Pittsburgh Pirates: Three Travis Swaggerty Trade Proposals

The Pittsburgh Pirates need to make room on their roster once they officially sign Andrew McCutchen, so let's take a look at a few Travis Swaggerty trades the team could consider.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are going to have to eventually make a move when Andrew McCutchen's signing becomes official. Once that happens, the Pirates will have ten outfielders on the 40-man roster. Something has to give, and if they decide to do anything, they should make a trade. Their most valuable outfield prospect right now is Travis Swaggerty. Given his ability to play an outstanding center field with average or better numbers throughout each of his minor league seasons, he's a prospect that might bring back something interesting.

Last year, Swaggerty posted relatively solid but unimpressive numbers at Triple-A Indy. They weren't standout, but he hit .254/.348/.399 with a .338 wOBA and 102 wRC+. Swaggerty drew his fair share of walks with a 12.4% walk rate. He used his ability to reach base to his advantage with 20 steals in 25 attempts.

It was an up-and-down season for Swaggerty. He came out of the gates swinging and by July, he was hitting .277/.357/.446 with a .357 wOBA, and 114 wRC+. However, from the start of July through the end of the year, the outfield prospect batted just .235/.341/.362 with a .322 wOBA and 92 wRC+. He started the year off strong but ended on a negative note. Still, with his ability to play a quality center field, at least one team out there views him as a potential outfield option in 2023. The bar for centerfield hitters was not set high as combined, the position hit just .237/.303/.389.

If the Pirates have to trade someone, Swaggerty is a prime candidate. So let's take a look at a few Swaggerty-centered trades for the Pittsburgh Pirates to consider.

Pittsburgh Pirates Acquire: Sixto Sanchez
Miami Marlins Acquire: Travis Swaggerty

It wasn't all that long ago that Sixto Sanchez was considered one of the best prospects in all of baseball. In 2020, Sanchez came off a strong but short showing in the major leagues, working to a 3.46 ERA, 3.50 FIP, and 1.21 WHIP in 39 innings. He capped off his 2020 rookie campaign with five scoreless innings against the Chicago Cubs in the 2020 Wild Card round, which included six strikeouts.

Things were on the up-and-up for Sanchez heading into 2021. He was viewed as one of baseball's brightest young arms. But unfortunately, Sanchez has suffered injury after injury, leaving his future ultimately up in the air. In 2021, Sanchez suffered multiple setbacks regarding his shoulder and underwent surgery in July.

Constant setbacks delayed Sixto's long-awaited return this past season. Sanchez suffered more shoulder-related injuries in 2022 and underwent a second shoulder surgery in September. Though he is expected to be ready for Spring Training, it's reasonable to be skeptical about his health.

When Sanchez was healthy, he was one of baseball's most electric pitchers. In 2020, Sanchez averaged 98.5 MPH with his four-seam fastball, making it the fourth-fastest fastball in 2020. His fastball was elite, but his changeup was even better. With an extremely low spin rate with his changeup, batters managed just a .148 BA and .193 wOBA against it. He also throws a sinker, cutter, and slider.

So why would the Marlins give up Sanchez and be interested in Swaggerty? The Marlins' outfield was terrible last season. As a collective group, they batted just .216/.284/.364 with a .286 wOBA and 85 wRC+. Their only outfielder with 200+ PA and a wRC+ above 100 was Bryan De La Cruz at 104. They were a respectable team defensively with +11 defensive runs saved, +5 outs above average, and +2.4 UZR/150, placing them middle of the pack. But overall, their +1.5 fWAR was the third lowest in baseball.

It's also not as if they have a top prospect coming up through the system. None of their top 15 prospects are OF prospects, according to FanGraphs. Their best outfield prospect per FanGraphs is Griffin Conine, who had a 103 wRC+ but struck out at a horrid 36.9% pace. He ranks 19th on FanGraphs' list and no. 26 on MLB Pipeline. Former first-rounder JJ Bleday struck out at a 27% pace at Triple-A despite a quality 123 wRC+ and had a 72 wRC+ in the major leagues and -.3 fWAR.

Sanchez is essentially an unknown commodity at this point. Sure, at one point his ceiling was sky-high, but that was two years and two shoulder surgeries ago. It's a high-risk/high-reward proposition for the Pirates as they're giving up a semi-decent OF prospect for a guy who now has undergone the knife twice for major procedures before his age-25 season. The Marlins need as much outfield help as they can get, and Swaggerty can slot into center field right now for the Fish.

Pittsburgh Pirates Acquire: Jordan Balazovic
Minnesota Twins Acquire: Travis Swaggerty

The Minnesota Twins were recently in the rumors for looking into Kansas City Royal outfielder Michael A. Taylor. The Twins do have a decent outfield. Stalwarts Byron Buxton and Max Kepler have been part of the organization for quite some time now and regular fixtures in their major league line-up since 2015. Alex Kiriloff and Trevor Larnach have both shown talent, and they also resigned Joey Gallo in hopes of him rebounding. Plus utility man Nick Gordon had a great breakout season.

But the Twin outfield is also streaky, both in terms of performance and health. Byron Buxton is a notorious glass cannon. When he's healthy, he is one of baseball's premier center fielders. But he's failed to play 100 games in a season since 2017, which is also the only year he appeared in 100+ contests. Max Kepler has been consistently solid, but only played 115 games. Although talented, both Larnach and Kiriloff are still unproven. Gallo, of course, is coming off an abysmal season.

The Twin outfield is a high-risk/high-reward group. If Gallo rebounds, Buxton plays 120 games, and Kiriloff, Kepler, and Larnach put something together, they could have a highly productive outfield. But that's many ifs. They wouldn't be looking into another outfielder capable of playing center field if they were confident in their current options to stay both healthy and productive next year.

The player I have the Pittsburgh Pirates acquiring in this deal is Jordan Balazovic. Balazovic is a prime rebound and change-of-scenery candidate. Last year, Balazovic had atrocious numbers, including a 7.68 ERA, 6.80 FIP, and 1.97 WHIP. He had a mediocre 21.6% strikeout rate and 10.4% walk rate, but where he struggled the most was his home run rate. Balazovic allowed home runs at a 2.6-per-9 rate.

Now, why would the Pirates have any interest in Balazovic as a prospect? For one, bad luck was a significant factor in the right-hander's season. Balazovic had a .390 batting average on balls in play, the sixth-highest mark among all minor league pitchers (min. 70 IP). His home run rate should also regress to the norm. His HR/FB ratio of 29% was also the second worst in minor league baseball.

Balazovic sits in the 93-96 MPH range while throwing a slider and curveball. This trio of offerings projects as average or better. His change-up, meanwhile, is not as strong, but a pitch he can fall back on from time to time. But his command has suffered over the last two years. His walk rate has increased in each of the last two years. He's still worth giving another shot, given his underlying numbers, like BAbip and HR/FB ratio, show regression to the norm, at least to some degree.

The Twins need a true centerfield option in the almost inevitable event that Byron Buxton hits the injured list again. Although Gordon and Kepler can play the position, they're best suited for the outfield corners. Both Larnach and Kiriloff have little experience up the middle. Balazovic shouldn't be a massive ask from the Twins. He's a rebound candidate, and the Twins still have a handful of other notable pitching prospects.