Pirates insider has unexpected trade deadline update that will excite Pittsburgh fans

It's time for Pittsburgh to strike while the iron's hot.

Emma Lingan

Pittsburgh Pirates v Chicago White Sox / Nuccio DiNuzzo/GettyImages

The Pittsburgh Pirates (48-48) have clawed their way back to .500 and back into playoff contention at the midway point of the season. With the July 30 trade deadline quickly approaching, this is a team that could become a buyer.

Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said as much in a recent interview on 93.7 The Fan, indicating that the Pirates will be looking to make some additions to spur a postseason run – a far cry from where this team was before its surge.

The Pirates soared into the All-Star break on a 4-0 run, their longest winning streak since opening the season 5-0. They are 6 1/2 games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central and 1 1/2 games behind the New York Mets for the National League’s third and final wild-card spot. Pittsburgh hasn't been .500 or better at the break since 2016.

"If they keep this up," Destin said, "I see no way that they don't add."

Pirates insider suggests outfielder Tommy Pham as a potential trade fit for Pittsburgh

If the Pirates are seriously considering becoming buyers at the deadline, there are some key roster holes they should be looking to fill. Destin said he expects the team will look for an outfielder to add to the mix and even name-dropped Chicago White Sox veteran Tommy Pham as a potential fit. The Pirates had shown interest in Pham before the season started, and this could be an interesting idea to revisit as they look to add outfield bats.

The Pirates feel like a team on the rise and they are close enough to contention that they should absolutely look to make some additions. Paul Skenes, Jared Jones and Mitch Keller make up 75% of an elite playoff rotation on the mound, and Pittsburgh should be looking to get them some run support at the plate.

It isn't clear how much money and/or prospects they'd be willing to spend in adding – knowing owner Bob Nutting, probably not much – but there 's no way they don't try to improve in some way at the deadline and attempt to make a playoff run.

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Emma Lingan

Emma Lingan is an MLB Staff Writer for FanSided primarily covering the Pittsburgh Pirates. She has been covering baseball for more than a decade dating back to her time as a student at Wake Forest University, and she has won two gold medals as a member of the U.S. National Team delegation (2016 Pan-American Championships & 2017 World Baseball Classic). She is also a credentialed NHL reporter and a member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. You can follow her @Emma Lingan on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.