After an awful 2020 season, the Pirates continued their rebuild by tearing down the roster further than they already had before the season. This included trading veterans Joe Musgrove, Jameson Taillon, and Josh Bell. Ultimately, there were positives from the Musgrove deal, but the Taillon and Bell trades were absolute fails. The Bell trade, in particular, just got even worse as Eddy Yean, one of two prospects acquired in that deal, just signed a minor league deal with the Nationals, the team that traded him in the first place.
The Nationals sent Yean and Wil Crowe to Pittsburgh in their initial package, two pitchers ranked in their top six prospects, according to MLB Pipeline.