One realistic remaining free agent at each position for the Pirates to pursue

Center Field - Michael A. Taylor

Michael A. Taylor had previously been connected to the Pirates as a free agent they were pursuing. That was earlier this off-season, and there have been no other significant developments in Taylor’s market. That being said, Taylor would be a great fit for the Pirates’ line-up as he’d provide both power and an outstanding outfield glove.

Taylor’s offense was good but not great. In 388 plate appearances, the center fielder turned in a .220/.278/.442 triple-slash, .308 wOBA, and 96 wRC+. His OPS, wOBA, and wRC+ are about what center fielders across baseball hit last season. Taylor went yard 21 times and had a .223 isolated slugging percentage. He was 6th among primary CFs in ISO. But he only walked in 6.7% of his plate appearances and struck out just over a third of the time with a 33.5% strikeout rate.

Of course, his calling card is his defense. Taylor racked up +5 DRS and +8 OAA. He has one of the strongest outfield arms in baseball, as his throws averaged 91.5 MPH, which was in the 90th percentile of players. He’s also plenty fast and was in the 85th percentile of sprint speed. Believe it or not, but this was a down season for him, defensively. In 2021 and 2022, Taylor had an impressive +38 DRS and +23 OAA. No other outfielder had more than Taylor in both cumulative stats.

If the Pirates signed Taylor, they’d be able to put their best defensive foot forward in the outfield. This would leave Bryan Reynolds in left field, Taylor would cover center, and Jack Suwinski would share right field with Edward Oliveras.