgh needs the help. Plus, it's good to know that he can always slide over to second, should the need arise.

In a relatively small sample size of 425 career plate appearances, Horwitz has a .264/.355/.428 slash line with 13 home runs. The on-base percentage in particular should be appealing to the Pirates, who ranked 27th in team OBP last season. In fact, Horwitz's .355 OBP would have led the 2024 Pirates (Bryan Reynolds' was .344).

But the Pirates need power hitters, which Horwitz is not. Even with his limited showing at the Major League level, his 42 homers in 1,988 Minor League plate appearances suggest that he isn't exactly known for putting balls over the fence.

In exchange for Horwitz, the Pirates gave up a promising, young major league arm in Ortiz. The 25-year-old went 7-6 with a 3.32 ERA in 15 starts and 22 relief appearances in 2024 after starting in the bullpen and eventually earning a back-of-the-rotation spot. He will likely hold such a spot again in Cleveland, where he'll have a shot at competing for an American League Central title.

Given Pittsburgh's organizational pitching depth, Ortiz was an expendable asset for a Pirates team looking to improve in other areas of the roster. But the fact that Pittsburgh included two additional pitching prospects in Kennedy and Hartle in a trade for a relatively unproven major league asset appears to tip this trade in Cleveland's favor.

Give general manager Ben Cherington credit for finally being willing to part with some pitching depth after years of stockpiling it in order to prove on offense. But based on the return, at least initially, it appears as though he may have parted with too much of it.

More Pirates content from Rum Bunter