Pirates Release Anderson, Davis and Evans

The Pirates announced that right-handed pitcher Tanner Anderson, catcher Taylor Davis and utility man Phillip Evans have been released. The trio are now free agents and are free to sign with any team.

The most notable of the bunch is Evans, who impressed with the Pirates in his debut with the team in 2020. In 11 games with the Pirates that year, he hit .359 with a .932 OPS and hit his first career home run before a collision with Gregory Polanco ended his season prematurely. It was a struggle for Evans in 2021 in Pittsburgh as he managed a slash of just .206/.312/.299 (68 OPS+) in 76 games. Evans was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis in August where he spent the majority of the rest of his season.

Anderson and Davis both made brief appearances with the Pirates during the final month of the season. In his second stint with Pittsburgh, Anderson pitched five innings in relief against the Cubs, where he allowed two runs on five hits and struck out a batter. Davis appeared in a pair of games in a Pittsburgh uniform and collected two hits and a walk.

The Pirates 40-man roster now stands at 37, and these moves likely won’t be the last the team makes prior to Friday’s deadline to protect Rule 5-eligible prospects by adding them to the roster.