Pirates Desperate for Offseason Upgrade at Critical Position

The Pirates traded Frazier to the Kansas City Royals for infielder Cam Devanney on July 16, McCutchen spent most of the season at designated hitter and Solak hasn't broke through at the MLB level yet.

Bae had one hit in 20 at-bats for a .050 batting average, Simon is out until early spring after undergoing shoulder surgery, Suwinski hit .147 in 59 games and Canario hit .218 in 87 games.

The Pirates also have Billy Cook and Will Robertson on their 40-man roster. Cook played three games for the Pirates in 2025 and hit .248 with Triple-A Indianapolis, while Robertson hit .129 in 27 games last season at the MLB level.

Pittsburgh also doesn't have a ton of outfield prospects that are ready for immediate contributions at the start of the 2026 season, with none of them at Triple-A yet.

Esmerlyn Valdez had a breakout season and is continuing that play in the Arizona Fall League, which could see him on the roster sometime in 2026, but unlikely at the beginning. Mitch Jebb mostly played center field for Double-A Altoona in 2025 and Edward Florentino is just 18 years old and has only played as high as Single-A Bradenton.

Is Free Agency the Answer for the Pirates?

The Pirates notoriously served as one of the few teams with the lowest payrolls in baseball for most of the tenure under owner Bob Nutting and expecting a change in 2026 is a bit too hopeful.

They also haven't signed a position player to a multi-year deal since John Jaso on Dec. 23, 2015 for two years and $8 million, while not signing any player to a multi-year deal since right-handed starting pitcher Iván Nova, who signed for three years, $26 million on Dec. 27, 2016.

The left field options in free agency also don't provide much hope for the Pirates, with no one having a WAR higher than 2.9, which is Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who has a $13.0 million player option in his contract.

Other free agent left field options include Rob Refsnyder, former Pirates player Miguel Andujar, Tyler O'Neill, who can opt-out of his $16.5 million salary for 2026, Austin Hays, Jesse Winker, Michael Conforto, Mark Canha, Travis Jankowski, Alex Verdugo and Chris Taylor.

Would a Trade Work Best for a Left Field Piece for the Pirates?

The Pirates will likely use the trade market to find an MLB-ready bat, especially one who can play in left field.

Boston Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran was one name that came around when teams were looking to trade for Pirates right-handed starting pitcher Mitch Keller, who stuck with the team past the deadline.

The Pirates could move the almost $17 million salary for Keller and use that to pay the $8 million club option for Duran that he'll have for the 2026 season and then the other two seasons for his arbitration in 2027 and 2028.

Duran slashed .256/.332/.442 for an OPS of .774 in 157 games this past season, which wasn't quite as good as 2024, when he earned his first All-Star nod and finished eighth in American League MVP voting, but would still bring the Pirates an every day starter in left field.

The Pirates will likely look at other bats, but Duran would serve as a good option to look at.