A way-too-early Pittsburgh Pirates free agent wishlist for 2024-25 offseason

Randal Grichuk

The Pittsburgh Pirates could desperately use another outfielder, and one of the most underrated ones on the free agent market this offseason is Randal Grichuk. Grichuk has consistently been a solid outfielder, one who provides an above-average amount of power and an average glove who can play all three outfield spots.

Grichuk has put up his best numbers since his 2015 rookie season, batting .288/.344/.508. He has a .364 wOBA and 133 wRC+. Grichuk has never been one to draw many walks and had just a 6.9% walk rate this year, but he's struck out just 16.6% of the time. That is a career low for the veteran outfielder by a wide margin.

Grichuk’s defense graded out as solid but not unspectacular, as it usually does. He had +2 defensive runs saved and a +18.8 UZR/150, but -2 outs above average. His arm strength graded out as slightly above average, as his throws clocked in at 86.3 MPH (60th percentile), while his speed also sat around the same level at 27.6 feet/second (57th percentile).

The only thing is that Grichuk has mostly been used as a part-timer in 2024. Grichuk has collected just 259 plate appearances in 97 games. In a 150-game stretch, that only comes out to about 400 plate appearances. Grichuk has hit both lefties and righties this year, with a 138 wRC+ vs LHP and 123 wRC+ vs RHP, but nearly 70% of his plate appearances have come against a lefty. Still, a 133 wRC+ and .852 OPS would be a huge boost to the Pirates’ lineup, regardless of platoon splits.