Recent MLB trade could pave the path for the Pirates to clear their catching logjam

The Pittsburgh Pirates could have a logjam at catcher next year. Joey Bart is likely penciled into the starting role, with Endy Rodriguez returning from Tommy John surgery and both Henry Davis and Jason Delay on hand. The Bucs are also rumored to be looking at the catching market, and could look to bring Paul Skenes’ personal catcher, Yasmani Grandal, back for another season. The Pirates should look to make a trade involving one of their catchers, especially if they bring Grandal back into the fold.

If the Pirates consider trading any of their backstops, it should be Delay. There are always teams in need of catching depth, and Delay is a solid part-time/second-string option. Delay missed a good portion of the 2024 season with injuries, appearing in just seven major league games. He only had 171 plate appearances at Triple-A and, to his credit, did not do poorly. He turned in a .287/.357/.360 triple-slash with a .332 wOBA and 93 wRC+ in the small sample size.

Delay did appear in 70 games for the big league club in 2023 as the Bucs’ backup to Austin Hedges and, eventually, Rodriguez. He didn’t hit much, only batting .251/.319/.347 with a .296 wOBA and 83 wRC+ across 187 plate appearances. His batting average and OBP were roughly league average, but he had a sub-.100 isolated slugging percentage with just a single home run. Delay’s 7.5% walk rate and 23.5% K% weren’t horrible, but were still slightly worse than average in 2023.

Of course, Delay’s strength lies within his defensive ability. Delay has +4 defensive runs saved and +11.8 framing runs throughout 966.2 innings behind the dish. The backstop has yet to allow a passed ball in his career, either. Delay’s arm strength is on the weaker side, as his throws only averaged 78.6 MPH, but his 1.99-second pop time is slightly better than the average backstop.

There are several MLB teams that are currently in need of another backstop. The free agent market is pretty barren, even for teams that only need a second-string catcher. Luckily, some of these desperate squads might have something interesting to offer the Pirates for Delay.

The Pittsburgh Pirates could send Jason Delay to the following trade destination

One of those teams is the San Diego Padres. The Padres lost catcher Kyle Higashioka in free agency this offseason to the Texas Rangers. That leaves Luis Campusano as their primary backstop. While he had a poor 2024, both with the glove and bat, the Padres likely are not ready to give up on the 26-year-old former top prospect, especially after he showed so much promise in 2023. But the Padres only have one other catcher on the 40-man: Brett Sullivan.

If the Pirates can make a trade with the Padres involving Delay, they should ask about some of the Padres relievers. One that might stand out is Sean Reynolds. The 26-year-old spent most of the season at Triple-A, where he had a 6.17 ERA but a solid 4.32 FIP, 26.7% K%, and 0.67 HR/9. Keep in mind this was in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League; even bad numbers might look pretty solid in a different context.

The right-handed relief prospect made a fine debut, allowing one earned run with 21 Ks, albeit with five walks in 11 innings of work. Reynolds primarily used an upper-90s four-seamer and upper-80s slider. Stuff+ put Reynolds in a very positive light at 129 (100 is considered average). For reference, had Reynolds pitched enough to qualify, he would have been in the top 20 of Stuff+ in the league.

Another reliever the Pirates could ask about is Stephen Kolek. The Padres acquired Kolek last offseason in the Rule 5 draft. Kolek had a poor 5.21 ERA, but a lot suggests that could be a complete fluke. Kolek struck out just 18.5% of his opponents, but had a walk rate of 5.7%. He also had a strong 0.77 HR/9. Kolek induced ground balls at a 55.7% rate. Along with keeping the ball on the ground, he induced soft contact at a high rate, with just an 88.1 MPH exit velocity and 3.8% barrel rate. Despite those numbers, he had a .359 batting average on balls in play. ERA estimators were much kinder to Kolek, as he put up a 3.46 xFIP, 3.41 SIERA, and 3.57 FIP. Like Reynolds, Stuff+ put Kolek in a positive light at 107.

On paper, asking for Reynolds or Kolek seems like a lot of upside for a backup catcher. However, the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds recently set somewhat of a precedent. Last week, the two clubs converged on a deal that sent backstop Jose Trevino to the Reds for pitcher Fernando Cruz. Trevino has served as a backup catcher for most of his career with a .637 OPS, .277 wOBA, and 74 wRC+. Aside from the first two months of the 2022 season, he hasn’t done much with the stick. Defensively, Trevino has a whopping +45 defensive runs saved with +45.6 framing runs.

Cruz might not seem like a high-upside pitcher on the surface. He’s 34 and has a 4.88 ERA with an 11.1% walk rate in the last two seasons - but that comes with a 36.5% strikeout rate, 1.07 HR/9, and 1.27 WHIP. In 2024, Cruz had a 2.74 SIERA and 2.67 xFIP. Cruz’s Stuff+ rating last year was outstanding at 116. There have been only two primary relievers in the last two seasons with a higher K% than Cruz: Aroldis Chapman and Josh Hader. Cruz is also still an entire year away from arbitration.

The Pirates need relief pitching, and they should try to make a trade similar to what the Yankees and Reds did with Trevino and Cruz. The Padres are one of the better fits, but other teams, including the Philadelphia Phillies, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, and even the Yankees, now that they’ve traded Trevino, could also work in a similar trade.