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Hunter Stratton

Pirates Sign Tanner Rainey, Hunter Stratton To Minor League Contracts

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The Pirates have signed right-handers Tanner Rainey and Hunter Stratton to minors deals, as respectively reported by Just Baseball’s Aram Leighton (X link) and Stratton’s MLB.com profile page.  Rainey’s contract contains an invitation to the Pirates’ big league spring camp, and it can be assumed that Stratton’s deal also has an invite, though Stratton’s uncertain health situation in the wake of knee surgery could limit his participation in Spring Training.

Rainey heads to Pittsburgh after a topsy-turvy six-year run with the Nationals, highlighted by a World Series ring in his first year with the club.  Rainey delivered a 3.91 ERA and 34.6% strikeout rate in 48 1/3 relief innings for that 2019 championship team, but also had an ugly 17.8% walk rate.  These control issues plagued Rainey for most of his time in Washington, and he also missed virtually all of the 2023 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

After Rainey posted a 4.76 ERA, 19% strikeout rate, and 12.6% walk rate over 51 innings in 2024, the Nationals unsurprisingly decided to non-tender the righty, even though Rainey was projected for a modest $1.9MM arbitration salary.  Now entering his age-32 season, Rainey will look to rebuild himself in the Bucs’ spring camp, and hopefully regain some of the form and velocity that made him a valuable bullpen asset for the Nats in 2020 and 2022.

Stratton was also non-tendered by the Pirates in November, but there was an expectation that Pittsburgh would (just as they did last offseason) re-sign the righty to a new minor league deal.  Stratton has an impressive 3.26 ERA and 4.9% walk rate across 49 2/3 career Major League innings, all with Pittsburgh over the last two seasons.  Despite a lack of big strikeout totals, Stratton’s ability to induce soft contact has made him an interesting relief option out of the Pirates’ bullpen.

Unfortunately for Stratton, his 2024 season was cut short by a flukish injury on August 24 that left him with a ruptured patellar tendon.  Stratton was behind home plate at PNC Park and pursuing a loose ball when he stumbled into the stone wall, causing the injury and putting his career on hold for an estimated 7-10 months.  This fluid timeline means that Stratton would return anywhere from Opening Day to late June, but the minor league contract gives him plenty of time to fully get himself right during Spring Training or in the Pirates’ farm system.

Free Agent Notes: Stratton, Martin, Hill, De Jesus

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The Pirates have non-tendered Hunter Stratton in each of the last two offseasons, and after re-signing him to a minor league contract last winter, a team source tells Justin Guerriero of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that the Bucs want to do the same this time around.  Stratton suffered a ruptured patellar tendon in late August after a freak injury that saw the right-hander stumble into the stone wall behind home plate at PNC Park while pursuing a loose ball.

A subsequent knee surgery ended Stratton’s season, and he was given a recovery timeline of 7-10 months.  In the very best-case scenario, Stratton would be able to return on Opening Day, but the longer end of that timeline would keep him out until the end of June.  A clearer return date might emerge once Stratton gets deeper into his rehab, which also might impact when the Pirates or any other team might ink him to a new contract.  Stratton has a 3.26 ERA over 49 2/3 career bullpen innings over the last two seasons with Pittsburgh, with an impressive 4.9% walk rate and excellent soft-contact numbers.

More notes on some other players on the open market….

  • Chris Martin has suggested that 2025 will almost certainly be the final season of his career, and MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam believes Martin “likely looking to pitch closer to his Texas home.”  The 38-year-old Martin has spoken about his desire to spend more time with his growing family, so this could factor more into his decision-making process than necessarily chasing the biggest offers available.  Martin was born in Arlington and already pitched with his hometown Rangers during the 2017-18 seasons, and naturally the Astros would also be a logical destination if geography is Martin’s chief concern.  Martin figures to draw a lot of attention from teams all over the map, as he posted a 3.45 ERA and an elite 1.7% walk rate in 44 1/3 innings for the Red Sox in 2024.
  • Speaking of pitching close to home, Rich Hill told MLB Network’s Jon Morosi (X link) that he is open to pitching anywhere as he weighs whether or not to return for a 21st Major League season.  Hill lives in the greater Boston area and he pitched for the Red Sox in 2024, though the locale didn’t directly factor into Hill’s decision to join the Sox for the fourth different time in his career.  Hill’s desire to coach his son’s Little League team did impact his strategy of waiting until the second half of the 2024 season to sign, as he only landed a minors deal with the Sox in August.  When discussing his future plans earlier this month, Hill hinted that he would likely pursue a full-season schedule this time, though he hadn’t yet decided if he was going to pitch into his age-45 campaign.
  • Also from Morosi in another X entry, left-hander Enmanuel De Jesus is drawing interest from two unnamed Major League teams.  De Jesus posted a 3.68 ERA, 24.45% strikeout rate, and 6.04% walk rate over 171 1/3 innings with the KBO League’s Kiwoom Heroes in 2024, but the Heroes won’t be offering him a new contract for the coming KBO season.  The southpaw has a 4.01 ERA across 749 1/3 career innings and nine seasons in the affiliated minors, mostly with the Red Sox before pitching in the Giants organization in 2022 and the Marlins organization in 2023.  De Jesus’ only MLB experience came with Miami during that 2023 season, as he pitched 6 1/3 innings over two appearances and was hit hard for an 11.57 ERA.  While De Jesus worked more as a swingman in 2021-22, he has largely pitched as a starter throughout his career, including starting all 30 of his games with the Heroes.  A return to the KBO League with another team might be in the cards if De Jesus strictly wanted to start, or he could be open to a variety of roles if he is pursuing a path back to North American baseball.

