Pittsburgh Pirates: Three Players Who Could Come Off 40-Man Roster for Martín Pérez

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The Pittsburgh Pirates still need to make room on th 40-man roster for left-handed pitcher Martín Pérez. Who could be the odd man out when the move comes?

Last week, the Pittsburgh Pirates signed veteran lefty Martín Pérez to bolster their starting rotation. This signing, however, has yet to be made official with a 40-man roster move. When the move becomes official, who could be taken off the Pirate 40-man roster to make room for Pérez?

There are plenty of options for the Pirates and removing players from the 40-man roster to make room for Pérez. We will look into that here today, examining both pitchers and position players. So, without any further ado, let's dive in.

Pitcher Bailey Falter

Fellow left-handed pitcher Bailey Falter could find himself as a DFA candidate to make room on the 40-man roster for Pérez. The Pirates acquired Falters from the Philadelphia Phillies for Rodolfo Castro last July, but he struggled as a Pirate.

Falter pitched in 10 games as a Pirate, making 7 starts. In 40.1 innings pitched in these 10 appearances, Falter posted a 5.58 ERA, 5.78 FIP, 7.0% walk rate, and an 18.6% strikeout rate. Opposing batters hit .275 off Falter, and hit 10 home runs giving him an atrocious 2.23 HR/9 as a Pirate.

In addition to pitching poorly as a Pirate last season, being out of options is also working against Falter. Due to this, the Pirates may find themselves having to desigante him for assignment at some point before the regular season begins anyway. Esepcially after adding two lefties in Pérez and MArco Gonzales to the rotation so far this offseason.

It would not be a surprise to see Falter DFA'd to make room on the 40-man roster for Pérez.

Outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba

This is one that probably could have easily happened when Andrew McCutchen was re-signed. Instead, Andre Jackson was DFA'd to help him pursue an opportunity in Japan. That said, there are more outfielders than needed on the 40-man roster right now and that could make Canaan Smith-Njigba the odd man out.

Smith-Njigba made his MLB debut in 2022, but a broken wrist ended his debut season after just 7 plate appearances in the majos. Last season, Smith-Njigba made the team's Opening Day roster but would struggle.

His struggled led to Smith-Njigba being optioned back to the minors after 37 PAs. These would be the only PAs he had in the majors last season. In those 37 PAs, Smith-Njigba hit for a .125/.216/.219 slash line with a 17 wRC+ and a 20 OPS+.

At this point it's hard to envision a future with the Pirates for Smith-Njigba. Due to this, it's very easy to see him being designated for assignment to create room on the 40-man roster for Pérez when that signing becomes official.

Infielder Alika Williams

The Pirates acquired Alika Williams from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for reliever Robert Stephenson last May. Well, that trade did not work out for the Bucs. While Stephenson went on to dominate out of the Tampa Bay bullpen, Williams was terrible with the Pirates.

In his first 112 PAs, Williams hit for a .198/.270/.248 slash line. He posted a 43 wRC+, 44 OPS+, .050 isolated slugging (ISO), 8.0% walk rate, and a 31.3% strikeout rate. To be blunt, Williams was terrible in the majors.

Yes, Williams is a good defensive shortstop. However, he can not hit at all. Like, at all. Due to this, it is very easy to move on from Williams on the team's 40-man roster. Replacing Williams would nto be difficult and designating him for assignment could be the move to make room for Pérez.

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