Should the Pirates make a roster move with Jared Triolo?

Currently playing at third base for the Pittsburgh Pirates is Jared Triolo. Unfortunately, the Pirates starting third baseman is on the Injured List due to his back. So Triolo is getting a chance to head back to his natural position, a position that he won a Minor League Gold Glove.

No one will question Triolo's defensive effort. He has made a smooth transition to second base and has made some highlight-real plays already. In fact, he owns a 6 DRS (defensive runs saved) which is good for third in all of baseball. The only two players in front of Triolo are Ketel Marte and Marcus Semien, two all-star caliber players.

The issue with Triolo is not the glove, rather it is the bat. In 2023 he played 53 total games and hit for a strong average of .298. However, his BABIP was among the leaders in the metric at .440. This is batting average on balls in play. The higher the number the more likely one is to regress, especially when you consider the lack of power he produces with the bat.

What is happening to him this year is exactly what many expected. He is regressing. Now, I do not think anyone expected him to regress to a .193 hitter with a WrC+ of 54, but here we are. Things obviously are not clicking this year for him.

So should the Pirates consider sending Triolo down to Triple-A? It probably is time too. Yes, he still very well could be a fine utility player, as he showed last year. However, he needs to reset, much like Henry Davis needed to be sent down to reset. No one is giving up on Davis yet and the same can be sad for Triolo.

The team's best option to replace Triolo is with Ji-Hwan Bae. Bae started the year on the Injured List and has now been playing regularly at Triple-A. So far he has played 21 games at Triple-A and is hitting .357 with an OPS north of 1.000. He has also stolen 6 bases already.

Now Bae had a chance last year to cement himself on the Pirates roster, but that did not happen.

However, now would be the perfect opportunity to call him up and see if he can keep up at the Big League level once and for all. Meanwhile, Triolo can get back into the swing of things in games without as much pressure. Who would play third with Hayes out? Move Nick Gonzales over there which will allow Bae and/or Alika Williams to get the reps at second.