The Pittsburgh Pirates have pared down their roster for Opening Day after resolving a few position battles. Starting pitcher Tom Harrington, the Pirates’ No. 3 prospect, will begin the season in the minors. Outfielders Ji Hwan Bae and Jack Suwinski, who entered camp as question marks, are on the roster. Non-roster invitee Ryan Borucki, a left-handed pitcher, has made the team. Another non-roster invitee, slugging first baseman DJ Stewart, wasn’t so lucky. Speaking of bad luck, starter Jared Jones is still out with an elbow issue.
Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was first with the news about Harrington. Alex Stumpf of MLB.com broke the news about Borucki, Mlodzinski, and Stewart.
Sources: LHP Ryan Borucki is expected to be with the Pirates in Miami for Opening Day, while OF/1B DJ Stewart is not.
Borucki will need to be added back to the 40-man roster. Stewart has an opt-out on his contract today.
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) March 24, 2025
Sources: RHP Thomas Harrington is NOT expected to make the opening day roster. He is still starting this afternoon against the Twins.
— Noah Hiles (@_NoahHiles) March 24, 2025
Derek Shelton says that RHP Thomas Harrington will not be making the Opening Day team. Carmen Mlodzinski will be the fifth starter
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) March 24, 2025
Pirates Paring Down Roster for Opening Day
The final 26-man roster is all but determined except for a decision on Jones and who might take his place on the roster if he’s placed on the injured list. That decision won’t come earlier than Wednesday. Jones skipped his last spring start with elbow discomfort and is seeking a second opinion. There have been no updates on his condition. However, one never wants to read the words “elbow discomfort” and “second opinion” in the same sentence regarding a pitcher. Jones may be out for a while.
It was thought that Harrington, who made two spring starts in Jones’ place, was being groomed as the fifth starter. Instead, Carmen Mlodzinski, a reliever who’d expressed an interest in becoming a starter, will serve as the fifth starter.
Borucki’s presence on the final roster is no surprise. Last year was a lost year, as he spent most of it on the injured list. In the spring, he regained the form that he flashed in 2023, when he registered a 0.744 WHIP and 8.25 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Stewart Out
As a non-roster invitee, Stewart had an uphill climb to make the Pirates’ final roster. Stewart has played seven years in the majors for the Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets. His career major league stat line reads .212/.328/.401, 42 HR, and 118 RBI in 327 games. Interestingly, according to Baseball Reference, his 162-game average stats reflect a none-too-shabby 21 home runs. The preseason injury to first baseman Spencer Horwitz opened the door for Stewart to make the team as his replacement. Stewart responded by going 10-for-40 with five doubles, a home run, five RBI, and four walks.
But he’d cooled off in recent days. Working against him was the fact that he has just five innings of major league experience at first base and would force somebody off the 40-man roster. With the recent decision to give switch-hitting Endy Rodríguez some work at first base, the writing was on the wall for Stewart. His dismissal means the Pirates will likely go with an unappealing rotation of Jared Triolo, Adam Frazier, and Rodríguez at first base.
Bae and Suwinski In
Bae was a long shot to make the Pirates 26-man roster, with other players presumably ahead of him on the depth chart. Somebody must have forgotten to tell him. With each passing spring day, he did more to open the eyes of the Pirates brass. Through Sunday, the speedy Bae went 16-for-40 with six doubles, a home run, two walks, and three stolen bases. He struck out just eight times in 42 plate appearances, a marked improvement from the 24.9 percent strikeout rate he registered for the Pirates in parts of three seasons. He also played good defense in left and center field and showed he’s the Pirates’ best defensive outfielder. Bae also plays second base but saw no action there in the spring.
With Suwinski also on the Pirates’ 26-man roster, it seems Bae’s main role will be to spell Oneil Cruz in center field. As both are left-handed batters, Bae will probably see most of his action against left-handed pitching, putting him in the odd position of being reverse-platooned.
The left-handed power-hitting Suwinski came to camp determined to show that he belonged in the major leagues after a subpar 2024. He put up a tough fight for a roster spot, going 14-for-40 with six doubles, a home run, and nine RBIs. He’s just a year removed from a 2023 season in which he led the Pirates with 26 home runs. Unfortunately, there was never going to be a starting role for Suwinski after the Pirates signed Tommy Pham. He’ll spell the corner outfielders when they take a day off and may also see action as the designated hitter.
The Road Not Taken
The Pirates could have made a bold move by cutting Adam Frazier, who was signed to a $1.525 million contract in January. The deal was a head-scratcher. Frazier has been a player in decline and didn’t seem to fill a pressing need. He hit .202/.282/.294 in 2024 and was just 6-for-34 in the spring as of Sunday. The performance of others during the spring proved that Frazier isn’t needed. However, “the Pirates” and “bold move” are rarely used in the same sentence, and the size of Frazier’s contract virtually guaranteed he’d be on the final roster. Unfortunately, his presence squeezes out the more worthy Stewart, however temporary Stewart’s time may have been.
Photo Credit: © Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
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