5 trade targets that would make Pittsburgh Pirates potential NL Central contenders

A.J. Puk

A.J. Puk was a former top prospect who had injuries that forced him to the bullpen. He produced some solid numbers in 2022 and 2023 for the Oakland Athletics and Miami Marlins, posting a 3.51 ERA, 3.64 FIP, and 1.16 WHIP. Puk struck out nearly 30% of opponents between these two years with a 29.4% K%, while also owning a quality 6.9% walk rate. Puk was home run prone, however, with a 1.24 HR/9 rate.

But the numbers this year haven’t been as pretty. Puk still has a solid 3.96 FIP, but his ERA is at 4.73. His strikeout rate has plummeted to just 21.5%, while his walk rate has rocketed up to 12.4%. He’s allowing fewer home runs with an 0.68 HR/9, but he sports a garish WHIP of 1.43, another massive step down compared to 2022-2023. 

Luckily, those numbers don’t tell the whole story. Puk started the year in the Marlins’ rotation, where he struggled mightily. He only made four starts, one of which was against the Pirates, and allowed 14 earned runs while walking (17) more batters than he struck out (12) in only 13.2 innings pitched. Puk was moved back to the bullpen at the end of April, and not only has he gotten things back on track, but he’s pitching even better than he did in 2022 and 2023.

Puk’s last 26.1 innings pitched have seen him produce a 2.39 ERA, 2.74 FIP, and 0.80 WHIP. The lefty has walked just 5% of opponents with a healthy 26% K%. With such a low walk rate, combined with an above-average strikeout rate, Puk has a K:BB ratio of 5.20. Puk has only allowed home runs at an 0.68 HR/9 rate. He’s been immune to both hard and quality contact as well. Puk has an exit velocity of just 87.5 MPH with a barrel rate of 2.9% as a reliever.

Puk has been one of the best lefty relievers this year. He ranks top ten in FIP (7th), K:BB ratio (5th), and walk rate (6th) among LHRP with at least 25 IP. Among lefty bullpen arms who have faced at least 75 batters out of the pen, Puk has the 4th lowest barrel rate. Puk has also been solid late into games with a 3.52 ERA and 3.42 FIP while holding opponents to a wOBA of just .265 in the 7th inning or later. His WPA (or win percentage added) as a reliever is +0.42.

The Pirates’ bullpen has been better recently. Since the start of June, they own a 4.15 ERA, 3.37 FIP, and 1.30 WHIP. Their 22.5% K% might not jump off the page, but their 7.7% walk rate is the 9th best in this stretch, with the second lowest home run rate at 0.66. However, this pen could still use some depth.

Puk can fill a higher-leverage role. The Pirates have only had one lefty all year who has been able to serve as a higher-leverage reliever, and that’s been Aroldis Chapman. Ryan Borucki could soon take some of the load off of Chapman, but having another pitcher who can take the mound in late/close games would be wise. Puk saved 15 games last year as well, so he has experience as a closer and could occasionally see some save opportunities when David Bednar isn’t available. 

Another positive is that Puk is controlled via arbitration through 2026. Both Chapman and Borucki hit free agency at the end of the year, so by acquiring Puk, the Pirates would guarantee themselves a quality lefty reliever in the event that one or both would leave in free agency. Puk has been a good left-handed bullpen arm for three years now, and he’s pitching even better this year than in his last two campaigns. 

Kyle Finnegan

Another National League East reliever the Pirates should have their eye on is Kyle Finnegan. The Washington Nationals’ closer could also be on the trading block after his set-up man, Hunter Harvey, was dealt to the Kansas City Royals. Finnegan would fill a similar role as AJ Puk, but as a right-hander.

Finnegan is having a career-best year on the bump. He has a 2.45 ERA, 3.98 FIP, and 1.02 WHIP through 40.1 innings of work. Both his 8.1% walk rate and 26.1% strikeout rate are career bests. However, home runs have consistently plagued him. He had a 1.29 HR/9 in 2021 through 2023 and this year is not much different. His HR/9 in ‘24 clocks in at 1.34.

Although Finnegan is prone to hard contact with a 90.6 MPH exit velocity, he has been good at limiting quality contact. His 6.6% barrel rate is in the top 67th percentile of pitchers this year. Finnegan has been good, but there are more positives aside from his performance that would greatly help out the Pirates’ bullpen.

Like Puk, he could serve as the Pirates’ closer when Bednar has the day off. Finnegan has saved 25 games so far this year, only three away from matching a career high. His WPA on the season is +1.60. He’s used to high leverage, and having him and Bednar taking up the closing duties would make the eighth and ninth innings a nightmare for opposing teams in close games.

Finnegan is older at 31, but he is only getting paid $5.1 million this year with one more year of arbitration left. That gives the Pirates a second season to bring him back. Again, the Pirates could potentially lose two key relievers in Ryan Borucki and Aroldis Chapman this offseason. This would be nice insurance.

Yandy Diaz

Yandy Diaz has been a well above-average contributor to the Tampa Bay Rays’ lineup for multiple seasons now. Last year, he had a career year, slashing .330/.410/.522 with a .402 wOBA and 164 wRC+. Diaz, who is known for his contact ability, only struck out 15.7% of the time. He hit for good power, though,going yard 22 times with an isolated slugging percentage just a touch under .200 at .192.

