How Are Pirates’ Deadline Deals Looking as Season Winds Down?

The Pittsburgh Pirates were quite active leading up to and through this year’s Aug. 1 trading deadline.

Four veterans on expiring contracts were traded in three separate deals, and the Pirates swapped a young infielder for a controllable pitcher.

Being that it’s now been seven and a half weeks since the trade deadline, it’s time to see how the trades are shaping up as the 2023 regular season nears its end.

Pirates trade 1B Carlos Santana to the Milwaukee Brewers for minor league INF Jhonny Severino

The first trade the Pirates executed leading up to the deadline was sending first baseman Carlos Santana to the division-rival Brewers in exchange for minor league infielder Jhonny Severino.

Santana hasn’t had quite the same level of success with first-place Milwaukee as he did with the Pirates. In 44 games with the Brewers, Santana has slashed .224/.292/.408. His power has still been on display as evident by his nine homers and he’s driven in 23 runs.

Severino played in only three games with the FCL Pirates before landing on the injured list. In his brief action, he went 3 for 10 with a homer, two RBIs, two steals and three runs scored.

Pirates trade LHP Rich Hill and 1B/DH Ji Man Choi to the San Diego Padres for 1B Alfonso Rivas, LHP Jackson Wolf and outfielder Estuar Suero.

This deadline deal certainly hasn’t turned out the way the Padres would have hoped. Choi went hitless in 15 at-bats in San Diego before fracturing his ankle while on a rehab assignment.

Hill has struggled since the trade, too. In eight appearances (five starts) with San Diego, the veteran lefty is 0-4 with a 9.25 ERA.

For the Pirates, Rivas has appeared in 37 games and has slashed a pedestrian .200/.281/.412 with seven doubles, a triple, three home runs and nine RBIs.

In the minor leagues,  Wolf posted a 4.25 ERA in eight starts and struck out 30 batters and walked 10 in 36.0 innings pitched with Double-A Altoona. With the FCL Pirates, Suero hit .219 with a .379 on-base percentage in 13 games.

Pirates trade C Austin Hedges to the Texas Rangers for international bonus money

Hedges has played sparingly with Texas and has five hits (all singles) in 21 trips to the plate. He’s plated a pair of runs.

Pirates trade infielder Rodolfo Castro to the Philadelphia Phillies for LHP Bailey Falter

Castro has served primarily as a bench bat for the Phillies, appearing in 11 games since the trade. He’s only managed two hits in 23 at-bats and has walked twice.

Falter has become a big part of the Pirates’ pitching staff down the stretch and is 2-2 with a 3.99 ERA in nine appearances (six starts) in the black and gold.