What Could the Pirates Outfield Look Like to Open the 2026 Season?
The outfield for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2025 vastly underperformed offensively.Bryan Reynolds is coming off his worst season statistically, while Oneil Cruz’s production fell off a cliff in the second half of the season. Tommy Pham ended up being the Pirates’ most consistent hitting outfielder last season - practically by default.
Earlier in the offseason, general manager Ben Cherington made a surprising decision by tendering a contract to Jack Suwinski, who has been replacement level each of the last two seasons. Evidently, the organization still feels Suwinski can recapture his success from 2023, where he hit a career-high 26 home runs and was a three-win player offensively.
Looking to trade from surplus, the Pirates shipped out right-hander Johan Oviedo to the Boston Red Sox, as part of a deal headlined by outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia. The 23-year-old Garcia is a consensus Top 100 prospect.
More outfield depth was added to the mix, when Pittsburgh acquired Jake Mangum - one of the pieces involved in the Brandon Lowe deal.
A couple weeks ago, it was reported that the Pirates had expressed interest in Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert. In 2023, Robert was one of the best all-around center fielders in baseball, but because of injuries, hasn’t been the same performer since. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic was told that White Sox officials are willing to take on at least half of the $20 million Robert will be owed in 2026. Even if the White Sox were to take on part of Roberts’ remaining money, the Pirates probably wouldn’t have to give up anything real significant.
There was speculation that Bryan Reynolds could be moved to the DH role, but with the recent signing of Ryan O’Hearn, Reynolds will remain in right field. Oneil Cruz stays in center field; unless they make a trade for Robert and Cruz moves over to left field. If not, then there would be a competition in left field consisting of Jake Mangum, Jack Suwinski, and Jhostynxon Garcia. Heading into spring training, Mangum should have the inside track. Suwinski is out of options, so he would need to make the active roster. Garcia might just be the Pirates’ biggest X-Factor among hitters vying for a spot. It’s possible manager Don Kelly could go with a Mangum/Garcia platoon in left to open the season, but given that Garcia is only 23, and has two options remaining, he could be sent to AAA, in order to get regular at-bats for the Indianapolis Indians.