After winning the Silver Slugger, the expectations were set high for Diaz. However, he’s posting numbers more akin to what he had in 2019-2022. Diaz is hitting .273/.329/.396 with a .319 wOBA and 111 wRC+. For the first time since 2018, his walk rate is below 10% at 7.5%, but he still avoids striking out, posting a 14.7% K% throughout 416 plate appearances. Diaz isn’t hitting for much power and has just eight homers with a .123 isolated slugging percentage.

Now, like almost every batter in MLB this year, Diaz had a horrible start to the year. But as the weather has heated up, so has he. His last 280 plate appearances have yielded a much better-looking .302/.354/.453 triple-slash. He has hit seven of his eight homers in this stretch and has a .151 isolated slugging percentage. Diaz has still not walked often, with a 7.5% BB%, but his strikeout rate is even lower, clocking in at 13.9%.

Diaz’s lack of consistent power production hasn’t resulted from a lack of raw power. He is in the 93rd percentile of exit velocity at 92.5 MPH. That is the 19th-best mark in baseball this season. On the flip side, his struggles step from a lack of lifting the ball. Diaz’s launch angle this season is only four degrees, the first time it has ever dipped below five degrees unless you count the shortened 2020 season. This has resulted in a barrel rate of just 6.5%.

To Diaz’s credit, he has improved his barrel rate as the season has gone on. His barrel rate since the start of his return to form is 8.6%, which is above average. Over the last month, it’s been even better, clocking in at 9.9%. Last season, Diaz had a career year while posting a 9.5% barrel rate.

Diaz has experience at both corner infield positions, but is much better at first base than third base. Career-wise, he has only -1 DRS and -4 OAA at first base. However, at third base, he has -30 DRS and -17 OAA. He has not played the hot corner semi-regularly since the 2022 campaign and only logged 31 innings there in 2023.

If Diaz just lifted the ball slightly more, he’d be a constant 20+ homer threat. Regardless, Diaz still crushes the ball and gets a ton of hits. He’s done a lot better as of late. First base might not be an immediate need, but Diaz is a potential multi-year solution. He is controlled next year for only $10 million and has a $12 million team option in 2026. The Pirates could finally get a solid, regular first baseman for more than one season by trading for Diaz.

Brent Rooker

Yandy Diaz, Taylor Ward, Kyle Finnegan, and A.J. Puk are pretty realistic trade targets for the Pirates. All are controlled for multiple years, are good players, and probably won’t cost an arm and a leg to acquire via trade. This trade target, however, is definitely bolder than the first four, but he’d give the Pirates’ lineup an even bigger boost than Taylor Ward, even if Ward lived up to his expected stats. The player in question is Oakland Athletics designated hitter Brent Rooker.

Rooker broke out last year with a big 2023. He batted .246/.329/.488 in 526 plate appearances. Rooker may have struck out almost a third of the time with a 32.7% K%, but he walked at an above-average 9.3% rate and hit for a ton of power. Rooker bashed 30 home runs and had an isolated slugging percentage of .242. He ended his campaign with a .348 wOBA and a 127 wRC+.

But Rooker has had an even better 2024. The DH is slashing .291/.369/.573 with a .399 wOBA and 166 wRC+. He has already hit 21 home runs in 344 plate appearances and has a .281 isolated slugging percentage. While he is still striking out a ton with a 32.6% K%, he has also improved his walk rate to 10.5%. Rooker has simply been one of the best hitters in baseball. He ranks in the top 10in OPS, wOBA, and wRC+.

Rooker is hitting the ball even better than last year. He was in the 85th percentile of exit velocity at 91.6 MPH and the 93rd percentile of barrel rate at 15.6%. This year, he is in the 90th percentile of exit velocity (92.1 MPH) and the 98th percentile of barrel rate (17.6%). The only qualified batters with a better barrel percentage than Rooker are Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Giancarlo Stanton, Juan Soto, Marcell Ozuna, and the Pirates’ very own Oneil Cruz.

Rooker could sustain this production if he were traded to the Pirates. PNC Park is more hitter-friendly than the Oakland Coliseum. It also allows more home runs on average. He would currently have more home runs than his current total of 21 if he played predominantly in every National League park except for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Chase Field.

The only question would be where the Pirates would play Rooker. Rooker has only 542.1 innings played in the outfield in the last two seasons. Most of his playing time has been as a designated hitter. When he has played in the outfield, it hasn’t been pretty. He has -6 defensive runs saved and -8 outs above average. Rooker isn’t slow with a 27.4 feet/second sprint speed (league average is 27 feet/second), but that’s about where all the positives end for his defensive prowess.

Aside from being a top-10 hitter this year, the Pirates would also have to pay up for his three more seasons of control remaining. Rooker has yet to hit arbitration. This offseason will be his first round of it. 

But if you hit as powerfully as Rooker has, any team will find a spot for you. That might mean doing something unconventional, like playing Andrew McCutchen in the outfield more frequently or giving Rooker some time at first base, a position he played during college and early in his minor league career. Whatever defensive alignment would have to be put out there would be worth it to get Rooker’s bat in the lineup.