Pittsburgh Pirates

Rival executives have gotten the impression that Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds "isn’t going anywhere" ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic had previously reported the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins "have not stopped calling" about Reynolds.

The 27-year-old entered Sunday hitting .254 with a .335 on-base percentage and 15 home runs in 85 games.

Reynolds was even better last season, hitting .302 with 24 home runs and 90 RBI, also leading the league with eight triples. Not only did he earn his first All-Star selection, he got votes for MVP even with the Pirates losing 101 games.

Pittsburgh has struggled again in 2022, entering the day with a 40-61 record with six straight losses. After already trading Daniel Vogelbach, it makes sense for opposing teams to inquire about anyone else the Pirates would be willing to deal.

Reynolds remains an important part of the team's core, however, especially being under team control through at least 2025.

With other exciting young pieces on the roster, including Oneil Cruz and Ke'Bryan Hayes, the Pirates have a bright future.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jose Quintana is reportedly "drawing interest" from the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees ahead of Tuesday's 2022 MLB trade deadline.

Fansided's Robert Murray reported the update Wednesday and noted the Toronto Blue Jays are also a potential suitor for Quintana, who's posted a 3.70 ERA in 19 starts this season.

The 33-year-old left-hander isn't the most exciting name on the trade market, but he'd provide solid back-of-rotation depth for a contender down the stretch.

Quintana has compiled a career 3.83 ERA and 1.28 WHIP across 302 appearances in 11 seasons with the White Sox, Pirates, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels and San Francisco Giants. He made four outings (three starts) for the Cubs in the 2017 playoffs.

Along with his experience, he'd also arrive with a limited financial impact as he's playing under a one-year, $2 million contract.

He'd provide a safety-net option for the Yankees (66-32), who've enjoyed a lot of rotation success thanks to Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Jordan Montgomery and Jameson Taillon but face some uncertainty with the fifth spot.

Domingo German recently returned for New York after an extended stint on the IL with a shoulder injury and Luis Severino is currently sidelined with a lat strain.

It's a similar story for the White Sox, with whom Quintana previously pitched from 2012 through 2017. They could use a depth starter in case Lance Lynn, who's posted a 6.43 ERA in eight starts since returning from a knee injury in mid-June, can't find his form.

In both cases, as well as Toronto, it's possible Quintana could end up in the bullpen by season's end. The Jays are close to getting Yusei Kikuchi back from the IL to fill the No. 5 spot in their rotation.

Getting an asset or two for Quintana would be smart business by the Pirates, who've faded out of playoff contention with a 40-58 record and will likely use the stretch run to evaluate fringe roster players with an eye toward 2023.

All told, it would be a surprise if the 2016 All-Star isn't moved before the deadline.

Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Bryan Reynolds is reportedly generating interest from multiple teams ahead of the Aug. 2 trade deadline.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic reported the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins "have not stopped calling" the Pirates regarding a potential Reynolds trade. However, neither team has offered an intriguing enough package for Pittsburgh to part with the 27-year-old.

Pittsburgh is in fourth place in the National League Central at 40-58, making it a natural team to trade with a contender like the Yankees.

Yet Reynolds is under team control through the 2025 season, so there is no immediate pressure for the Pirates to trade him. He could still be an important contributor down the line when the team may be more competitive with a farm system MLB.com ranked as the seventh-best in the league at the start of the year.

The Marlins are not a contender this season either but checked in at No. 6 on those rankings, so they may be thinking along the same lines that Reynolds could be a contributor when the farm system is ready to hit the majors given his contract status.

Reynolds is slashing .257/.339/.459 with 15 home runs and 32 RBI in 84 games this season.

They are solid numbers but also represent a dropoff from last year when he was an All-Star and slashed .302/.390/.522 with 24 home runs, 90 RBI and a league-best eight triples. It was the second time in three years he finished with a batting average over .300 and proved he can be a power hitter who launches 20-plus homers in the middle of a lineup.

He would have plenty of protection to do just that in the Yankees' order considering Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo and more are threats to go deep every time they step to the plate.

Reynolds would likely receive far better pitches to hit than he does in a weak Pittsburgh lineup, which could help the Bronx Bombers parlay their excellent regular season into their first World Series crown since 2009.

With no room available on the New York Yankees pitching staff, Manny Banuelos will attempt to carve out a role for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Yankees announced Sunday they have traded Banuelos to the Pirates for cash considerations.

The Yankees designated Banuelos for assignment Tuesday. They had 10 days to put the left-hander on waivers, trade him or release him. He recorded a 2.16 ERA and eight strikeouts in 8.1 innings in four appearances for New York.

A former top prospect, the 31-year-old Banuelos has struggled to find an MLB role. He signed with the Yankees in 2008 out of Mexico as an international free agent.

