Pirates Trade Blue Jays for Gold Glove Winner
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Pirates added another bat to their roster ahead of the MLB trade deadline at 6:00 p.m., in Toronto Blue Jays infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa
Jeff Passan of ESPN first reported the trade, but Mark Feinsand of MLB.com added that the Pirates traded Charles McAdoo of the Altoona Curve in Double-A. McAdoo was the Pirates No. 29 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, but was going to move up to No. 15, according to Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, in the re-rank.
The Pirates also officially announced the trade shortly after.
Pirates make the Isaiah Kiner-Falefa trade official pic.twitter.com/VemSClvOV3
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) July 30, 2024
Kiner-Falefa hails from Hawaii and played for Mid-Pacific Institute in high school prior to the Texas Rangers taking him in the Fourth Round of the 2013 MLB Draft.
He would eventually come up to the Rangers in 2018 and played four season for them, 2018-21. He slashed .265/.316/.354, played in 1,523 games, with 372 hits in 1,404 at-bats, 59 doubles, 16 home runs, 118 RBI, 84 walks to 233 strikeouts and an OPS of .670.
Kiner-Falefa also won an American League Gold Glove in the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, playing at third base. He also led the American League with 136 singles in 2021.
The Rangers traded him to the Minnesota Twins, who then traded him to the New York Yankees prior to the 2022 season
He played in 142 games in 2022 for the Yankees, slashing .261/.314/.327, along with 126 hits, 20 doubles, 48 RBI, 22 stolen bases and 35 walks.
Kiner-Falefa lost his shortstop starting job in 2023 in favor of Anthony Volpe. He served as a utility player for the Yankees last season, slashing .242/.306/.340, with 79 hits, 12 doubles, 37 RBI, 14 stolen bases and 28 walks in 113 games.
He chose to sign a two-year, $15 million contract with the Blue Jays this past offsesaon. He played in 82 games with them in 2024, slashing .292/.338/.420, with 75 hits, eight doubles, seven home runs, 33 RBI and 13 walks.
The Pirates need an extra bat with injuries and poor hitting overall. They have a .231 batting average as a team, tied for fourth worst in the MLB.
This is the fifth trade the Pirates have done prior to the upcoming deadline. Their other big trade came in Miami Marlins outfielder Bryan De La Cruz, who they got for two minor league prospects in right-handed pitcher Jun-Seok Shim and first baseman Garrett Forester.
Pittsburgh sent right-handed pitcher Quinn Priester to the Boston Red Sox for minor league infielder Nick Yorke, plus minor league left-handed pitcher Luis Peralta to the Colorado Rockies for left-handed pitcher Jalen Beeks and they acquired left-handed pitcher Josh Walker from the New York Mets for minor league left-handed pitcher Nicolas Carreno.
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