Pittsburgh Pirates Rumors: Four Pitchers Garnering Trade Interest

With the trade market starting to heat up, according to Jon Heyman, a quartet of Pittsburgh Pirates pitchers are garnering interest

Earlier in the day on Thursday the trade deadline dominoes began to fall for the Pittsburgh Pirates. This happened when the team traded veteran first baseman Carlos Santana to the Milwaukee Brewers. You can read more about that trade here.

Shortly after Santana was traded, MLB Network's Jon Heyman reported that the Bucs are also garnering trade interest in four pitchers. These four pitchers are Rich Hill, David Bednar, Mitch Keller, and Colin Holderman.

Contending teams being interested in Hill comes as no surprise. The veteran lefty is a great clubhouse presence and has pitched well in the postseason during his career. With Hill set to hit free agency, it is almost a guarantee that he will be traded by Tuesday.

Teams having an interest in the other three come as no surprise, either. Keller is having a career year and still has two years of team control. So, a team acquiring Keller would have him for the rest of this season, as well as 2024 and 2025.

For these reasons, the price tag on Keller would be high. He is a pitcher that the Pirates will look to build their starting rotation around the next two seasons and there was smoke earlier in the season of a discussion potentially being discussed between the two sides. The Pirates would likely have to be blown away to move Keller.

Like Keller, it would take an offer that blows the Pirates away to move Bednar. To be honest, Ben Cherington would likely have to be even more blown away to move Bednar than Keller. Bednar is controlled through 2027 and has developed into one of the best closers in baseball.

That said, relievers can be volatile and the Pirates are unlikely to compete next year. This would make fielding offers for Bednar enticing. If the Pirates can net an every day player for Bednar, a starting pitcher, multiple relievers, or any combination of the three, it could make their overall roster better than it would be with just Bednar. It was also reported that the Diamondbacks are "heavily in" on Bednar.

As for Holderman, he could be an intriguing trade chip. Holderman is controlled through the 2028 season and contending teams are always looking for bullpen help. Holderman's trade value could be higher than people may think.