The Chicago Cubs, Detroit Tigers, and New York Yankees have their eyes on Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes. So says Jon Heyman of the New York Post as to the Yankees, and reporter Francys Romero as to the others.
According to Heyman and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Pirates have made it known that anybody on their roster is available except for pitching wunderkind Paul Skenes and franchise icon Andrew McCutchen. It’s hard for this writer to believe that David Bednar, Oneil Cruz, and Bryan Reynolds are available. Cruz, because of his rare raw talent. Bednar, because owner Bob Nutting reportedly blocked attempts to trade him previously. Reynolds, because Nutting was personally involved in his contract extension negotiations. But one never knows.
Pirates Third Baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes Subject of Trade Rumors
For now, we’ll look at the possibility of the Pirates dealing Hayes by the trade deadline. For the second year in a row, he’s struggled offensively. He’s come around lately. He hit .301/.333/.373 in June. That raised his stat line to .247/.297/.304, 2 HR, and 29 RBI for the season. Hayes has always provided elite defense. He posted a WAR of 4.5 and 3.9 in 2022 and 2023, respectively, largely due to his glove work. He’s also in the fourth year of an eight-year megabucks contract. Unless the Pirates kick in some money (OK, you can stop laughing now), whoever picks up Hayes will be on the hook for the remainder of this year’s $7 million salary, as well as $7 million in 2026 and 2027 and $8 million in 2028 and 2029. For 2030, there’s a $12 million team option or a $6 million buyout.
Several teams are closely monitoring 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes as a trade piece, according to industry sources.
Hayes is one of the players most likely to be traded, with the Tigers, Yankees, and Cubs among the potential suitors.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) June 28, 2025
This writer refrains from making mock trade proposals. Too often, these come across as foolish. Besides, there’s enough of that from Pirates fans on the talk shows and social media. One proposed trading Cruz to the Athletics for Jacob Wilson. If general manager Ben Cherington is looking to land an Athletics star, he has a better chance of resurrecting Jimmie Foxx from the dead.
Who’s On Third?
Besides finding a team willing to take on his salary, one obstacle to trading Hayes might be the lack of internal options to take over at third base for the Pirates. The top internal option might be Jared Triolo, a 2024 Gold Glove Award winner in the utility category. Like Hayes, he’s a good defender who’s struggled with the bat. Since his 2023 rookie year, when he hit .298/.388/.398, Triolo has hit .203/.287/.306. He seems better suited for a utility role.
Another internal option would be to move shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa to third base if he’s not traded himself. That would leave minor leaguers Tsung-Che Cheng, Liover Peguero, or Alika Williams to step in at shortstop. Cheng is the Pirates’ No. 17 prospect. He was projected to arrive in the majors this season. However, in a brief three-game cameo with the big club in April, he looked overmatched, going hitless in seven at-bats with three strikeouts. Furthermore, he’s hitting just .204/.318/.241 in the minors in 2025. Peguero and Williams have gotten looks with the Pirates before. It’s clear that the Pirates view them as nothing more than organizational depth.
Besides Cheng, the only other infielder on the Pirates’ top 30 prospects list projected to arrive in the major leagues this season is Nick Yorke. Yorke has never played on the left side of the infield professionally.
Now What?
Thus, any deal involving Hayes would have to yield the Pirates a major league-ready third baseman. If not, Cherington would have to have a separate deal for a third baseman in his back pocket. As mentioned, I won’t make a mock trade proposal here. I do note, however, that the Cubs, Tigers, and Yankees each have a third baseman on their prospects list who’s projected to arrive in the majors this season.
But should Cherington be trusted to be the man who makes these deals? The Pirates are a team in need of an overhaul, their present six-game winning streak and corresponding offensive barrage notwithstanding. It’s bewildering to see that Cherington is still the Pirates’ GM and will be making these trades. The Pirates faced this situation in 2019 when Cherington was hired. From 2020 to the 2021 trade deadline, he traded nine major leaguers in trades that netted 23 prospects. Today, only 10 are still Pirates property. Of those 10, only four played in the major leagues for Pittsburgh: Bednar, Peguero, Endy Rodríguez, and Jack Suwinski. Peguero and Suwinski are with Triple-A Indianapolis today.
The Last Word
The Pirates are 26-24 under new manager Don Kelly. Perhaps they’ll continue to play at this present pace, in which case it may leave the impression that fired manager Derek Shelton was the problem with the team, thus saving Cherington’s job. Even so, one can’t escape the thought that he’s a lame duck GM. This trade deadline will be an interesting test.
Main Photo Credit: © Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
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