How will the Bucs' outfield shake out in '25?

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The Pirates’ outfield is in flux. Oneil Cruz will be in center field, and Bryan Reynolds will most likely be on either Cruz’s right or left (assuming Reynolds doesn’t move to first base). Outside of that, there isn’t much certainty.

Pittsburgh opted to non-tender Bryan De La Cruz and Connor Joe on Friday, cutting ties with two outfielders who produced below-average results in 2024. If you include Edward Olivares, who is now a free agent, the Pirates let go of the three players with the most playing time in right field, totaling nearly 1,000 innings among them.

So, where will those innings go?

There are some internal options. Nick Yorke and Billy Cook were acquired at the Trade Deadline to deepen the position player pool. Cook can play all three outfield spots in addition to first and second base, so he can provide Joe’s versatility with a good defensive ceiling (six Defensive Runs Saved in September). Yorke can also play different positions, including the outfield in a pinch, but he probably wouldn’t be a good choice to pencil in as the everyday starter since he only has 37 professional starts in the outfield.

Jack Suwinski is just one year removed from a 26-homer campaign. It’s too soon to give up on him, but can Pittsburgh count on him to start 100-something games? Joshua Palacios has shown a knack for performing off the bench, but he probably isn’t an ideal starting option. Trey Cabbage crushed the ball with Triple-A Indianapolis (a 94.8 mph average exit velocity, the second best in Triple-A), but he has battled in the Major Leagues. Ji Hwan Bae has an elite speed tool, but he hasn’t yet been able to make that translate into offense.

All this is to say that the Pirates will need to explore the free agent and trade markets to get another outfielder. Non-tendering De La Cruz and Joe frees up a chunk of cash to spend, and general manager Ben Cherington has expressed optimism that payroll will increase in 2025. With a young, controllable stable of pitchers to pull from, Pittsburgh could theoretically have the flexibility to allocate more resources toward an outfielder than in recent years.

“We just need to be opportunistic,” Cherington said at the GM Meetings earlier this month. “We’ll certainly look at the trade market, look at free agency. We want to make the team better, so we’re open-minded on how to do that.”

To throw some names against the wall, a free agent like Tyler O’Neill would be one way to get the right-handed power the Pirates wanted in De La Cruz, and O’Neill comes with a pair of Gold Glove Awards (2020, ’21) as well. There’s injury risk associated with him, but there’s risk with any free agent. Pittsburgh has been connected to Tommy Pham in the past, Jesse Winker had a huge bounceback campaign this past season and a healthy Max Kepler would be a steal on the free-agent market, assuming, of course, that he is physically up to the task.

The trade market may be the better play, though, especially since the Pirates have plenty of young pitching to trade. Plenty of teams have an extra outfielder but need arms. The Rangers come to mind, as do the Guardians, Rays and Angels. Cherington confirmed he’s willing to trade off of the Major League roster for the right fit to improve the 2025 team, so the club has some options.

The Pirates need to generate more offense to take advantage of their young staff. It’s why they hired Matt Hague to be their new hitting coach. They should have the resources -- either through free agency or trade -- to bolster the roster. They were willing to cut ties with De La Cruz when he didn’t produce in right field. They should have options to find a player, or players, who can.