Report: Pirates “unlikely” to deal Bryan Reynolds this offseason

With the World Series over and the MLB season wrapped up, GMs around the league are already in full offseason mode, looking to improve their rosters any way they can. And that, of course, will spark speculation about the Pittsburgh Pirates and their star centerfielder Bryan Reynolds, who almost always is the topic of trade rumors.

But according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network, the Bucs are unlikley to move Reynolds this offseason.

Reynolds is signed through 2023, with arbitration due in 2024 and 2025 and unrestricted free agency slated for 2026, so the Pirates certainly have time to re-assess what they feel their competitive window will be, and I’m sure none of us have full confidence that Reynolds won’t be moved, as the Bucs don’t exactly have a stellar reputation when it comes to these matters.

But if the team truly feels they will be able to put a decent team together in a season or two, then it makes sense to keep Reynolds around. Of course, this could also all be bluster in an attempt to drive up Reynolds’ trade price as well. If he’s “not available”, the Bucs could try to extract a little more from an interested team.

Reynolds finished last season batting .262 with 27 homeruns and 67 RBIs. He started the year off slow, but settled into a groove as the season went on and was clearly Pittsburgh’s best overall player, though Oneil Cruz may have something to say about that over the next few years.

The 27-year-old Reynolds is not exactly aligned with the timeline of any of Pittsburgh’s young talent, but having a veteran around who’s capable of leading some youngsters in the clubhouse as well as letting his play on the field speak for itself is certainly not a bad idea.

As is usually the case in these matters, only time will tell.