Pirates Shortstop a Trade Candidate for Two Teams

PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh Pirates player has high trade interest from two other MLB teams.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports reported that both the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants are both "keeping an eye" on Pirates shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who he sees as someone available at the trade deadline.

Kiner-Falefa previously played two seasons with the Yankees, after the Minnesota Twins traded him there prior to the 2022 season.

He played in 142 games in 2022 for the Yankees, slashing .261/.314/.327, along with 126 hits, 20 doubles, 48 RBI, 22 stolen bases and 35 walks. 

Kiner-Falefa lost his shortstop starting job in 2023 in favor of Anthony Volpe. He served as a utility player for the Yankees that campaign, slashing .242/.306/.340, with 79 hits, 12 doubles, 37 RBI, 14 stolen bases and 28 walks in 113 games.

He has served as the Pirates starting shortstop in 2025, with 64 starts in 65 games so far. He has 87 putouts and 153 assists on 246 chances, with six errors and 29 turned double plays.

Kiner-Falefa has also served as one of the best hitters for the Pirates, slashing .275/.319/.342 for an OPS of .661. with 61 hits in 222 at-bats, 10 doubles, one triple, one home run, 17 RBIs, 11 walks to 39 strikeouts and nine stolen bases.

He leads the Pirates in batting average, ranks tied second for stolen bases, third for on-base percentage, fourth in slugging, tied third for hits and doubles and sixth in RBIs.

Kiner-Falefa missed 10 games after going on the 10-day injured list with lower body discomfort on May 3 and came back on May 12 vs. the New York Mets at Citi Field.

The Pirates landed Kiner-Falefa in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays on July 30, 2024, with Charles McAdoo headed the other way.

He played 50 games with the Pirates in 2024, slashing .240/.265/.322 with 50 hits, 10 doubles, two triples, one home run, 10 RBIs, eight stolen bases and three walks to 41 strikeouts.

Kiner-Falefa hails from Hawaii and played for Mid-Pacific Institute in high school prior to the Texas Rangers taking him in the Fourth Round of the 2013 MLB Draft.

He would eventually come up to the Rangers in 2018 and played four season for them, 2018-21. He slashed .265/.316/.354, played in 1,523 games, with 372 hits in 1,404 at-bats, 59 doubles, 16 home runs, 118 RBI, 84 walks to 233 strikeouts and an OPS of .670. 

Kiner-Falefa also won an American League Gold Glove in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, playing at third base. He also led the American League with 136 singles in 2021.

The Rangers traded him to the Minnesota Twins, who then traded him to the Yankees prior to the 2022 campaign.

He chose to sign a two-year, $15 million contract with the Blue Jays in the 2023 offseason. He played in 82 games with them in 2024, slashing .292/.338/.420, with 75 hits, eight doubles, seven home runs, 33 RBI and 13 walks.

This is the final year of that contract for Kiner-Falefa and the Pirates can either trade him and see what they can get in return, or try to re-sign him in the offseason.