The Pittsburgh Pirates made a flurry of moves on Thursday.
Pittsburgh’s front office certainly sounds like it has been busy as it designated outfielder Edward Olivares for assignment on Thursday to make room for hurler Ben Heller, according to MLB Trade Rumors’ Steve Adams and Darragh McDonald.
“The Pirates announced Thursday that they’ve placed right-hander Colin Holderman on the 15-day (Injured List) with a right wrist sprain, selected the contract of righty Ben Heller from Triple-A Indianapolis and opened a spot on the 40-man roster by designating outfielder Edward Olivares for assignment,” Adams and McDonald said. “Olivares, 28, was acquired from the Royals in the offseason when Kansas City needed to open a roster spot after signing right-hander Chris Stratton. Olivares had qualified for arbitration for the first time and he agreed avoid arbitration by accepting a $1.35MM salary from the Pirates.”
Olivares appeared in just 55 games this season for the Pirates and slashed .224/.291/.333 with five home runs and 23 RBIs. His season has been a step backward from his 2023 campaign where he appeared in 107 games with the Royals and slashed .263/.317/.452 with 12 home runs, 36 RBIs, and 23 doubles.
He is just 28 years old and likely will find another opportunity in the near future but it’s disappointing that things didn’t necessarily work out with the Pirates. Hopefully, he is able to find his next team soon and get back on track.
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