National League Non-Tenders: 11/22/24

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The deadline to tender a contract to arbitration-eligible players is tonight at 7pm CT. Here’s a rundown of the players on National League teams that have been non-tendered today. This post will be updated as more decisions are revealed. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected salaries for all players eligible for arbitration last month. All players who are non-tendered before this evening’s deadline go directly into free agency, where they’re eligible to sign with any of MLB’s 30 clubs.

Onto the transactions…

  • The Braves non-tendered outfielder Ramón Laureano, left-hander Ray Kerr, as well as right-handers Griffin Canning, Huascar Ynoa and Royber Salinas, which you can read more about here.
  • The Brewers parted ways with lefty reliever Hoby Milner, who’d been projected at $2.7MM for his final arbitration season. The typically reliable southpaw was tagged for a 4.73 ERA in 64 2/3 innings this year.
  • The Cardinals have non-tendered right-hander Adam Kloffenstein, per Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat (Bluesky link). The righty only just made his major league debut in 2024 and was not yet arb-eligible. He immediately becomes a free agent without being exposed to waivers.
  • The Cubs have non-tendered infielder Nick Madrigal, per Jesse Rogers of ESPN (X link). Madrigal has hit .251/.304/.312 for a 76 wRC+ over the last three seasons with the Cubs and was projected for a $1.9MM salary next year. Chicago also announced they non-tendered outfielder Mike Tauchman, which comes as a bit of a surprise after he reached base at a .357 clip this year. Patrick Wisdom, Adbert Alzolay, Brennen Davis and Trey Wingenter — all of whom were designated for assignment earlier this week — were also dropped.
  • The Diamondbacks non-tendered lefty reliever Brandon Hughes, per a club announcement. The 28-year-old southpaw allowed 16 runs over 17 2/3 big league innings this year. He wasn’t eligible for arbitration but would’ve occupied a 40-man roster spot if offered a contract.
  • The Dodgers are non-tendering right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr. and left-hander Zach Logue, per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times (X link). Both pitchers are still in their pre-arbitration years, so this was more about the Dodgers sending them to free agency without exposing them to waivers, as opposed to cost cutting. Perhaps the club will look to re-sign them on minor league deals.
  • The Giants only made two non-tenders, parting with lefty Ethan Small and righty Kai-Wei Teng. Teng had been designated for assignment earlier in the week. Small, who was in his pre-arbitration years, spent the season in the minors or on the injured list.
  • The Marlins had zero non-tenders. They offered contracts to everyone on the 40-man roster.
  • The Mets dropped a trio of players from the 40-man roster: relievers Grant Hartwig and Alex Young and outfield prospect Alex Ramirez. Young was the only member of that group who’d been eligible for arbitration. The southpaw pitched well in a depth role, but the Mets didn’t want to keep him around at a $1.4MM projection. Hartwig made four appearances this year, while the 21-year-old Ramirez (a former top prospect) had a .210/.291/.299 showing in Double-A.
  • The Nationals announced that they have non-tendered right-hander Kyle Finnegan and Tanner Rainey, which you can read more about here.
  • The Padres dropped four players from the roster: righties Luis Patino and Logan Gillaspie, outfielder Bryce Johnson and infielder Mason McCoy. Patino, who underwent Tommy John surgery last summer, was the only member of the group who’d been eligible for arbitration. The other three cuts are simply about roster maintenance. The Padres could try to bring anyone from that group back on minor league deals.
  • The Phillies will not be tendering a contract to outfielder Austin Hays, which MLBTR covered earlier today.
  • The Pirates are expected to non-tender first baseman/outfielder Connor Joe and outfielder Bryan De La Cruz, per Alex Stumpf of MLB.com (Bluesky link). They are also non-tendering right-hander Hunter Stratton, per Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (X link). Joe was projected for a salary of $3.2MM next year and De La Cruz $4MM. Stratton had not yet qualified for arbitration. Joe has been around league average at the plate in his career but doing more damage against lefties. De La Cruz has hit .253/.297/.407 in his career for a wRC+ of 90. Startton had a 3.58 ERA this year but his season was ended by knee surgery, giving him an uncertain path forward.
  • The Reds have non-tendered right-hander Ian Gibaut, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer (Bluesky link). The righty was projected for a salary of $800K. He spent the vast majority of 2024 on the injured list due to arm trouble and only made two appearances on the season.
  • The Rockies moved on from starter Cal Quantrill and second baseman Brendan Rodgers, which MLBTR covered here.

