4 players the Pittsburgh Pirates should acquire using their pitching talent

The Pittsburgh Pirates should try to use the copious amount of pitching talent they've built up to acquire Major League-proven hitters. The Bucs will likely have Jared Jones, Paul Skenes, and Mitch Keller penciled into three of the rotation spots for the foreseeable future. They will also have Mike Burrows return during the second half of this year after recovering from Tommy John surgery, along with Johan Oviedo, who will likely return from his own Tommy John surgery in 2025. Plus, they have Quinn Priester on the 40-man roster, who looks like he could turn into a solid #4-#5 type starter.

The minor leagues have even more talented arms. Bubba Chandler, Anthony Solometo, Thomas Harrington, and Braxton Ashcraft are all part of Double-A Altoona's roster (Harrington is on a rehab assignment but will get sent back to Altoona once he builds up). Hunter Barco is likely on the verge of joining them. Then you have a handful of high school-aged arms at A-Ball and lower, like Michael Kennedy, Jun-Seok Shim, and Zander Mueth. There are a handful of other names that aren't listed on most prospect lists that are worth watching, too.

This could become a good problem, but a problem nonetheless. While it would be unreasonable for any team to make every single one of their prospects good or expect them to all be starters, the Pirates already have three rotation spots potentially filled and will have three more starters on the 40-man roster healthy by the start of next season, and have a myriad of others that are going to be on the Pirates' Major League door. Now would be the best time for the Pirates to use some of this talent to fix the holes in the lineup.

Taylor Ward

Taylor Ward is one of the Los Angeles Angels outfielders, but the Halos might be willing to listen to any of their arbitration-eligible players. Ward is a solid corner outfield who brings some power. He's someone the Pirates should definitely look into if the Angels are willing to part with the outfielder.

Ward hit .265/.346/.449 with a 121 wRC+ in the three seasons prior to 2024. He's off to another good start as he's currently slashing .273/.307/.469 through 153 plate appearances. Ward is hitting for a good amount of power. He's already slugged seven home runs with an ISO of .196, which is currently a career-best. Ward's 21.6% strikeout rate isn't out of the ordinary for him, but his 5.6% walk rate is. The last three seasons saw Ward draw ball four in 9.8% of his plate appearances.

Ward might be taking a different approach, but it's working well. He could be even better than he already is. The slugger is above the 80th percentile of both exit velocity (91.6 MPH) and barrel rate (13.4%). He has registered a .293 xBA, .541 xSLG%, and a .377 xwOBA, all three of which are much higher than his current batting average, slugging percentage, and weighed on-base average. 

Ward typically grades out as a decent right fielder. So far this year, he has +1 defensive run saved and out above average. In his two prior seasons, he had just -2 DRS and +4 OAA between all three outfield positions. Plus, he consistently registers average to above-average arm strength numbers.

I am all aboard for the Pirates to go after Ward. The one downside is that Ward doesn't have a lot of control remaining. He becomes a free agent after the 2026 season. But he'd be worth the two-and-a-half seasons. If Ward is on the trading block during this summer, the Pirates should look into acquiring him and trade some of the arms in the system.

Bryan De La Cruz

The Miami Marlins have already sold off one of their top players, that being infielder Luis Arraez. He was traded to the San Diego Padres earlier this month. With the way the Marlins are playing this year, he'll likely not be the last fish out the door. Another notable Marlins player who might get traded is outfielder/designated hitter Bryan De La Cruz.

De La Cruz posted about league average numbers from 2021-2023 but has looked much better this season. The 27-year-old is batting .269/.315/.469 with a .345 wOBA, and 112 wRC+. De La Cruz has never been one to draw many walks, and his 6.5% BB% falls in line with his career average. So does his 25% strikeout rate. 

But he is hitting for a lot more power. He already has eight home runs in 168 plate appearances. He hit all of 19 last season in 626 trips to the plate. De La Cruz has a .205 isolated slugging percentage. He is posting a career-high launch angle of 12.8 degrees, which has helped lead to another career high in barrel rate at 13% and in the top 87th percentile. 

Barrel rate isn't the only reason De La Cruz might continue to do well or improve. His expected slugging percentage is .542, which clocks into the 96th percentile. His expected batting average is .289, while his xwOBA is .372. These are all above the 85th percentile among all qualified players.

While De La Cruz has a lot of potential with the bat, his defense hasn't been nearly as strong. He has over 550 innings at all three outfield positions throughout his career and has combined for just -6 DRS and -12 OAA. So far this year, the Marlins have split his playing time between designated hitter and left field.

Still, the bat is what you're buying into with Bryan De La Cruz, and it's a good stick. He also doesn't become a free agent until after 2027, so he has over three seasons of control left. De La Cruz is someone who could provide a lot of power for the Pirates, even if his glove isn't great.

Final potentialtarget for the Pirates: Isaac Paredes

Isaac Paredes has developed into one of the most underrated players in baseball, but still received some trade rumors last off-season. After being acquired by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2021-2022 off-season. Paredes broke out with a solid 2022 campaign. But he got even better in his second season with the Rays last year and looks like he’s taken another massive step forward in 2024.

Last year he hit .250/.352/.488 with 31 home runs. Paredes had both a quality 10.3% walk rate and an 18.2% strikeout rate. Parades had a .238 ISO. Between his outstanding power output, above-average walk rate, and ability to get hits at a slightly above average rate, Paredes posted a .362 wOBA, and 137 wRC+.

Paredes looks even better this season. It’s only been 150 plate appearances, but now he’s hitting .300/.387/.523 with a .396 wOBA, and 163 wRC+. He already has eight home runs on the year. Parades are still walking at a strong 10.7% rate, but he’s striking out even less frequently. His strikeout percentage clocks in at just 15.3%.

Paredes has lined up at third base most frequently for the Rays where he graded out as an above-average defender in 2022-2023. He hasn’t looked as sharp there this year, but third isn’t the only position he is familiar with. Paredes also has over 450 innings at the keystone where he has -3 DRS, but +4 OAA, along with 275.2 innings at first base with -2 DRS/+2 OAA.

Paredes is controlled through 2027, so he comes with three and a half years left on his contract. A plus hitter with solid defense at three positions, and control remaining? What’s the catch? Paredes probably has the least amount of power I’ve ever seen from a 30-home-run hitter. He was in just the 13th percentile of exit velocity (86.9 MPH) and the 26th percentile of barrel rate (5.9%). 

He is all about pulling flyballs, and that works well in Tropicana. It’s just 315 feet down the left field line and 370 to right field. Meanwhile, it’s 325 feet down the right field line and 380 feet to right field at PNC Park. According to Baseball Savant, only 16 of his 30 home runs last season would have left PNC.

Still, 16 home runs are solid for the amount of walks he draws and how infrequent he strikes out. Plus he obviously wouldn’t play every game at PNC. The Pirates’ home turf and the Marlins’ park are the only two National League stadiums where fewer than 20 of his home runs would have left. Being able to play three positions well, including first base, would make him valuable to the Pirates. The only thing left to be afraid of is trading with the Tampa Bay Rays.