Pirates release headlining prospect from Joe Musgrove deal in reminder of trade fail

Out of all the lousy trades during the Ben Cherington era, the Joe Musgrove trade has not even come close to being the worst. That is because of David Bednar alone; everyone else acquired has either accounted for a negative WAR or has not sniffed the major leagues. One out of the five turned into something, which is better than none, but still it ranks as a poor trade. It just got even worse, as Hudson Head, the headlining prospect in this trade, has been released from the organization.

MLB Pipeline ranked Head as the 13th-best player in the Padres' farm system back in 2020. Once he got dealt in 2021, he became the Pirates' sixth-best prospect and their farm started to look better. He put together a solid season that year he was added, posting a 111 wRC+ with a .755 OPS, but after a promotion to High-A, things went downhill.

Head has not put together another season with a wRC+ above the league average of 100 since. He turned into a below-average hitter in the lower levels of the minor leagues. He spent three seasons in Greensboro before reaching Double-A in 2025. His OPS with Altoona was just .327, so it was definitely time to pull the plug.

Pirates release Hudson Head, the top prospect recieved in the Joe Musgrove trade.

With Head gone, this trade truly does look even worse. Endy Rodriguez has accounted for 0 fWAR and has not been able to stay healthy. Omar Cruz hasn't been in the organization since 2023 and just made his debut with the Padres. Drake Fellows is 27 years old and is not consistent in Triple-A. His 4.18 ERA is not bad, but he still has a career ERA of 5.08. Bednar, of course, is one of the top relievers on the trade market this deadline and has been a two time All-Star for Pittsburgh.

With Bednar as the only solid piece of this package, is it fair to call this a failed trade? Yes. Only one of the five turned into a player of value. There have been worse trades, even in that same offseason. Hopefully, the trades Cherington cooks up at the 2025 MLB trade deadline don't look anything like this.