The Pittsburgh Pirates will be one of the most interesting teams to follow in the offseason as they aim to make additions to improve their roster for the 2025 campaign.
After finishing the 2024 season with a 76-86 record for the second-straight year, the Pirates are looking to try and make some improvements to add to their positives from the season — specifically the rotation led by National League Rookie of the Year winner Paul Skenes.
MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand made a list of one free agent that made the most sense for each team in baseball. Feinsand listed longtime Texas Rangers reliever Jose Leclerc as the best option for Pittsburgh.
“David Bednar is likely to enter the season as the Pirates’ closer, but the two-time All-Star struggled through a rough year in 2024,” Feinsand wrote on the list. “Pittsburgh will be in the market for a late-inning reliever to get the ball to Bednar, and adding one with closing history would offer protection if Bednar goes through another bad stretch.”
With Aroldis Chapman re-entering the market as a free agent, Leclerc could serve to fill the spot he occupied for the Pirates throughout the 2024 season.
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Leclerc posted a 4.32 ERA with 89 strikeouts over 66 2/3 innings last season.
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