Pirates' overlooked trade candidate could be worth more than his disappointing second half suggests

The idea of trading Spencer Horwitz right now should probably be an unpopular one among Pittsburgh Pirates fans.

The 29-year-old first baseman followed up a strong debut with Pittsburgh in 2025 (118 wRC+) with a mixed-reception encore (98 wRC+). Much of that dip was wrought by a hamstring injury and concussion over the summer, before which he was his usual self (.280/.386/.455) and after which he was one of the worst qualified hitters in baseball (.464 OPS).

That injury-fueled slump has pushed his value to a nadir, which isn't normally the time a team should be trading a player in his prime. Horwitz is arbitration eligible for the first time in 2027, with a projected salary of just $2.5 million. If he's anything like what he was in the first half, that's a bargain rate for someone under team control for four more seasons as a Super Two player.

Then again, those are selling points the Pirates can issue to other teams in need of offense, especially those who don't already have Ryan O'Hearn on the roster as the starting first baseman. If the right offer comes along, it might behoove the Bucs to open up more roster flexibility by trading away one of the biggest culprits of their terrible second-half showing at the plate.

Spencer Horwitz could be rendered redundant by Pirates' offseason plans, necessitating a trade

When healthy, Horwitz has been a quality hitter; he gets on base all the time and rarely strikes out, more or less making up for his lack of power with an advanced plate approach. The problem is that such a profile doesn't play all that well at first base, especially now that his defense at the position took a nosedive in 2026 (-2 Defensive Runs Saved, -5 Outs Above Average).

It's not impossible for Horwitz and O'Hearn to coexist on the same roster; they did so for long stretches of the 2026 season. But the latter really isn't a capable corner outfielder anymore, and unless the Pirates want to give Horwitz a chance to replace Brandon Lowe at second base, keeping both around will probably require them to put one in the DH spot on an everyday basis.

That's just not a tenable solution considering both players' pedestrian power numbers, which will only be more important if Lowe walks out the door in free agency. Perhaps O'Hearn, who is heading into the final season of his contract, would be the better trade candidate, but dealing him away after just one year would be a bad look for a franchise that already struggles to attract marquee free agents.

I certainly don't think a Horwitz trade is all that likely this offseason, but something has to give with the way Ben Cherington has constructed this roster.

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