Pirates sign former Twins outfielder Gilberto Celestino to Minor League deal

The Pirates made their first free agent signing of the offseason, bringing in former Minnesota Twins outfielder Gilberto Celestino on a Minor League deal.

Celestino, 24, appeared in 145 games for the Twins between 2021 and 2022, hitting .222 with four home runs and 24 RBI. He missed all of 2023 after having thumb surgery.

While his offensive stats aren’t great, he’s known primarily for his defense. That and his ability to play every spot in the outfield. Per Baseball Savant, his arm is what draws interest. He’s in the 93rd percentile in arm strength (92.4), 74th in fielding run value (4), and 83rd in arm value (2).

I don’t know what to think, honestly. The offseason is still early, but considering this is the first move Ben Cherington has made when we’re a few weeks into the offseason is highly questionable.

That and don’t the Pirates have enough subpar depth in the outfield already? Sure, you could strike another Joshua Palacios-type player and stash him in the minors until a possible injury arises, but this could’ve been done after a couple notable signings?

Celestino is probably a good guy and could add depth in the minors, but I really hope we see some bigger — and better — names brought in over the next few days.

Maybe I should get ahead of the comments section... SAME OLE’ PIRATES! SPEND NUTTING, WIN NUTTING! RAH RAH RAH!