Marco Gonzales To Undergo Flexor Surgery; Hunter Stratton Undergoes Knee Surgery

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Pirates lefty Marco Gonzales will undergo surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his left elbow, the team announced to reporters Wednesday (X link via Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette). Additionally, right-hander Hunter Stratton already underwent knee surgery to repair the ruptured patellar tendon he recently suffered. Gonzales’ procedure will be performed in early September and comes with a recovery timetable of nine months to a year, while Stratton’s procedure was completed today. He’s projected to need seven to ten months to be ready for a return to a big league mound.

Pittsburgh acquired Gonzales in a trade with the Braves this offseason, taking on $3MM of the veteran lefty’s $12MM salary in the process. (Atlanta had taken on Gonzales’ contract as part of their deal to acquire Jarred Kelenic from the Mariners.) A pair of forearm injuries will ultimately limit Gonzales to only seven starts for the Bucs — the first five of which were quite effective. The 32-year-old notched a 2.70 ERA over 26 2/3 frames in that stretch, fanning 17.3% of his opponents against a 5.5% walk rate. In his final two starts with the Pirates, however, Gonzales yielded nine runs on 15 hits and five walks in only seven innings.

The Bucs technically hold a 2025 option on Gonzales, but that’s priced at $15MM and comes with no buyout if the team opts to decline it. Given Gonzales’ recent injury troubles and the now lengthy rehab period he’ll face following surgery, it’s a foregone conclusion that the team will decline the option and make Gonzales a free agent. He’ll likely be ticketed for a minor league deal in free agency.

Injuries have held Gonzales to only 17 starts and 83 2/3 innings over the past two seasons, but prior to that the lefty was a fixture in the Mariners’ rotation. Seattle acquired him from the Cardinals in a straight-up swap for then-prospect Tyler O’Neill, and Gonzales quickly cemented himself in Seattle’s rotation thereafter. From 2018-22, Gonzales started 131 games for the Mariners, tallying 765 2/3 innings of 3.94 ERA ball with a 17.6% strikeout rate and 6% walk rate.

While Gonzales’ injury likely ends his tenure with Pittsburgh, that’s decidedly not the case for Stratton. The 27-year-old will finish the current season with just over one year of big league service time, meaning he’s controllable for five seasons beyond the current campaign. Given the solid nature of his results in 2024, Stratton has likely pitched his way into a future role with the team, so long as he can make a full recovery from his knee injury.

Dating back to last year’s MLB debut, Stratton has pitched 49 2/3 innings for the Pirates, during which he’s turned in a 3.26 ERA with a 21% strikeout rate, 4.9% walk rate and 41% ground-ball rate. He’s averaged 95.6 mph on his heater, done a nice job at dodging hard contact and recorded a hearty 12.6% swinging-strike rate that suggests some growth in his strikeout rate remains possible.

If Stratton is able to return on the short end of the team’s provided timetable, he’d be ready for game action near the end of spring training next year. That might ticket him for an early stint on the injured list, but a return in April would be feasible. If he skews closer to the lengthier end, a summer return would still be in the cards.

Pirates Place Hunter Stratton 60-Day IL After Patella Tendon Rupture

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11:03AM: Stratton’s season is officially over, as the Pirates placed him on the 60-day injured list.

