Pirates Land Shortstop Prospect in Trade with Reds
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates made their biggest trade of the season and added a young talent to their organization.
The Pirates traded long-time third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes to the Cincinnati Reds for shortstop prospect Sammy Stafura and right-handed pitcher Taylor Rogers.
Full trade, per ESPN sources:
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 30, 2025
Cincinnati receives: 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes
Pittsburgh receives: SS prospect Sammy Stafura and RP Taylor Rogers
MLB Pipeline ranks Stafura as the ninth best prospect in the Reds organization and their third best shortstop.
Stafura hails from Mohegan Lake, N.Y. and played for Walter Panas High School in Cortland. N.Y., about 50 miles north of downtown Manhattan in New York City. His family hails from Slovakia and he started playing baseball at five years old.
He excelled in high school, batting .562 with 10 home runs, 37 RBIs and 27 stolen bases in 26 games as a senior in 2023, earning Gatorade New York Baseball Player of the Year honors and leading Walter Panas to a section title.
Perfect Game ranked Stafura as the best player in New York, the 10th best shortstop and 21st overall in the Class of 2023.
The Reds took Stafura with the 43rd overall pick in the second round of the 2023 MLB Draft. Stafura chose the Reds over his commitment to Clemson and signed for $2,497,500, about $500,000 over slot.
Stafura struggled with the Arizona Complex League Reds in 2023, slashing .071/.212/.190 for an OPS of .402 in 12 games, with three hits in 42 at-bats, two doubles, a home run, six RBIs and eight walks to 23 strikeouts.
He improved at the start of 2024 with the ACL Reds, slashing .345/.449/.582 for an OPS of 1.031 in 15 games, with 19 hits in 55 at-bats, three doubles, two triples, two home runs, 17 RBIs, 12 walks to 20 strikeouts and four stolen bases.
The Reds promoted Stafura to Single-A Daytona on May 26 and he slashed .255/.374/.379 for an OPS of .753 in 77 games, 74 hits in 290 at-bats, 10 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 37 RBIs, 52 walks to 84 strikeouts and 27 stolen bases on 32 attempts.
Stafura had spent all of 2025 with Daytona up until the trade. He slashed .262/.393/.411 for an OPS of .804 in 88 games, wiht 84 hits in 321 at-bats, 18 doubles, nine triples, four home runs, 48 RBIs, 63 walks to 96 strikeouts and 28 stolen bases on 33 attempts.
He ranks amongst the best hitters in the Florida State League, including tied for second in triples, third in hits and walks, sixth in on-base percentage, tied for sixth in RBIs, seventh in doubles, tied for eighth in stolen bases, eight in runs (48), 13th in OPS, 15th in slugging percentage and 17th in batting average.
MLB Pipeline gave him scouting grades of Hit (50), Power (45), Run (65), Arm (55), Field (55) and Overall (50).
"Staying more athletic in the box will continue to be key for Stafura, along with using the big parts of the field, rather than trying to muscle up too much," the scouting report reads. "A bat wrap he used back in high school can show up at times, making it a little tougher for him to catch up to elite fastballs, but he’s shown that he can make adjustments and has a pretty good idea of the strike zone, so there’s confidence that more reps will help him address those things."
"Stafura’s athleticism is an athlete on the dirt as well. He’s played nothing but shortstop thus far in his pro career and there are no plans to change that, and he has the range, hands, actions and arm to stick there long term. The Reds love his passion for the game and his work ethic and think he could make another big step now that he knows what it takes to manage a season-long workload."
SS Sammy Stafura, acquired by the Pirates in the Hayes trade, is just 20 years old & is in Low A -
— Christian ✞ (@CWolfPGH) July 30, 2025
Having a pretty nice season: (88G)
- .262/.393/.411
- .804 OPS
- 131 wRC+
- 28 stolen bases
He has 9 (yes NINE!) triples this year 👀
pic.twitter.com/j5bgMVSrut
The Pirates have the best prospect in baseball, Konnor Griffin, who also plays shortstop and who the franchise views as their future store.
They also have Wyatt Langford (eighth overall), Yordanny De Los Santos (15th overall), Darel Morell (17th overall), Johan De Los Santos (27th overall) and Tsung Che-Cheng (28th overall), who all play shortstop through the Pirates minor leagues.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.