Pittsburgh Pirates: Looking For Where They Could Find Another Starting Pitcher

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The Pittsburgh Pirates need to add at least one more starting pitcher this offseason, where could they find that pitcher?

The Pittsburgh Pirates need at least one more starting pitcher. There are still decent options out there for them to pursue. But where will they get their next starter from? Will it be via free agency? Maybe it will be through trade. I want to go through what I believe are the most likely scenarios and potential targets.

I don’t think the Pirates will go after one of the remaining Major League free agents. Rather, I think they will go one of two routes. The first route is the international free agents. There are two that the Pirates have been connected to. Yariel Rodriguez’s name has been thrown around a lot as a potential target for the Pirates.

There was a report that came out over a week ago by Enrique Rojas that the Toronto Blue Jays were closer to signing him than any of the other teams interested. It’s unknown whether this still holds true, as there has been no further update about the Blue Jays and their pursuit of Rodriguez since this report.

Rodriguez last pitched professionally in 2022 for the Chunichi Dragons, working to a 1.15 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and 3.33 K:BB ratio. But all 54.2 of his innings pitched were out of the bullpen. Rodriguez has experience being a starting pitcher, although his results out of the rotation weren’t great. Granted, he hasn’t pitched semi-regularly as a starter since 2021, and his stuff looked good in showcases.

Rodriguez has some risk, as he’s not a surefire starter. He hasn’t started regularly in a few years, and while his stuff looks good in showcases, it’s unknown how that would fare in competitive professional games. Still, he’s worth a look. Uwasawa brings an interesting approach to the mound.

The other international player the Pirates have been connected to is Naoyuki Uwasawa. The Japanese right-hander pitched to a strong 2.96 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and 3.02 K:BB ratio last year for the Nippon Ham Fighters. This marked the seventh year in a row Uwasawa had an ERA under 3.50. Uwasawa is not a hard-throwing pitcher, as he mostly relies on command and keeping batters off balance with his wide variety of offerings. According to FanGraphs, he throws six different pitches. Only one or two may project as a 55-grade offering, with the rest sitting in the 45-50 range, but batters only have a one in six chance of being right when they swing, and he typically can locate very well.

Potential trade market

The second route is the trade market. There have been a handful of players rumored to be available in trade. The Miami Marlins are listening to offers on some of their young starters, including Jesus Luzardo, Edward Cabrera, and Trevor Rogers. Luzardo would obviously be awesome, but I think Cabrera is both somewhat realistic and still a decent pitcher. Cleveland Guardians’ starter Shane Bieber has been the subject of trade talks since the trade deadline. The San Francisco Giants were rumored to be willing to move one of their young arms earlier this off-season. Although Giants’ GM Farhan Zaidi said that top prospect Kyle Harrison is off the table, nothing has been specified about Keaton Winn or Mason Black.

Between all these options, I would want Cabrera the most based on how much it would cost and what the Pirates would be getting. Bieber isn’t a bad rental, but again, is only a rental. Rogers is a decent buy-low rebound candidate, although he would not be my first target. I would be okay with either Winn or Black if the Giants still have any interest in moving any of their young starting pitchers.

I am not perfect in my predictions, so who could be some names to keep an eye on if they decide to go after an MLB free agent? I would not be surprised at all if Hyun-Jin Ryu is on their radar as I write this. He seems like a proto-typical Ben Cherington free agent, as he is a veteran soft-tossing left-handed starting pitcher. James Paxton also fits that bill. His numbers were worse than Ryu's, but his final three starts bombed his bottom line. Eric Lauer would be a solid rebound candidate. He was good in 2021-2022 but pitched less than 50 innings in 2023. Of course, I would love to see the Pirates go after Jordan Montgomery or Shota Imanaga, but I am not holding my breath on either.

Whatever the Pirates do, they just need to add at least one more solid starting pitcher. They’re relying a lot on rebounds and youngsters breaking out right now. It would be nice if they were to solidify it with one signing or trade that turns some heads. I believe they will do something of note before the off-season is over, as there is still plenty of time left, and players that would improve the roster are still on the markets.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates need to add at least one more starting pitcher this offseason, where could they find that pitcher?

Potential trade market

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