After the 2010 season, John Manuel of Baseball America ranked Banuelos as the fourth-best prospect in New York's system behind Jesus Montero, Gary Sanchez and Dellin Betances.

Injuries became a problem for Banuelos during the 2012 season. He only made six starts at Triple-A and had Tommy John surgery that kept him out for all of 2013.

The Yankees traded Banuelos to Atlanta in 2015. He made his big league debut with the club that season, posting a 5.13 ERA in seven appearances.

Elbow injuries continued to plague Banuelos in 2015 and 2016. Atlanta designated him for assignment late in the 2016 season, and he signed with the Los Angeles Angels.

After spending one season apiece with the Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers organizations, Banuelos was traded to the Chicago White Sox after the 2018 season. He made a career-high 16 appearances in MLB with the White Sox in 2019 but struggled with a 6.93 ERA over 50.2 innings.

Banuelos spent 2020 and part of 2021 playing with the Fubon Guardians of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. He signed with Sultanes de Monterrey of the Mexican League in July 2021.

The Yankees brought Banuelos back as a free agent in January. He had a 2.35 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 30.2 innings with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before getting called up May 26.

The Pirates can offer Banuelos the opportunity to pitch on a consistent basis for the rest of the season. They aren't trying to compete for a playoff spot and can use the final three months to evaluate players who could contribute in 2023.

It's been a disappointing season for the 26-39 Pittsburgh Pirates, but rookie Jack Suwinski provided a bright spot during Sunday's 4-3 victory over the San Francisco Giants.

The left fielder went 3-for-3 with three home runs, three RBI and a walk, with the final long ball winning the game in walk-off fashion. He made some history in the process, becoming the first rookie in Major League Baseball history to hit three homers and a walk-off in the same game.

"It's just unbelievable," Suwinski said, per Justice delos Santos of MLB.com. "To do it on Father's Day with my dad here, I know it means a lot to him, and it means a lot to me, just the amount that he's done for me. He's always been there. Just being able to share that, knowing he's here, it's awesome. It's hard to describe."

Pittsburgh has now won two of its last four games, which is a positive development after losing the previous nine.

Suwinski will look to keep things rolling during a four-game set against the Chicago Cubs that starts Monday.

Mark Cuban is one of the most high-profile governors in the NBA, but don't expect him to add the Pittsburgh Pirates to his portfolio.

The Dallas Mavericks governor responded to a tweet from Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette discussing whether he would buy the Pirates with the simple message of "no chance."

Cuban purchased the Mavericks in 2000 and has never been shy about spending money to better the team on the court.

Dallas reached the Western Conference Finals this season and has made the playoffs 18 times in 22 years since Cuban took over. It reached the NBA Finals twice in that span and won the title during the 2010-11 campaign.

The idea of Cuban coming to Major League Baseball is not a new one.

After all, he attempted to purchase the Chicago Cubs before they ultimately went to the Ricketts family. A source told the Chicago Sun-Times around that time there was "zero chance" then-commissioner Bud Selig would have allowed the outspoken Cuban to buy the team (h/t ESPN).

Cuban previously said he had "no regrets at all" about losing out on the chance to purchase the Cubs during an appearance on 670 The Score's McNeil & Parkins Show.

"The reality is, when I was going into it (in 2008), my kids were really young," he said. "Now they're 10, 13 and 16, and they're too much fun. And between 82 games for the NBA and 162 games (for MLB), plus the playoffs for both, I would've missed a whole lot of them growing up that I'm glad I'm not missing."

Frankly, purchasing the Cubs and Pirates would be two drastically different situations.

The Cubs are one of the most famous franchises in all of American sports with an iconic stadium, major market, large fanbase and plenty of national exposure to fall back on even during down seasons. The Pirates have made it past the National League Wild Card Game just once since the 1992 season and are routinely near the bottom of the league in payroll.

Cuban could change the spending aspect, but he would still have to convince marquee free agents to come to Pittsburgh if the team was ever going to be a true contender.

It seems he has no interest in doing so and is content with helping build a championship contender in Dallas.         

The Pittsburgh Pirates and third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes have reportedly agreed to an eight-year, $70 million contract extension.

Robert Murray of FanSided reported Thursday the deal includes a club option for a ninth season. It is the largest contract in Pirates history, topping the six-year, $60 million pact catcher Jason Kendall signed in 2000.

Hayes, 25, is heading into his third MLB season. He hit .257/.316/.373 with six home runs and 38 runs batted in last season while emerging as one of the best defensive third basemen in the sport. While his offensive production lagged behind expectations, he projects as a perennial Gold Glove candidate.

