Pittsburgh Pirates: Assessing the Best Free Agent Signings of the Past 25 Years

Conclusion

Each 21st century Pirate general manager will have his detractors. Littlefield’s six-year tenure featured several one-year rentals (Roberto Hernandez, Kenny Lofton, Sanders, etc.), whose on-field success garnered trade interest but ultimately provided little in the way of long-term returns.

Huntington gambled on prospects at the trade deadline, but few of these panned out. Similarly, Cherington has shown no hesitation in buying veterans and betting on youth. It may be 2049 before we get a true sense of the impact of this year’s offseason moves.