Pirates Acquire Reds Prospect for Kyle Nicolas
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates made a surprising trade with their biggest divisional rival surrounding right-handed relief pitcher Kyle Nicolas.
The Pirates traded Nicolas to the Cincinnati Reds for utility prospect Tyler Callihan, the ball club announced in a press release.
Nicolas is currently with Team Italy for the World Baseball Classic and will now join the Reds following his time representing his nation.
The Pirates also announced that the 40-man roster is still full, so Callihan is now added to that as well, allowing him to get called up.
What the Pirates Get in Tyler Callihan
Callihan has only featured in four MLB games, which all came last season, after he broke his forearm after colliding with a wall in early May, which saw him miss the rest of 2025.
The Reds took Callihan in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Providence School of Jacksonville in Jacksonville, Fla. and he played six seasons in the minor leagues.
Callihan is a utility player, who has most of his experience at second base, but can also play first base and third base and left field, which is where he sustained his injury.
Position | Starts (Appearances) |
|---|---|
Second Base | 262 (270) |
Third Base | 61 (62) |
Designated Hitter | 30 (30) |
Left Field | 22 (25) |
First Base | 13 (18) |
Callihan slashed .262/.332/.417 for an OPS of .749 over his six seasons in the minor leagues, 396 total games, with 387 hits, 81 doubles, 18 triples, 37 home runs, 173 RBI, 144 walks to 378 strikeouts and 88 stolen bases on 106 attempts.
Both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America ranked Callihan as the 19th best prospect in the Reds system.
Kyle Nicolas Tenure With Pirates
He joined the Pirates in a trade from the Miami Marlins on Nov. 29, 2021, as they sent catcher Jacob Stallings in exchange for pitcher Zach Thompson, outfielder Connor Scott and Nicolas.
Nicolas spent all of 2022 at Double-A Altoona, starting 22 of 24 games he appeared in, a 2-4 record, a 3.97 ERA In 90.2 innings pitched, 101 strikeouts to 47 walks and a .216 batting average allowed (BAA).
He started the 2023 season with Altoona, with 12 starts, a 3-5 record, a 4.36 ERA, 53.2 innings pitched, 63 strikeouts to 23 walks and a .267 BAA.
Nicolas then moved up to Indianapolis on June 16, but spent most his time coming out of the bullpen. He started six of his 23 appearances, a 1-2 record, a 6.20 ERA in 45.0 innings pitched, 64 strikeouts to 29 walks and an BAA of .243.
The Pirates selected Nicolas' contract to the 40-man roster on Sept. 19. He struggled at the MLB level, with an 11.81 ERA in four games and 5.1 innings pitched.
He started the 2024 season with the Indianapolis Indians at Triple-A. He made nine appearances, had a 0.84 ERA in 10.2 innings pitched, with a BAA of .061.
The Pirates called him up on April 26 and he spent most of the season with the team. He had a 2-2 record in 51 games, a 3.95 ERA in 54.2 innings pitched, 55 strikeouts to 31 walks and a .249 BAA.
He suffered a left oblique strain on Sept. 16 and the Pirates put him on the 15-day Injured List. Nicolas didn't pitch again in 2024 following the injury.
Nicolas didn't make the Opening Day roster in 2025 and pitched in four games with Indianapolis before his first call-up, allowing six earned runs in 4.2 innings for an 11.57 ERA.
He came up to the Pirates on April 10, who recalled him from Indianapolis and placed him in the bullpen.
Nicolas made seven appearances for the Pirates, allowing nine earned runs over 7.2 innings pitched for an ERA of 10.57, eight walks to six strikeouts and a .294 opposing batting average.
The Pirates sent Nicolas back down to Indianapolis on May 4, as they activated right-handed pitcher Dennis Santana off the bereavement list.
Nicolas made nine appearances with Indianapolis and performed much better, with just one earned run allowed over 9.2 innings pitched, a 0.98 ERA.
The Pirates recalled Nicolas on June 3, taking the spot back from Tanner Rainey, who the Pirates designated for assignment.
Nicolas made three appearances in this stint with the Pirates, allowing three hits, a walk and an earned run in 4.1 innings pitched for a 2.08 ERA, two strikeouts and an opposing batting average of.188, before sending him back down to Indianapolis when they recalled Carmen Mlodzinski.
The Pirates recalled Nicolas on Aug. 1 after the trade deadline and he spent the rest of the season with the team, aside from a stint on the bereavement list.
He had a 1-2 record in 21 outings, a 3.46 ERA over 26.0 innings pitched and 26 strikeouts to nine walks over those final two months with the Pirates.
Nicolas made 86 appearances for the Pirates over the past three seasons, with 82 of those coming the past two seasons. He posted a 3-4 record, a 4.68 ERA over 98.0 innings pitched, 96 strikeouts to 58 walks, a .247 batting average allowed and a 1.48 WHIP.
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.