Pirates Rumors: Pitching surplus has Pittsburgh fielding trade calls on unexpected name

One of the hottest names on the trade market during the early portion of the offseason has been Mitch Keller. His name has been floated in trade rumors ranging from last offseason to the present. Buzz about his market seemed to be loudest at the trade deadline, yet he stayed put. It is tough to imagine teams going all in on Keller, given his contract, ERA above 4.00, and worrisome advanced metrics. With the uncertainty about the All-Star righty at his price, a new name has come out of nowhere as a trade candidate from the Pirates' group.

According to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon, the Pirates are fielding calls on Johan Oviedo. The right-hander is considered very valuable due to his advanced metrics, despite coming off of Tommy John surgery. In his short stint following the surgery, Oviedo limited hard contact, inducing an average exit velocity of 87.6 mph and a hard-hit rate of just 35.8%. That is very impressive, and his 29.9% whiff rate just adds on to the value his pitches bring.

The article cites three reasons teams have been really intrigued by Oviedo: his size, his projected arbitration salary of $2 million (per MLB Trade Rumors), and his apparent fastball development. During his rehabiltation back from surgery, Oviedo apparently improved his fastball, "achieving greater separation between his four-seamer and two-seamer."

Pirates are reportedly fielding trade calls on Johan Oviedo this offseason.

Seeing Oviedo come back and deliver a 3.57 ERA with a 1.21 WHIP and a 9.37 K/9 was really impressive. He is one of the better trade returns Ben Cherington has been able to net in his time in Pittsburgh. Yet, trading him now feels like a mistake, especially considering how cheap he is. Maintaining a solid middle of the rotation arm at around $2 million would be incredibly valuable for this team.

Rosenthal and Sammon also noted that "[Oviedo] is one of the starters [the Pirates] would entertain moving for the right position-player return."

While Oviedo may be more valuable than Keller on the trade market, it doesn't feel like the right decision right now for the Pirates to deal him. If anything, Keller seems more like a player that should get dealt in order for Pittsburgh to unload that contract. At that point, the Pirates could reallocate that money into free agency, or acquire a bigger player on the trade market (as long as an acquiring team is willing to take on a portion of Keller's salary).

The Pirates' pitching surplus is putting them in a really good situation right now. They have a ton of assets they could move to balance out their team with offense. Seeing Oviedo begin to gather trade interest really came out of nowhere. If they do move him, the return should land Pittsburgh a quality bat. Still, his value just makes too much sense for the Pirates to keep, financially and statistically. Cherington has really given the Pirates a good problem to have with this pitching group, and now it's time to capitalize on it.