The Pirates need to acquire an outfielder with a big bat to help in their chase for a wild card spot

The Pittsburgh Pirates are 48-48 at the All-Star break, and only 1.5 games out of the final wild card spot. 

The Pirates have gotten to the .500 mark despite having little to no production from two of their three outfield positions. Bryan Reynolds is an All-Star and deserves it after hitting .284 with 18 home runs and 61 RBI in the first half. However, the rest of the outfielders the Pirates have thrown out to join Reynolds have been horrendous to say the least.

Jack Suwinski should be sent down to AAA. How many times can a batter look like a deer in headlights before the team decides he needs to get work down in a lower league? I know Suwinski hit 26 home runs last season, but he also struck out 172 times. He had a couple of hot runs last season that got his average up to a whopping .224, but this season the hot streak has not come and how many times can the Pirates leave runners on base, watching Suwinski look lost at the plate? He has 75 strikeouts in 235 at bats this season, and looks like a player who does not have a gameplan when he steps into the box. Now don’t get me wrong I think Suwinski has potential and can be a confident major league hitter. For an organization that is known for over protecting their young prospects, the Pirates have been the complete opposite with Suwinski. Who for the most part jumped from AA to the majors. You can see the confidence being drained from him and he needs to find his game down in Indianapolis.

The Pirates signed veteran Michael A. Taylor late in spring training, and said he will add depth and defense to the lineup. Taylor hit a career high 21 home runs last season with the Minnesota Twins, but looks just as lost at the plate as Suwinski. Taylor has already struck out 68 times in 172 at bats, and has hit two homers. If you have solid starters in the outfield, he is fine on the bench as a defensive replacement, but when you shuffle in Taylor for Suwinski, that's not a recipe for success at the plate.

In the offseason, the Pirates obtained outfielder Edward Olivares from the Kansas City Royals and many saw this as a possible upgrade to their outfield. Olivares was never really given a steady chance to put up numbers, and the team played Connor Joe more than they did Olivares. Olivares hit .224 with five homers in 174 at bats, striking out at a much lower rate than both Taylor and Suwinski, with 37 strikeouts. Olivares, unfortunately cannot play centerfield and was sent down earlier in the month.

Connor Joe is the second best outfielder on the team in terms of hitting. Joe has played 49 games at first base and 38 games in the outfield. He was one of the team’s hottest hitters early in the season, but has since cooled down to .242 with seven homers. If you are going to be a team in contention, Joe should be on the bench, where you can use his versatility when it is needed. He has seen his numbers dwindle since becoming an everyday starter.

Joshua Palacios was called up recently and he is good at creating a spark from time to time, but once again he is not an everyday player. He has two homers in the early going and is hitting .286, but the need to find some bodies for the outfield still exists.

There have been rumors that general manager Ben Cherington is interested in Taylor Ward of the Angels. J.J. Bleday’s name has also been mentioned in rumors. Besides those two, Draft Nation thought that signing Tommy Pham in the off-season could have helped the Pirates outfield. Pham instead was signed by the Chicago White Sox. It should not take much acquire Pham in a trade from Chicago, and he is a player who can play all three outfield positions and add some pop to the lineup. 

If the Pirates want to take a run at the wild card, they will need to add an outfielder to this club. With no outfield prospects knocking on the door, it is time for Cherington to dip into his prospect pool and make something happen. Infielder Liover Peguero is a nice piece to dangle along with one of the several pitching prospects in the organization. 

The time Pittsburgh gets with Paul Skenes is likely going to be short, why not try and do whatever it takes to win now? A wild card matchup against the Pirates means you are taking the field against Skenes, Jared Jones, or Mitch Keller - good luck. The rotation is great. Now it's time to go and get a bat.