7:38AM: Pirates right-hander Hunter Stratton suffered a left knee patella tendon rupture during the fourth inning of the Bucs’ 10-2 loss to the Reds on Saturday.  Stratton had just entered the game in relief of Jake Woodford, and his fourth pitch of the appearance was a wild pitch that evaded catcher Joey Bart.  As Jonathan India raced home to score from third base, Bart’s toss to Stratton (covering home plate) bounced off Stratton’s glove and rolled to the backstop.  While in pursuit of the loose ball, Stratton stumbled and jammed his left leg into the stone wall behind the plate.

Stratton was down for several minutes in the aftermath of the play, and had to leave the field on a cart.  Post-game, manager Derek Shelton told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Justin Guerriero and other reporters that Stratton was receiving an MRI and that the situation “did not look good.  I would say this is going to be significant time [out].”

Official word on Stratton’s status should come today when he is inevitably placed on the injured list, but between the nature of the knee injury and the late date on the baseball calendar, it would certainly seem like Stratton’s 2024 season is over.  The question now is how much time the 27-year-old will need to recover, and how much of his 2025 campaign could be impacted.

A 16th-round selection for the Pirates in the 2017 draft, Stratton didn’t make his MLB debut until 2023, when he had a 2.25 ERA over 12 innings as a September call-up.  Pittsburgh non-tendered Stratton following the season but then re-signed him to a new minor league contract, and he was part of the club’s Opening Day roster this year.  The righty’s first full Major League season has included a six-week stint on the IL due to a triceps strain, and now this flukish patella tendon rupture that will bring his year to a close.

When healthy, Stratton has pitched respectably well, posting a 3.58 ERA over 37 2/3 relief innings.  While his strikeout rate is a modest 20.9%, Stratton has done an excellent job of inducing soft contact, and he has avoided free passes to the tune of a 4.4% walk rate.  The latter stat is the most significant part of Stratton’s development into a big leaguer, as he had a 12.98% walk rate across his 392 career innings in the Pirates’ farm system.

Pirates Outright Ryder Ryan

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August 21: Ryan cleared waivers and was outrighted back to Triple-A Indianapolis, per the transaction log at MLB.com. It’s not clear whether he has elected free agency.

August 19: The Pirates announced a series of roster moves today, including the selection of outfielder Billy McKinney, which was previously reported. They also recalled right-hander Hunter Stratton. To make room for those two, the club placed third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes on the 10-day injured list with low back inflammation and designated righty Ryder Ryan for assignment.

It doesn’t come as a huge surprise that Hayes has landed on the IL with this back issue, as it’s been a recurring theme in his career so far. He landed on the shelf due to a back injury in 2022, twice in 2023 and now this is his second stint of the 2024 season. Yesterday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote about how Hayes has a disc problem in his back that requires him to play through pain, with no obvious treatment apart from rest.

“Someone who has what I have, you want to stay away from turning,” Hayes said to Mackey. “But that’s what I have to do every day. It’s been frustrating, for sure, just knowing that I’m a lot better than what I’m showcasing. I want to be out there every day, but it’s just … hard.”

The third baseman then got more into the weeds in discussing his injury. “My whole issue is the disc has lost its jelly stuff,” Hayes said. “When we look at the MRIs, [the discs are] just kind of compressing. I don’t know that it’s rubbing, but it’s definitely a little collapsed to where there’s pressure, inflammation builds up, and muscles want to try to protect.”

The Pirates have hovered around the playoff race this year but have hit a bad skid lately, going 3-13 in their past 16 games. They are still within 7.5 games of a Wild Card spot in the National League but would have to leapfrog six different teams in order to get into playoff positions. The Playoff Odds at FanGraphs give them just a 0.5% chance of making the postseason now, while the PECOTA Standings at Baseball Prospectus are slightly lower at 0.4%.

Perhaps the Bucs have accepted that this isn’t their year and will now get Hayes some rest as opposed to pushing him to play through his injury. Whether he will come back or simply be shut down perhaps depends on how he feels in the coming weeks.

Though the back issue isn’t new, it’s possible it’s impacting him more than in previous years. He came into this season with a .264/.320/.409 batting line and 98 wRC+ as well as 65 Defensive Runs Saved and 51 Outs Above Average at third base. This year, he’s hitting .233/.283/.290 for a wRC+ of 60 and his defensive grades are down a bit, though still strong, at 9 DRS and 5 OAA.

Finding a solution will obviously be a priority for the Bucs, as they gave Hayes an eight-year, $70MM extension in 2022. That deal runs through 2029 and has a club option for 2030, a significant commitment for a low-spending club like the Pirates. With Hayes out of action, the Bucs will likely give more infield time to guys like Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Jared Triolo and Alika Williams, with that group also covering second base alongside shortstop Oneil Cruz.

