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Pittsburgh Pirates Trade Pitching Prospect Jackson Wolf Back to the San Diego Padres

The San Diego Padres drafted Jackson Wolf in 2021, traded him to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023 and have now parted with a young infielder to reacquire the pitcher.
Sam Connon|
Jul 22, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Jackson Wolf (43) throws a pitch from the mound.
Jul 22, 2023; Detroit, Michigan, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Jackson Wolf (43) throws a pitch from the mound. | Lon Horwedel-USA TODAY Sports

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Pittsburgh PiratesSan Diego Padres

The Pittsburgh Pirates and San Diego Padres agreed to a trade Tuesday evening, swapping prospects less than a week into the regular season.

Pittsburgh sent left-handed pitcher Jackson Wolf to San Diego, while the Padres shipped infielder Kervin Pichardo to the Pirates in return. The Pirates had designated Wolf for assignment on Opening Day after he failed to earn a big league roster spot.

Wolf was immediately optioned to Triple-A El Paso. Pichardo has been assigned to Double-A Altoona

This is actually a reunion for Wolf and the Padres, as the 24-year-old southpaw is returning to the team that selected him in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft. Wolf was one of three prospects sent to the Pirates in exchange for Ji-man Choi and Rich Hill at last summer's trade deadline, but he wound up spending just eight months outside of the Padres organization.

Wolf made one MLB appearance in his previous stint with the Padres, picking up the win after allowing three earned runs in 5.0 innings of work.

In 58 career minor league outings – 57 of which have been starts – Wolf is 15-23 with a 4.18 ERA, 1.156 WHIP and 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings. He was ranked as the No. 16 prospect in San Diego's farm system entering 2023, and he has rejoined the organization at No. 19.

Pichardo, meanwhile, is a 22-year-old third baseman and second baseman. He is a .227 hitter with a .711 OPS, recording 19 home runs, 102 RBI and 20 stolen bases through 239 professional appearances.

The Padres acquired Pichardo in a trade with the Philadelphia Phillies back in March 2022.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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