Nothing wrong with a little insurance at third base.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have made their first move of the offseason by claiming infielder, Tristan Gray, off waivers from the Athletics.
Gray was originally drafted by Pittsburgh in the 13th round of the 2017 MLB draft, before eventually being traded to Tampa Bay in 2018 for outfielder Corey Dickerson. Since then, Gray has bounced between the Minors and Majors, only appearing in a total of 17 MLB games. Following his stint in Tampa, Gray signed a Minor League contract with the Marlins organization. In his brief stint in Miami, he went 0-for-7 before being designated for assignment.
Tristan Gray knows how to crush a debut (and the ball)
Now a member of the @Athletics org, he launches his first homer with @AviatorsLV! pic.twitter.com/6EzcJZD6if
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) August 29, 2024
On August 27 this year he was claimed by the A’s and was assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas. Gray would see some playing time in Oakland to end the year, appearing in eight contests, finishing his season with a .107/.194/.143 split in the majors. That being said he had a nice year in triple-a hitting 19 homers, 64 RBIs, a .251 average, and .322 OBP between Jacksonville and Vegas.
Certainly not the third baseman of the future for the Pirates, but should be an exciting piece for Triple-A Indianapolis, and definitely another insurance piece in place of injuries to Pittsburgh’s starters.