The Pittsburgh Pirates are expected to be busy this offseason, both in free agency and via the trade market. But how much will they actually do?
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington has said that the team is looking for bats to improve a league-worst offense, but whether or not we can actually trust that Pittsburgh will make the moves necessary to compete remains to be seen.
Advertisement
Most will probably agree that the Pirates seem more likely to pursue shrewd trades rather than big-money free-agent additions, so it should come as no surprise that ESPN’s David Schoenfield has connected Pittsburgh to a potential move with the San Francisco Giants.
In Schoenfield’s suggestion, the Buccos would send starting pitcher Mitch Keller to the Giants in exchange for a very compelling young hitter.
“Do the Pirates have enough rotation depth to trade Keller? Probably not, but they do have Paul Skenes, Mike Burrows, Braxton Ashcraft, Johan Oviedo and Bubba Chandler, plus Jared Jones returning from injury, so there at least is the makings of an exciting young rotation even without Keller,” Schoenfield wrote. “They need power, however, so the ask from the Giants would be their top prospect, first baseman Bryce Eldridge.”
Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Mitch Keller. Credit:Â Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images.
Keller logged a 4.19 ERA while allowing 171 hits and registering 150 strikeouts over 176.1 innings of work in 2025. He is three seasons removed from an All-Star appearance, but even then, he managed a rather pedestrian 4.21 ERA.
Advertisement
The 29-year-old has decent stuff, but he has averaged just 8.6 strikeouts per nine innings throughout his big-league career, and he owns a lifetime 4.51 ERA since entering the majors back in 2019. Plus, he has four years remaining on a five-year, $77 million extension he signed in February 2024. In other words, he is expendable.
Meanwhile, Eldridge saw brief big-league action this past season, managing three hits over 37 plate appearances. He slashed .260/.333/.510 with 25 home runs and 84 RBI across 433 trips to the dish in the minors, including 286 plate appearances at Triple-A.
The 21-year-old was the 12th-ranked prospect in baseball by Baseball America entering 2025 and is a former first-round pick, so he definitely has potential.
Would San Francisco actually surrender a top prospect for a pitcher as mediocre as Keller? That seems rather unlikely, but if Pittsburgh can convince the Giants to do it, then Cherington should absolutely pull the trigger on such a deal.