The Pittsburgh Pirates could look to sign one of their former players.
The Pittsburgh Pirates had catcher Yasmani Grandal in the clubhouse last season, where he played in 72 games for the team.
Grandal, 36, batted .228 for the Buccos with nine home runs and 27 RBI’s.
Grandal went unsigned this offseason, but Bleacher Report writer Kerry Miller thinks that the Pirates should consider bringing him back.
Had nobody wanted Yasmani Grandal one year ago, it would’ve been tough to argue with that stance. Between 2022-23 with the White Sox, he was worth negative-1.9 bWAR, slugging .306 and allowing stolen bases at what can only be described as an alarming rate.
However, it’s strange for no one to want him badly enough to get a deal done.
Grandal caught only 8.3 percent of stolen base attempts last season and allowed more than one for every nine innings played. He turned things around with the bat, though, slugging .400 and homering once for every 27 trips to the plate. (Compared to once every 60 plate appearances in 2022-23.)
By catcher’s standards, that’s not too shabby. In fact, Grandal’s triple-slash was close to what Austin Wells managed last season (.229/.322/.395), and Wells was batting leadoff for the Yankees on Opening Day.
While he’s no Ivan Rodriguez or Yadier Molina on defense, Grandal’s glove isn’t a colossal negative. He could still be just about the best backup catcher in the league, or even the primary starter for a handful of clubs.
The Pirates have Joey Bart and Endy Rodriguez on the roster, so it would be hard for Grandal to crack into that mix.
However, if another injury hits the team, the Pirates may want to call their former friend for a cup of coffee.
BD community, what do you think of the idea to bring back Grandal? Chime off in the comments below.