Hayes told Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic last August that he wanted to stay in Pittsburgh:

"I want to stay and win a championship with the team that drafted me. But I'm not really … I mean, even last year when I was going through that (contract) stuff, I wasn't really thinking too much about it. I was thankful and humbled that they considered to offer me (an extension) before I had even played a big-league game. That made me want to work even harder. But I'm not really worried about it right now. Just trying to get better every day."

The deal represents a rare financial commitment from the Pirates, whose payroll regularly ranks among the lowest in baseball. Billionaire Pirates owner Bob Nutting has cut costs at every turn and hired executives who jettison in-their-prime stars at the expense of the on-field product, earning the nickname "Bottom-Line Bob." 

This deal isn't likely to create much goodwill from Pirates fans exasperated by the penny-pinching, but it could be a sign Nutting is willing to loosen the purse strings. 

The Pirates have not posted a winning season since 2015. 

Pittsburgh Pirates bench coach Don Kelly has reportedly withdrawn from consideration for the New York Mets manager opening, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

Andy Martino of SNY reported Kelly was a candidate for the role earlier this month, with Joe Espada, Buck Showalter, Matt Quatraro and Brad Ausmus considered possibilities. 

Kelly spent the past two years with the Pirates after serving as first base coach with the Houston Astros in 2019.

The 41-year-old also spent nine seasons in the majors as a utility player, appearing on the field at all nine defensive positions.

Even with Kelly dropping out of the race, the Mets still have a variety of candidates who have already interviewed, per Mike Puma of the New York Post:

Mets new general manager Billy Eppler previously hired Ausmus as manager of the Los Angeles Angels in 2019, while Bob Geren has experience with team president Sandy Alderson as both a manager with the Oakland Athletics and bench coach with the Mets from 2010-15.

Showalter has 20 years of managing experience in the majors for four different organizations, most recently leading the Baltimore Orioles to the playoffs three times during his nine seasons with the team from 2010-18.

The other candidates would be in their first stint as a manager, although both Espada and Quatraro have plenty of experience at this level.

Espada has been the Houston Astros bench coach since 2017 while Quatraro has served the same role with the Tampa Bay Rays for the past three seasons.

The Mets are looking for someone to replace Luis Rojas, who managed just a 103-119 record across two seasons with the team. New York has gone five straight years without a playoff berth.   

Two American League teams are reportedly hoping to pry All-Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds away from the Pittsburgh Pirates.

According to MLB Network's Jon Morosi, the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners both have "significant interest" in Reynolds, although the Pirates feel "no pressure" to move him since he is under contract through 2025.

The 26-year-old Reynolds broke out and enjoyed a career year in 2021, setting personal bests in almost every major category en route to his first All-Star nod.

In addition to slashing .302/.390/.522, Reynolds blasted a career-high 24 home runs, drove in 90 RBI, scored 93 runs and tied for the Major League lead with eight triples.

Reynolds was one of the lone bright spots on a Pirates team that went 61-101 and finished last in the National League Central by 10 games.

After finishing fourth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2019 when he hit .314 with 16 homers and 68 RBI, Reynolds dropped off in a big way during the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

The Baltimore native hit just .189 with seven home runs and 19 RBI in 55 games, but the struggles proved to be an aberration, as Reynolds bounced back last season.

Both the Yankees and Mariners would benefit greatly from adding Reynolds if either is able to acquire him from the Pirates.

The Yankees were without starting center fielder Aaron Hicks for nearly the entire 2021 season because of a left wrist injury. That forced them to play veteran Brett Gardner far more than expected, and it also resulted in Aaron Judge seeing a lot of action in center.

Gardner is now a free agent, and while Hicks is still under contract, it isn't certain how well the 32-year-old will bounce back from a torn tendon sheath in his wrist.

Additionally, Reynolds is a switch hitter, which would add some much-needed versatility to a Yankees lineup that was heavy on right-handed hitters last season.

The Mariners leaned heavily on Jarred Kelenic as their starting center fielder last season, and he largely struggled from an offensive perspective, hitting just .181 with 14 homers and 43 RBI.

The 22-year-old was essentially forced into a full-time role because 2020 AL Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis was limited to 36 games by a torn meniscus.

Reynolds, Kelenic and Lewis are all center fielders by trade, but they have positional versatility in the outfield and could give the M's an elite outfield defense.

Despite making the playoffs last season, the Yankees fell short of expectations, as they lost in the AL Wild Card game. The Mariners were just the opposite in that they far exceeded expectations by narrowly missing the postseason with a 90-72 record.

If the Pirates decide to part with Reynolds, he could be a key figure in helping the Yankees win their first World Series since 2009 or helping the Mariners reach the playoffs for the first time since 2001.