Pirates Swing Major Trade With Padres, Mets

Pittsburgh PA

19 January, 2021

7:44 AM

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PITTSBURGH, PA — The Pittsburgh Pirates continued their decades-long trend of trading away veteran players for prospects on Monday night, sending pitcher Joe Musgrove to the San Diego Padres in a deal that also involved the New York Mets. According to multiple reports, Musgrove was dealt for outfielder Hudson Head, pitchers Omar Cruz, David Bednar and Drake Fellows from the Padres and catcher-outfielder Endy Rodriguez from the Mets. New York receives pitcher Joey Lucchesi from San Diego. The deal is expected to be formally announced after medical reviews. Head is the Padres' seventh-best prospect and Cruz ranks 17th, according to MLB Pipeline. Rodriguez is the Mets' 14th-best prospect. The trade continues Pirates general manager Ben Cherrington's strategy of stripping down an awful major league team to replenish the team's minor league system. The Pirates have tried this tactic for decades with little success; the team's last World Series title was in 1979, its last division title was in 1992 and its last playoff appearance was in 2015. The Pirates finished 19-41 last season and had the worst record in Major League Baseball. On Christmas Eve, they traded former All-Star first baseman Josh Bell to the Washington Nationals for two prospects.