Connor Joe Or Miguel Andújar, Did Pirates Get It Right? (+)
Entering the 2023 offseason, the Pittsburgh Pirates already had a fairly crowded mix of outfielders.
Even though he requested a trade, Bryan Reynolds is still on the team. It goes without saying that he will have an everyday role with the club so long as he is not traded before the season begins.
Jack Suwisnki did enough to impress in his rookie campaign between his power and defense that he will likely warrant a starting job as well.
Then there are a handful of young guys. Ji-hwan Bae, Cal Mitchell, Canaan Smith-Njigba and Travis Swaggerty all made their big league debuts a season ago.
Tucupita Marcano also spent a lot of his time in left field for the Pirates last season.
Even with a crowded mix of outfielders, nothing stopped the Pirates from adding to the mix of guys already in place.
One of the first moves the Pirates made this winter was claiming Ryan Vilade off waivers from the Colorado Rockies.
The Bucs added another outfielder from Colorado after they traded for Connor Joe, who was originally drafted by the Pirates in 2014.
The most notable outfield addition was the most recent. The Pirates brought back Andrew McCutchen on a one-year deal last month.
The latter of the three ended Miguel Andújar’s time on the Pirates’ 40-man roster as he was designated for assignment to make room for McCutchen.
The following week, Andújar cleared waivers and received a spring training invite as a non-roster player.
The Andújar DFA came as a surprise to some, but it made sense to others.
The question remains, is Andújar or Joe more worthy of a roster spot?
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First, when looking at both players, they have shown upside at the plate.
Andújar finished second in the American League Rookie of the Year race with the Yankees after finishing the year with a .297 batting average, an .855 OPS, 47 doubles, 27 home runs and 92 RBIs.
Since then, however, Andújar has not received consistent playing time and has struggled at the plate when he has gotten a chance.
Joe burst onto the scene with Colorado last season in 63 games. He finished with a .285/.379/.469 slash line with eight home runs and 35 RBIs.
With a more regular role in 2022, Joe took a step back. He mustered a .697 OPS and managed only seven long balls in 111 games.
Defensively, both players were expected to have similar roles as corner outfield and first base options.
For his career, Joe has been an above-average defender in left field (11 DRS) and at first base (six DRS) but struggled in right field last season (-5 DRS in 16 games)
Andújar came up as a natural third baseman but had major hiccups at the hot corner, prompting a move to left field.
Andújar has amassed a total of one DRS in his career in left field. He has only received a few chances at first base and has yet to man right field.
Then there is always the age factor. While Andújar debuted way back in 2017, he doesn’t turn 28 until next month.
Joe, who made his big league debut in 2019 in a brief stint with the Giants, is already 30 years old.
When the Pirates acquired Joe for minor league righty Nick Garcia, Andújar still seemingly had a role on the team, even if it was a diminished one.
After the late addition of McCucthen, however, that role became even less clear as the Pirates had three similar players.
After all, three is a crowd and the Pirates decided Andújar would be the casualty.
For now, Joe has the inside track as he still has possession of a 40-man roster spot. But with a couple of minor league options remaining, this battle may still not be settled yet.
Andújar could still crack the roster with a strong spring, or he could begin the year at Triple-A and be waiting for his turn.
This spring could be a big one for both players.
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