3 relievers the Pirates should consider trading for (with 1 surprise reunion)

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The Pittsburgh Pirates should look to improve the roster, both for this year and in future seasons. There are some clear holes on the roster, and one could be the bullpen. They have some good arms, and David Bednar and Ryan Borucki will soon return, but they lack depth. There has been more than one instance where they’ve had to use guys that aren’t accustomed to higher leverage because other arms had been used extensively in the prior games, or they had to bullpen some games, leaving their remaining 'pen thin on available arms.

Luckily, the bullpen can be one of the easiest things to fix via trade. Teams are always willing to move relievers. The Pirates should be looking for arms they can rely on, not just for the rest of this year, but through next year at the very least. There are definitely going to be some arms to look out for, so who are some relievers that should be on the Pirates’ radar?

3 relievers who should be on Pirates' radar at trade deadline

Jason Adam

The Tampa Bay Rays have already unloaded two of their pitchers, with Aaron Civale getting traded to the Milwaukee Brewers and Phil Maton heading to the New York Mets. The Rays are probably not done unloading pitching, and they could soon move one of their best relievers. That’s right-hander Jason Adam.

Since joining the Rays in 2022, Adam has established himself as a reliable relief arm for Tampa. This year, he’s pitched 39.2 innings with a 1.82 ERA, 3.58 FIP, and 0.86 WHIP. Adam has an above-average 24.7% strikeout rate, but that is a steep decline from the 31.4% K% he had between 2022-2023. He has also allowed walks at a 9.3% rate. Adam is allowing home runs at a career-low rate at 0.68 with a career-best 47.9% ground ball rate.

There are some questions about the sustainability of Adam’s performance. He has a .183 batting average on balls in play. Adam has a 3.60 SIERA and 4.04 xFIP. In Adam’s defense, he is typically a low BABIP pitcher. In 2022-2023, Adam had just a .215 BABIP, the second lowest among any bullpen arm with at least 100 IP.

Along with providing quality innings, Adam is controlled via arbitration through 2026. He isn’t young, as he’ll turn 33 in August, but he’s proven to be a quality reliever now for three years with two more full seasons of control remaining.

Nick Mears

You might remember Nick Mears. The right-handed reliever was once one of the Pirates’ best relief pitching prospects. However, he never found his footing in Pittsburgh with a 4.75 ERA, 5.71 FIP, and 1.68 WHIP, mostly struggling with his command and walking 14.9% of batters faced. Mears was then claimed by the Texas Rangers, followed by the Colorado Rockies in the 2022-2023 offseason, where he has spent the last two years. However, it seems like he may have figured something out in a relative pitching desert.

Mears’ 6.25 ERA is going to stand out, but there’s plenty to suggest he can be a lot better. Mears is striking out batters at a 26.3% rate, and while he hasn’t turned into Greg Maddux, his 10.8% BB% is a lot better than what he’s done in the past. Despite pitching in Coors Field, Mears has not been prone to the home run ball. He has just a 0.45 HR/9 and 5.1% barrel rate.

Mears’ batting average on balls in play is .383, the second highest among any reliever with 30+ IP. He has the fourth-largest difference in expected batting average, as well as the 19th-biggest difference in expected weighted on-base average at .290, and the second-largest gap in expected ERA at 3.36. Mears’ solid performance is backed by a respectable 3.79 xFIP and 3.60 SIERA.

It’s taken a few years for Mears to figure things out, as this is the fifth MLB season he’s appeared in, but he’s finding something that’s working. The Rockies have relied on him to take care of the seventh inning or later. Mears is only 27 and controlled through 2027 with three more seasons of arbitration left.

Kyle Finnegan

Kyle Finnegan will be one of the Nationals' relievers on the trade market this deadline. The right-hander has proven to be a quality late-inning arm, closing out double-digit games the last four years, but he is currently in the midst of a career-best campaign. If the Pirates need another arm, he should be one of the first options they turn to.

Finnegan owns a 2.17 ERA, 4.14 FIP, and 0.96 WHIP. It is the first time he has posted a sub-3.00 ERA and sub-1.00 WHIP. Finnegan’s 8.2% walk rate ties a career-best, and his 26.5% K% is also a career-best. Finnegan has consistently been prone to the long ball, and this year is no different. His 1.45 HR/9 isn’t much worse than the 1.29 HR/9 he had between 2021-2023.

Finnegan has some worrying underlying numbers. While he has an above-average 7.3% barrel rate, he also has a 90.5 MPH exit velocity. Finnegan has a .200 batting average on balls in play, a massive drop from the .290 mark he had heading into the year. On the plus side, xFIP (3.30) and SIERA (3.24) are still optimistic about Finnegan’s outlook, even if they don’t paint him as a sub-3 ERA guy.

Finnegan has one more year of control remaining before heading into free agency during the 2025-2026 offseason. He has consistently shown to be a reliable ninth-inning guy, but could probably slot into a set-up role too. Given his performance this year, as well as in prior seasons, and his contract, the Pirates should greatly consider Finnegan as a trade target if they want to improve the bullpen.

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