Pittsburgh Pirates: Looking at Ridiculous Trades Baseball Trade Values Thinks Are Fair

The first trade is the most ludacris one I could come up with. In this trade, we see the Pirates sending outfielder Jack Suwinski for four different players. The first is Texas Rangers Postseason hero Adolis Garcia, who had a career year with a 124 wRC+, 39 home runs, and +4.8 fWAR. Garcia posted career bests in batting average, OBP, slugging percentage, and in proxy OPS. He shattered his previous career high in home runs by eight. On top of that, he was a good defensive outfielder with +6 defensive runs saved and +2 outs above average. He added on eight more home runs during the Rangers' World Series run. He could have reached double digits had he not gotten hurt in World Series Game One.

The next player is Ezequiel Duran, who is coming off a year where he had a .768 OPS, .330 wOBA, and 107 wRC+. Not only is Duran entering just his age-25 season, but he’s extremely versatile. He’s logged innings at all four infield positions, as well as both outfield corners. The middle infield is probably his best positions, as he grades out as average to below average at the corners. 

Kumar Rocker is the only prospect in this deal. Rocker may not have the hype he did in 2021 when he was a first round draft pick. Plus he’ll miss most of next year because he underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2023. But Rocker is still a noteworthy pitching prospect. He looked great in his brief time at High-A prior to his surgery. 

Finally, the fourth player the Pirates are receiving is veteran reliever Jose Leclerc. Leclerc pitched 57 last season, working to a strong 2.68 ERA, 3.62 FIP, and 1.14 WHIP. Leclerc has always struggled with walks, though his 12% walk rate was the second best of his career. But he had a 28.8% strikeout rate and a HR/9 of 0.8 for the Rangers. Leclerc is only controlled through 2024, but for only $6.25 million.

The Pirates are only sending Jack Suwinski in return. Suwinski had a nice breakout season where he hit .224/.339/.454 with 26 home runs and a 112 wRC+. Suwinski upped his BB% from 11% in 2022 to 14% in 2023. His overall power output also saw a massive uptick, as his ISO jumped from .209 to .230.

Look, I love Jack Suwinski, but this is obviously so unfair that it’s not even funny. Even if Garcia ends up as productive as Suwinski, Duran is a rookie who was an above average hitter with positional flexibility, Leclerc is a quality relief pitcher, and Rocker is a decent pitching prospect. The wildest thing is that BBTV’s trade simulator not only says that this is a fair trade, but the Pirates are getting the worse end of the deal. Suwinski is valued at +38.50 while Garcia+Duran+Leclerc+Rocker is only worth +38.40.

(Link to trade)