Bucs acquire top IF prospect Yorke from Red Sox for Priester

HOUSTON -- It turns out the Pirates’ first Trade Deadline deal was not necessarily as a buyer or a seller, but a change-of-scenery deal involving a pair of former first-round picks. Right-hander Quinn Priester is going to the Red Sox, and in return, the Pirates are receiving infield prospect Nick Yorke.

TRADE DETAILS
Pirates get: INF/OF Nick Yorke (Red Sox No. 6 prospect, per MLB Pipeline)
Red Sox get: RHP Quinn Priester

The Pirates, who also acquired Rockies reliever Jalen Beeks on Monday ahead of their 5-3 win, came into this Deadline with a wealth of young pitching available for trade, both at the Minor and Major League level, and Priester’s future with the club seemed a bit murkier now than it did a year ago. The 2019 first-round Draft pick was once touted as one of the top young pitchers in the system and a top 100 prospect as recently as 2023. He had struggled in the Majors, though, recording a 7.74 ERA in 50 big league innings last year and a 5.04 clip in 10 outings -- six of which were starts -- in 2024.

While manager Derek Shelton insisted that the organization viewed him as a starter long term, Priester had been serving as a reliever in recent weeks, not cracking the rotation even with Jared Jones and Bailey Falter on the injured list. Given the young arms that could also crack the Majors in the next year or so -- including top 100 prospects Bubba Chandler (No. 49) and Braxton Ashcraft (No. 99) -- plus having other young arms controllable for years like Mitch Keller, Luis Ortiz and Paul Skenes, it looked like Priester had an uphill climb to claim a permanent rotation spot.

"I think it's something that we've talked about," said Shelton. "That we need to continue to add bats into our system, whether it's at the Major League level or the upper levels. It was a situation where we lined up well. We feel like we have some starting pitching and we're able to trade out some depth."

And from that trade from the organization’s depth, the club added more of what it needed: A young hitter that could help the Pirates in 2024 and beyond.

Yorke, 22, was the No. 17 overall Draft pick in 2020 and has slashed .278/.363/.422 with 10 home runs, 16 doubles, 14 stolen bases and 46 RBIs in 83 games between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester this season. He was promoted to Triple-A on June 5, and he has 38 games and 169 plate appearances worth of experience at the highest level of the Minors.

Yorke slides in as the Pirates’ new No. 5 prospect on MLB Pipeline, touting a sweet right-handed swing and hand-eye coordination that could one day produce a high batting average. He’s also made 27 appearances as a left fielder, splitting his time this season between left and his natural second base position.

"He's having a really good year in Triple-A,” Shelton said. “He can play second base, he can play in the corners, which is important for us. And he's continued to get better, which is the main thing that we were looking for in an offensive player."

The Pirates could certainly use help at second and the outfield. Though Nick Gonzales has taken a big step forward this year and could be the second baseman of the future, he hit the injured list Sunday with a left groin strain. While general manager Ben Cherington said on his 93.7 The Fan radio show Sunday that he believes Gonzales will return to play this year, his time missed is going to be measured in weeks, not days.

In the outfield, the Pirates haven’t had any prolonged consistency, with the exception of All-Star Bryan Reynolds. Jack Suwinski was optioned to the Minors after Sunday’s win over the D-backs, opening up potential playing time for either anyone currently on the roster (Joshua Palacios, Ji Hwan Bae, Connor Joe) or another theoretical outside acquisition.

Yorke will report to Triple-A Indianapolis at first, but it doesn’t seem unreasonable to think he could crack the Majors this year.

"I think there's a chance,” Shelton said. “He's not on the 40-man [roster] right now. He's a guy that needs to be added to the 40-man next year. It's something that I think as we continue to go and see where we're at, we'll make a decision there."

Time will tell how active the Pirates will be at this Deadline, but their first trade was a bit out of left field. Unless, of course, Yorke sets up there defensively.