The Pittsburgh Pirates’ search for their 2026 third baseman might lead them to the one they already have, Jared Triolo. The Pirates were in the race for Eugenio Suárez, who chose the Cincinnati Reds instead, despite reports from Jason Mackey from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and others that the Pirates’ offer was better.

I’m told Pirates offered same AAV on Eugenio Suarez ($15 million) were willing to go higher, as well as add another year.

Sounds like his choice came down to a better ballpark fit, familiarity and a chance to cash in next year with a big season.

— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) February 1, 2026

They also missed out on Brendan Donovan, who the St. Louis Cardinals traded to the Seattle Mariners on Monday. However, there were no rumors connecting the Pirates to Donovan. Indeed, Donovan never fit the description of what they were looking for. He’s played third base before but is primarily a second baseman. As a left-handed hitter, he wouldn’t have provided the right-handed bat the Pirates so sorely need. St. Louis received quite a haul of highly ranked prospects for him. The cost in prospects may have been too steep for the Pirates anyway.

As Pirates Search for a Third Baseman, Jared Triolo Might Be Their Man

In 2025, the right-handed-batting Triolo hit .227/.311/.356, 7 HR, and 24 RBI in 107 games for the Pirates. The 2024 Gold Glove recipient struggled mightily in the first half. On July 11, he was hitting .158/.253/.266 and was dispatched to Triple-A Indianapolis. He was much better when he returned on August 1, hitting .315 in August before dropping down to .240 for September. He was solid with the glove all season, and in fact, his defensive metrics were better than they were in his Gold Glove season. His detractors might be surprised to learn that, according to Baseball Reference, Triolo led Pirates position players with a 2.3 WAR. (FanGraphs was less generous, giving him a 1.5 “batters’” WAR, placing him third among Pittsburgh’s position players.)

I’m ruling out other internal solutions like Nick Gonzales and Nick Yorke. Gonzales, the incumbent second baseman, is a man without a position since the Pirates acquired Brandon Lowe in an offseason trade. He’s played just 10 major league innings at the hot corner. If the Pirates liked him there, he’d have played there more often. The youngster Yorke hasn’t impressed in two brief trials with the big club so far. He has an uphill climb just to make the team.

Who Else is Available (Supposedly)?

None of this is to suggest that the Pirates shouldn’t continue shopping for a third baseman. Pundits have recommended that the Pirates target a third baseman in the trade market. Names that have been thrown about include Isaac Paredes of the Houston Astros, Josh Jung of the Texas Rangers, and any number of New York Mets: Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio, or Mark Vientos. The Astros and Paredes just settled his arbitration case for $9.35 million. The deal includes a $13.35 million club option for 2027. Paredes would be an ideal candidate to man third base for the Pirates. Last season, he hit .254/.352/.458, 20 HR, and 53 RBI despite being limited to 102 games because of injuries. The Astros don’t seem to have room for him in their infield after reacquiring Carlos Correa last season. There’s one problem, however. Astros general manager Dana Brown doesn’t feel compelled to trade Paredes.

Similarly, there are no credible rumors to the effect that any of the other aforementioned names are being shopped in trades either. Indeed, with the possible exception of Vientos, their teams don’t seem to have a compelling reason for dealing any of them. So, let’s take a closer look at the Pirates with Triolo at third base.

A Closer Look

Triolo looked like he finally figured it out in the batter’s box last August. However, he’s enticed the Pirates before with hot hitting and then nose-dived in the opposite direction. He hit .298/.388/.398 as a rookie in 2023. That came with an unsustainable Williamsesque .440 BABIP and a 30.1 strikeout rate that should have set off alarms. He slumped badly in 2024, hitting .216/.296/.315.

The conventional wisdom says that third base is a power position, and a team can’t win if the third baseman doesn’t contribute offensively. But the Detroit Tigers won the World Series in 1968 with Don Wert lugging his .200 average to the hot corner every day. Similarly, the 1983 Baltimore Orioles were World Series champions with .208-hitting Todd Cruz at third. Those Orioles made up for it with American League Most Valuable Player Cal Ripken Jr. at shortstop. Ripken hit .318/.371/.517, 27 HR, and 102 RBI in 1983. The 1968 Tigers were able to carry Wert due to great pitching.

If the Pirates don’t get enough offense from Triolo, they’ll have to make up for it in other ways, too. One way might be for MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin to make the team as the Opening Day shortstop and bust out of the gate as advertised. Besides, shortstop is one of the toughest positions for a rookie breaking in. Having Triolo on Griffin’s right wouldn’t be the worst thing. Or maybe if the pitching staff is as good as predicted, the Pirates’ new additions might be enough on the offensive side.

You Can’t Always Get What You Want

Last season, only eight third basemen hit 20 or more home runs. Only five playoff teams had a third baseman with 20 or more home runs. It’s a fallacy that a team can’t be successful unless it has a superstar at every position (although it certainly helps). Plenty of teams have made the postseason without a star at each position. (See Wert and Cruz, above.)

The point is that you can’t always get what you want. Every team continues to shop this offseason. With rare exception, every team will open the 2026 season with deficiencies that they wish they could have corrected before the season. Pirates fans of a certain age recall suffering through the disastrous Jim Tracy Era of 2006-07, when the manager tried to manage the team he wished he had instead of the team he had. So, if Pirates GM Ben Cherington comes up short in the quest for third base help, manager Don Kelly should let Triolo be Triolo and see what that brings. If it’s not enough, there’s always the trade deadline.

Mandatory Photo Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images