The Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t land the big-time slugger they were hoping for Tuesday at the MLB Winter Meetings in Orlando, but they did fill another need.
The Pirates were rebuffed by Kyle Schwarber, who re-signed with the Philadelphia Phillies for five years and $150 million. The Pirates reportedly offered four years and $120 million, which would have tripled the largest contract they’ve ever given to a free agent. Left-hander Francisco Liriano signed a three-year, $39-million deal at the Winter Meetings in 2014.
So, the Pirates continue to search for hitters to bolster a lineup that was last in MLB in runs scored, home runs, and OPS. They finished last in the National League Central with a 71-91 record despite having the seventh-best ERA in the big leagues.
However, the Pirates did strike a deal with free-agent left-handed reliever Gregory Soto late Tuesday night, agreeing to a one-year contract worth $7.75 million, pending a physical examination. The only lefty reliever on the Pirates’ 40-man roster is Evan Sisk.
A two-time All-Star, Soto spent last season with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets. The 30-year-old appeared in a career-high 70 games and had a 1-5 record, one save, and a 4.18 ERA while striking out 70 in 60 1/3 innings.
Soto has shown his durability by pitching in at least 62 games in each of the past five seasons. He was an All-Star in 2021 and 2022 with the Tigers and has a career record of 15-34 with 56 saves and a 4.26 ERA in 391 games (seven starts) over seven seasons with Detroit (2019-22), the Phillies (2023-24), the Orioles (2024-25) and Mets (2025).
Soto had 30 saves in 2022 but has just six in the last three years. Dennis Santana is expected to be the Pirates’ closer in 2026 after taking over the job last season when David Bednar was traded to the New York Yankees.
General manager Ben Cherington talked about the Pirates’ need for relief pitching on Monday.
“It is something we'd like to add to,” Cherington said. “Leverage and maybe attacking left-hand hitters, too, whether that's actual left-hand pitchers or righties that get lefties out, I think probably those are the two things that we could add and strengthen the 'pen, those would be two things we'd like to check.
“How you do that? As we know, bullpens come in all kinds of shapes and sizes, and it's possible that we can accomplish that without major free agent signings. It's possible we can accomplish that partly with guys who are already here, partly by identifying guys maybe that just haven't fully figured it out at the major league level, or it's something to tap into still. We've had some success with that.
“Maybe there's some free agency involved with that,” Cherington continued. “Maybe there's trades, combination. But I would say it would be a desire to add to the bullpen between now and spring training in those areas. What that looks like? Don't know yet. I'd be surprised if we don't add to the pitching group in some way.”