Talkin' Baseball trade deadline draft has Pirates fans dreaming of offense

The 2024 MLB Trade Deadline is less than two weeks away, and Talkin' Baseball undertook their annual trade deadline draft to get baseball fans set for the main event. During this draft exercise, the Talkin' Baseball guys paired potential trade deadline movers with possible fits. The guesser who names the most fits accurately, when the dust settles, wins.

This time around, the Talkin' Baseball team named a number of offensive fits for Pittsburgh, and provided three different options for the Pirates to bolster their offense with rental bats.

This post shows that the Talkin' Baseball team believes in the Pirates to make some noise at this year's trade deadline. Although other insiders have linked the Pirates to other players with control, going the rental route could work out well for them in their postseason push. Let's take a look at who the Talkin' Baseball team thinks the Pirates might acquire at this years trade deadline.

Talkin' Baseball believes that Jesse Winker, Tommy Pham, and Danny Jansen could be traded to the Pirates at this year's MLB Trade Deadline.

The Pirates' biggest holes in their roster are mainly in the starting lineup. Bryan Reynolds was an All-Star, but the rest of the outfield has not been good. Josh Palacios has looked solid, but he has only been up for less than 10 games. This makes Pittsburgh a likely target for outfielders on the market.

Jesse Winker is a very notable name to many Pirate fans, as he was once a Pirate killer with the Reds. Last offseason, he signed a one-year deal with the Washington Nationals, and is likely to be dealt at the deadline. Although he has primarily played left field for the Nats, a corner outfield of Reynolds and Winker would be excellent for this team.

This season, Winker has a batting average of .260 with 11 home runs and 43 runs batted in. He also has an OPS of .806, which includes an on-base percentage of .374 and a slugging percentage of .432. His wRC+ is great at 130 and he has stolen 12 bases. Winker is a solid option for the Pirates to add to their weak lineup.

Another outfielder that Talkin' Baseball has listed as a potential fit in Pittsburgh is Tommy Pham. This choice is interesting, as the Pirates pursued Pham this past offseason, but ultimately signed Michael A. Taylor instead. Now that they are in contention of a playoff appearance, their interest in Pham may have sparked again, and he would benefit the team.

In just 60 games this season, Pham has a batting average of .264 with four home runs and 16 runs batted in. He also has an OPS of .706, which includes an on-base percentage of .339 and a slugging percentage of .368. His wRC+ sits at 103 and his strikeout percentage sits at 21%. His defense is not great, but his bat would improve the lineup.

Another hole in the Pirates' roster is at catcher. Joey Bart has been excellent when healthy, but Yasmani Grandal and Henry Davis have not met their expectations while on the team. Grandal currently is with the big-league club, while Davis is in Triple-A, and the Bucs could use a new catcher. Talkin' Baseball floated Danny Jansen from the Blue Jays as a potential Pirate.

In 58 games this season, Jansen has a .223 batting average with six home runs and 17 runs batted in. He also has an OPS of .707, which includes an on-base percentage of .316 and a slugging percentage of .391. His wRC+ is at 103 and his walk percentage is great at 11.3%. He has great defense as well, which would pair nicely with Bart. Grandal can frame, but that is all he can do, while lugging around his poor bat.

No matter who it is, the Pirates should try to get someone that would improve the team. Easier said than done, but if the Pirates want to get back to the postseason, then some deadline moves will need to be done.