Bryan Reynolds' absence should have Pirates expediting trade deadline plans

The Pittsburgh Pirates announced Thursday that they had placed All-Star outfielder Bryan Reynolds on the Major League Bereavement List. Players placed on MLB’s bereavement list are given a minimum of three days off, meaning the earliest Reynolds can return to the club is Sunday.  

The news comes as a tough blow for a Pirates team that will now be without its best hitter for at least two games against the Arizona Diamondbacks this weekend. Reynolds, who missed his first game Wednesday against the St. Louis Cardinals due to back spasms, leads the Pirates with a .288 batting average, 117 hits, 406 at-bats, 18 home runs, 61 RBI, 197 total bases, a .353 on-base percentage, a .485 slugging percentage, a .839 OPS and a WAR of 3.1.

The Pirates said in a statement that they will add another player to the roster for Friday’s game and “will announce that move accordingly.” Reynolds' replacement on the active roster is likely to be infielder/outfielder Ji Hwan Bae, who was added to Pittsburgh's major-league taxi squad from Triple-A Indianapolis.

Bryan Reynolds' absence underlines Pirates' need to add offense at trade deadline

Losing Reynolds' bat, even if only for a short time, could have a season-altering impact for the Pirates. They face a direct challenger for a National League wild card spot in the Diamondbacks this weekend, followed by the American League West Division leaders in the Houston Astros – both on the road.

The Diamondbacks are just half-game ahead of the Pirates in the NL wild card race, so the result of this series could have major postseason implications for both teams. The Pirates will need outfielders like Joshua Palacios, Jack Suwinski, Andrew McCutchen, Michael A. Taylor and Connor Joe to step up in Reynolds' absence if they want to stay in the race for a place in the postseason.

That might be a tall order, though, for a Pirates batting order that is lacking in pop, particularly from the outfield. If the aforementioned players' bats suddenly heat up and allow them to carry the load during Reynolds' absence, it will be an anomaly and should not dissuade Pirates general manager Ben Cherington from adding a big league bat or two at the trade deadline to keep this team competitive in the postseason race.

Conversely, if the Pirates' bats go quiet and cause them to drop the series against Arizona, that shouldn't cause Cherington to rule them out of the wild card race and change their strategy ahead of the trade deadline. The margins in the National League are razor-thin this season, and the Pirates should be looking to gain a competitive advantage wherever they can, and it starts with fixing the offense.

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