Trading Brandon Lowe Would Be Massive Mistake for Pirates
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If the Pittsburgh Pirates’ strategy has shifted on trade deadline day, Brandon Lowe may attract significant interest across the league.
93.7 The Fan’s Andrew Fillipponi insinuated that the Texas Rangers are among the potential suitors for Lowe if he should become available over the coming hours.
Pittsburgh’s recent cold stretch, which saw it drop three of four games on the road to the Cincinnati Reds over the weekend, has the club sitting one game below .500 at 56-57 and 3 ½ games out of the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
Would it make sense for the Pirates to abandon their plans to buy, or should they keep the course and hold onto some of their more valuable players like Lowe in hopes of snapping their 10-year postseason drought?
Trading Lowe Can’t Be in Pittsburgh’s Plans
For an organization that has remained in the playoff race and bought at the deadline just once this decade (2024) prior to this season, Pittsburgh cannot jump at the opportunity to sell.
Sure, the Pirates haven’t won a series in two weeks and just saw Ryan O’Hearn, one of the most productive members of their lineup, go down with a left quad strain that will keep him on the injured well into September in all likelihood.
With the Miami Marlins reportedly considering trading some of their promising young position players while the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks have yet to make any noteworthy moves, however, the door is still open for Pittsburgh to gain ground.
While dishing out top prospects for rentals wouldn't be smart for a team in the Pirates' situation, there are opportunities out there to go and land players with extra years of control who can help in both 2026 and beyond.
Trading Lowe would essentially mean raising the white flag, especially with O'Hearn, Griffin and Oneil Cruz all currently on the IL.
The 32-year-old second baseman had a strong July after struggling in June, slashing .313/.356/.469, and he's posted 23 home runs on the year to go with an .810 OPS and eight Outs Above Average.
Unless Lowe is being packaged with another highly sought-after piece, whatever return Pittsburgh nets for him in a trade won't outweigh the potential benefits of keeping him around for the remainder of the campaign.
While being reactionary is the name of the game this time of year, the Pirates have to take a step back and establish that they have both a rotation and lineup capable of making serious noise in October. The bullpen still needs some work even after acquiring Camilo Doval, and should they bring in another quality reliever or two, the club should be in pretty good shape.
Lowe is far too important to Pittsburgh's success, and moving him when it's still very much a factor in the playoff race would be borderline malpractice.
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Jack is a New Jersey native who graduated from the University of Pittsburgh as a Media & Professional Communications major in 2024 who is now covering the Pittsburgh Steelers and New York Yankees for On SI.