Pittsburgh Pirates: Attempting to Construct a Realistic Off-Season

What would a realistic looking off-season for the Pirates look like?
Sep 27, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Wade Miley (20) delivers
Sep 27, 2023; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Wade Miley (20) delivers / Michael McLoone-USA TODAY Sports
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Brandon Drury

The one trade acquisition I have here is infielder Brandon Drury from the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels may undergo a full-on rebuild this off-season. At the very least, they’ll probably trade off some of their short-term veterans. One of said short-term veterans is Brandon Drury.

Drury is coming off a season where he batted .262/.306/.497 with a .339 wOBA and 114 wRC+. Drury smacked 26 home runs and had a strong .235 isolated slugging percentage. Among the batters in the regular season with at least 500 plate appearances, Drury had the 19th-highest ISO. The downside to Drury’s season was his 4.8% walk rate and 26% strikeout rate, both of which were below average.

Drury can fill either second or first base for the Pirates, two positions they’ll likely explore the market for. Of the two positions, the keystone is his better defensive home. He had -1 defensive run saved, but +5 outs above average. But he also was decent at first base with -1 DRS and zero OAA.

Assuming the Pirates would take on all the money and don’t send any prospects who are already on the Major League payroll back, they would be taking on a one-year, $8.5 million deal. For ones saying that the Pirates would never take on any money, they spent over $11 million to have Ji Man Choi and Carlos Santana platoon at first base last season. If anything, the Pirates are saving money compared to last off-season to solve a hole in the infield.

Total Spent: $40.5 million