The Pittsburgh Pirates need some hitting. They averaged just 3.6 runs per game in 2025, the fewest in baseball this season. Fans are understandably unhappy, given the seeming lack of urgency for the Pirates to add any bats to support a strong pitching staff. MLB Pipeline's Jim Callis, when asked about a pitcher-for-hitter trade he would make to fix Pittsburgh this week, made a mock trade involving the Pirates getting a near-MLB-ready bat. Unfortunately, it came at a tremendously high cost.
Callis' mock swap saw the Bucs receiving the Boston Red Sox's No. 1 prospect, infielder Franklin Arias, in exchange for the Pirates' 2025 first-round pick, RHP Seth Hernandez.