The Pirates are watching Ke’Bryan Hayes sink into a season that belongs in the wrong kind of record book, and they’re doing it from a distance now after sending him to Cincinnati at the 2025 trade deadline.
Hayes finished the year with a .419 OPS, which the source notes is the third-worst mark among everyday players since 1940. In 94 games with the Reds, he managed only 32 hits. His glove, once the carrying tool in his profile, also slipped, as he posted a run value of just five, the lowest full-season number of his career.
For Pittsburgh, the timing of the deal looks especially clean. The club has enjoyed a wave of first-round success lately with Paul Skenes, Konnor Griffin and Nick Gonzales, but the mid-2010s were a much rougher stretch, and Hayes sits near the bottom of that era’s list of misses.
His collapse also casts the Pirates’ own third-base situation in a different light. Pittsburgh got -1.0 bWAR from the position this season, with Gonzales struggling to adapt there.
Cincinnati was even worse with Hayes and Eugenio Suárez combined, getting -2.1 bWAR. If you can’t be good, it helps when the other side is just as messy.
The return on the trade adds another layer for Pittsburgh. Shortstop prospect Sammy Stafura performed well in the organization and helped convince the Mets to deal Luke Weaver at this year’s deadline. Weaver wasn’t as sharp for the Pirates, with the source pointing to an unfortunate case of poison ivy, but he remains under contract through 2027 and could still matter in the bullpen next season.
That leaves Pittsburgh looking ahead at third base without Hayes, who once signed the most lucrative contract in franchise history. Murf Gray had a big breakout year, but the source says he likely won’t be ready to contribute until 2028. In the meantime, the Pirates will have to patch the position together with Gonzales, Tyler Callihan, Jared Triolo and other stopgaps while Hayes’ rough run continues in Cincinnati.
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Ben Cheringtons latest signal only deepens that tension, since the front office is already talking about moving on from Brandon Lowe, the clubs key offensive presence, in the name of building a better path forward. For a team that finally took a step in the right direction, the challenge now is making sure the next one is larger, cleaner and good enough to end the cycle of almost-there seasons. [Read more 🡒]