Even though the Pittsburgh Pirates have been incredibly active in the trade and free-agent markets this offseason, no one the front office adds to the organization will likely ever surpass the status Andrew McCutchen holds. 

The baseball icon started his career in Pittsburgh, is responsible for multiple memorable franchise moments, and chose to return to the Pirates, seemingly ending his career in a Bucs uniform.

However, there is a big question that must be answered as the Pirates look to make it back to the playoffs for the first time in over a decade: Should Pittsburgh bring back McCutchen?

 Should the Pittsburgh Pirates Re-Sign Andrew McCutchen?

Yes, now more than ever, is when the Pirates would arguably get the most out of having McCutchen on the roster. 

The 39-year-old is undeniably coming off a rocky 2026 season where he logged a .239/.333/.367 slash line. McCutchen still has tremendous plate discipline, but his bat speed, along with his average exit velocity, took a harsh drop in 2025.

That said, the Pirates also relied on McCutchen to be an everyday player at nearly 40 years old. He totaled 551 plate appearances in 135 games a season ago. If the Pirates were to bring him back, seeing the field every day would no longer be his primary role, and that’s okay.

With the Pirates adding Jake Mangum this offseason, they have a solid starting outfield with Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz filling out the corners. Ryan O’Hearn can even shift out to a corner outfield spot if need be. 

McCutchen’s addition to the roster would simply be as a depth piece; someone who can play once every three days to give one of the starters a day off. There’s no need for him to be playing over 100 games at this point in his career.

The Pirates will likely need to add at least one more outfielder for depth anyway, so why not have that spot on the roster go to McCutchen?

Plus, for the first time in nearly 10 years, the Pirates are looking like true playoff contenders, but a lot of the roster is still inexperienced or lacking playoff experience. That includes playing in October itself, but also going through the ups and downs of simply playing meaningful baseball through a complete 162-game season.

There’s arguably no one better to help mentor the roster through those challenges than McCutchen, who is viewed as one of the best clubhouse and locker room leaders in the game, and his heart is clearly invested in the team, which not every veteran can say they are. 

Between McCutchen’s value as a depth piece and a veteran for the Pirates to lean on, it would make plenty of sense for Pittsburgh to re-sign the future Hall of Famer for one more season.