Ryan, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Pirates in the offseason and has been on and off their roster this year. He made the Opening Day roster and spent the first half of the season as a frequently-optioned depth arm. As of 2022, players can only be optioned five times per season and the Pirates had already optioned Ryan five times by the middle of July. He was then designated for assignment at the end of July and accepted an outright assignment. He was added back to the roster a week ago but now gets the DFA treatment again.

Around those transactions, he has thrown 20 2/3 innings at the major league level with a 5.66 earned run average, combining an 18.3% strikeout rate with a 9.7% walk rate and 37.1% ground ball rate. He has also thrown 28 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 4.45 ERA, 16% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 50% ground ball rate.

With the trade deadline now passed, the Bucs will have to place him on waivers in the coming days. He has one more option year remaining but can no longer be optioned here in 2024. Since he passed through waivers a few weeks ago and accepted an outright assignment, it’s possible that the same sequence of events takes place in the next few days.

Pirates Release Josh Walker

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Today: Walker has cleared waivers, and the Pirates have released him, according to his transaction log on MLB.com.

August 9: The Pirates announced they have designated left-hander Josh Walker for assignment. It was reported yesterday that the club would be selecting righty Domingo Germán but they needed a 40-man roster spot. Righty Hunter Stratton was optioned to get Germán onto the active roster.

Walker, 29, was designated for assignment by the Mets a couple of weeks ago. The Bucs then swung a deal for him, sending rookie ball pitcher Nicolas Carreno the other way, but kept Walker at Triple-A Indianapolis. He made one appearance there before landing on the minor league injured list with an undisclosed injury. Injured players can’t be placed on outright waivers and the trade deadline has passed, so Walker will end up on release waivers in the coming days.

The lefty spent his entire career with the Mets prior to the trade. He has 22 1/3 major league innings under his belt with a 6.45 earned run average, 22.3% strikeout rate and 11.7% walk rate. His minor league numbers are more intriguing. Over 2023 and 2024, he has 59 innings pitched on the farm with a 2.59 ERA and 31.7% strikeout rate, though his 13.9% walk rate is clearly on the high side. He will still have one option remaining after this season and less than a year of service time.

Pirates Designate Josh Fleming For Assignment

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The Pirates announced that infielder/outfielder Ji Hwan Bae has been recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis and right-hander Hunter Stratton has been reinstated from the 15-day injured list. They opened one roster spot yesterday by placing outfielder Bryan Reynolds on the bereavement list and opened another today by designating left-hander Josh Fleming for assignment.

Fleming, 28, signed with the Bucs in the offseason and now gets the DFA treatment for the second time this year. The first time resulted in him clearing waivers and accepting an outright assignment, which eventually led to his second stint in the big leagues this year.

He has logged 31 1/3 innings for the Pirates between those two stints, allowing 4.02 earned runs per nine. His 54.3% ground ball rate is quite strong but both his 12.3% strikeout rate and 10.1% walk are subpar.

Fleming is out of options and can’t be sent down to the minors without first being exposed to waivers. He was non-tendered by the Rays at the end of last year and signed a deal with the Bucs that pays him $850K in the majors and $240K in the minors. As a player with more than three years of major league service time, he has the right to reject outright assignments in favor of free agency. But since he’s south of the five-year service mark, doing so means forfeiting whatever money he’s still owed. That’s likely why he accepted his assignment the last time Pittsburgh sent him through waivers and why he may do so again.

His numbers this year are fairly similar to his time with Tampa. Overall, he has a 4.77 ERA in 254 2/3 innings. He has struck out just 14.6% of batters faced but has kept walks down to a 7.6% clip and kept balls in play on the ground at a 58.4% rate.

Perhaps some club will be interested in acquiring Fleming in the coming days. With the trade deadline on Tuesday, some teams will be opening holes on their rosters via trade and might need to fill some innings. Fleming could be retained via arbitration for three more years after this one but, as mentioned, he cleared waivers once already this year.

Pirates Designate Niko Goodrum For Assignment

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The Pirates announced they’ve selected left-hander Josh Fleming onto the MLB roster while placing reliever Hunter Stratton on the 15-day injured list due to a triceps strain. To open a spot on the 40-man roster for Fleming, Pittsburgh designated Niko Goodrum for assignment. The Pirates also announced that reliever Ben Heller accepted an assignment back to Triple-A Indianapolis following today’s outright.

