Assessing the Pirates Signing of Ryan O’Hearn
In their attempt to improve the lineup for the 2026 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates are signing DH/1B Ryan O’Hearn to a two-year deal worth $29 million, this according to Robert Murray of FanSided. It’s the first time the Pirates have a free agent to a multi-year deal since Ivan Nova in December of 2016.
O’Hearn spent the last three seasons with the Baltimore Orioles. This past season was O’Hearn’s first All-Star selection. In 361 plate appearances, he posted a .283/.374/.463 line with Baltimore.
At the trade deadline, the Orioles dealt O’Hearn to the San Diego Padres as part of an eight-player deal.
In 50 games for the Padres, O’Hearn had a slash of .276/.350/.387.
Assessment of the signing: After the Pirates upgraded second base with the trade of Brandon Lowe last week, they also upgrade the DH role with the addition of O’Hearn.
On paper, O’Hearn gives the Pirates a productive designated hitter that they haven’t had since MLB fully implemented the DH in both leagues in 2022.
For Ben Cherington, it’s another solid move to make the Pirates’ substantially better next season.