Goodrum’s stint with Pittsburgh could last less than a week. The Bucs claimed him off waivers from the Angels on Monday. Skipper Derek Shelton didn’t get him into a game before the need for another pitcher squeezed him off the roster. The 32-year-old utilityman is on his fourth organization of the season. Goodrum initially signed a minor league deal with the Twins. He leveraged an upward mobility clause to secure a 40-man roster spot with the Rays late in Spring Training before bouncing to Los Angeles and Pittsburgh on waivers.

The left-handed hitter appeared in 13 games between the Rays and Angels, hitting .103 with 10 strikeouts and zero extra-base hits. Goodrum had fared well in 17 contests with Tampa Bay’s Triple-A club in Durham, turning in a .270/.387/.444 slash with a trio of home runs. He’ll very likely wind up back on waivers in the next couple days.

Fleming, another former Ray, is back for his second stint of the season. Over the winter, Pittsburgh signed the southpaw to a split deal that pays him at an $850K rate for time spent on the major league roster. Fleming occupied a long relief role early in the year but was tagged for 16 runs over 19 innings. The Bucs ran him through outright waivers in May.

The 28-year-old accepted the minor league assignment and has spent the past month in Indy. His results there haven’t been much better. Fleming has allowed eight runs over 12 2/3 Triple-A frames, striking out five of the 55 batters he’s faced. He’ll work as a multi-inning arm out of Shelton’s bullpen for the time being. Fleming is out of options, meaning the Bucs would again need to run him through waivers if they want to send him back to Triple-A.

Pirates Designate Canaan Smith-Njigba, Jackson Wolf, Ali Sánchez For Assignment

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The Pirates announced a series of Opening Day roster moves, selecting the contracts of right-handers Jared Jones, Ryder Ryan and Hunter Stratton. All three of those moves were previously reported. In corresponding 40-man moves, outfielder Canaan Smith-Njigba, catcher Ali Sánchez and left-hander Jackson Wolf were designated for assignment.

Smith-Njigba, 25 in April, has clearly been on the margins of the roster in Pittsburgh since this is the second time he’s lost his spot in the past two months. He was designated for assignment in January and claimed off waivers by the Mariners. The Mariners put him back on waivers a couple of weeks later and the Bucs claimed him back. In between those two moves, the 60-day injured list had opened up, allowing the Bucs to put JT Brubaker there and squeeze Smith-Njigba back on, but he’s now been nudged off again.

He has hit .279/.373/.452 in Triple-A over the past two years but has a measly slash of .135/.250/.243 in his 44 major league plate appearances. Given his strong minor league work, which also includes 21 steals last year, he could attract the attention of other clubs. He also has one option year remaining, so a claiming club could keep him stashed in the minors until his services are needed.

Sánchez, 27, signed a major league deal with the club in December but the club’s catching situation has changed since then. In 2023, they largely relied on Endy Rodríguez behind the plate with Henry Davis playing right field. But Rodriguez required UCL surgery in the offseason that is going to keep him out of action for the entire 2024 campaign. This spring, the Bucs moved Davis back behind the plate and also signed Yasmani Grandal for a bit of insurance.

Davis seems to have taken well to moving back behind the plate and is now slated for the lion’s share of the work back there this year. Grandal is starting the season on the IL but the Pirates will roll with Jason Delay as the backup for now. Delay has options and can be sent to Triple-A when Grandal returns. Sánchez is out of options and wouldn’t be in the same position.

Sánchez hit a paltry .125/.263/.125  this spring, which surely didn’t help, and he has just 14 major league plate appearances on his track record. But he’s coming off a strong season in the minors, as he hit .311/.375/.492 for the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A team last year.

Wolf, 25 in April, came over to the Pirates in last year’s deal that sent Ji Man Choi and Rich Hill to the Padres, having made one career start with the Friars. He’s not an overpowering arm, with a fastball that sits in the low 90s, but has nonetheless found some decent results. Between his two clubs last year, he tossed 124 1/3 minor league innings with a 4.13 earned run average, 26.8% strikeout rate and 6.4% walk rate.

He came into this year as the club’s #21 prospect, per Baseball America, but has been nudged off the roster as guys like Jones, Paul Skenes and others have seemingly jumped ahead of him on the depth chart. He still has a couple of options and could intrigue clubs, especially with starting depth always being in demand.

The Bucs will have one week to find trading partners for Smith Njigba, Sanchez or Wolf or else try to pass them through waivers.

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