A look at how the Pirates' trade deadline acquisitions have performed

A few weeks ago, Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington made a handful of moves at the trade deadline intended to reinforce the club.

None of the MLB players he traded for — reliever Jalen Beeks, super-utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa or outfielder Bryan De La Cruz — were blockbuster acquisitions.

Yet, all of them (some more prominently than others) addressed needs.

Unfortunately for the Pirates (56-64), losers of 10 straight, Cherington’s actions at the deadline did nothing to prevent a skid of massive proportions.

Although the Pirates’ postseason hopes might have evaporated, it’s worth examining how the new additions have fared thus far, considering many of them will in all likelihood be around for 2025. (Stats are entering Friday’s game.)

Bryan De La Cruz

Cherington’s biggest move arguably has turned out to be the biggest disappointment.

The Pirates had good reason to be interested De La Cruz, as he slashed .245/.289/.417 with 18 homers and 51 RBIs over 105 games with the Miami Marlins at the time of his trade.

He seemed a viable option in bolstering a largely unproductive outfield (other than Bryan Reynolds).

Through 11 games with the Pirates, De La Cruz has not had a soft landing.

He’s batting .196 with zero extra-base hits and a lone RBI, with an on-base percentage of .213.

De La Cruz, Miami’s leader in strikeouts before being traded, is striking out at an alarming 39% rate so far in Pittsburgh.

Defensively, the Pirates have deployed him primarily in right field, where his impact has been negligible.

In fairness, De La Cruz primarily played left field in Miami, but through 10 games and 84 innings in right with the Pirates, he already has a pair of errors.

Looking ahead : De La Cruz is likely to factor into the Pirates’ plans, as he is under club control for three more years through 2027.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa

The 29-year-old came to the Pirates with a reputation of being able to play just about anywhere.

In addition, he was enjoying his best offensive campaign in the majors before the Toronto Blue Jays traded him.

Kiner-Falefa has demonstrated value defensively for the Pirates, slotting in seamlessly at second base and shortstop.

He’s batting .239 (11 for 46) since arriving in Pittsburgh, compared to the .292 clip he managed in 82 games with the Blue Jays.

That said, Kiner-Falefa has a pair of doubles and two triples since returning to full health with the Pirates.

He’s living up to expectations with his defensive versatility, but so far his offense has lagged behind.

Looking ahead : Kiner-Falefa is under contract with the Pirates for $7.5 million in 2025.

Jalen Beeks

Manager Derek Shelton frequently has given Beeks the call since he was acquired from the Colorado Rockies at the end of July.

The 31-year-old didn’t produce spectacular numbers in Colorado, going 6-4 with a 4.74 ERA, but he offered the Pirates an additional left-handed bullpen arm.

Since joining the Pirates, Beeks has put up a 1.50 ERA over eight appearances and six innings, allowing one earned run.

However, his WHIP over that span is 1.50, higher than the 1.36 he had with the Rockies.

Beeks has allowed a handful of inherited runners to score, but Shelton has thrown him into many sticky situations over the last two weeks, with mostly encouraging results.

Looking ahead : Beeks is an unrestricted free agent after this season.

Hot bats at Triple-A

The rapid deterioration of the Pirates’ playoffs hopes in August may contribute to the eventual appearance of two additions to the farm system who are currently on a tear at Triple-A Indianapolis: Billy Cook and Nick Yorke.

Cook, 25, was acquired from the Baltimore Orioles for minor-league pitcher Patrick Reilly.

He was batting .279 with Baltimore’s Triple-A club, the Norfolk Tides, but since joining Indianapolis, he has slashed .344/.421/.688 with five doubles, two homers and eight RBIs.

He has 11 hits in 10 games and owns an OPS of 1.109 with the Indians.

The Indians have deployed Cook at all three outfield positions.

As for the 22-year-old Yorke, he also has upped his game since arriving from the Boston Red Sox organization.

Yorke was hitting .310 with the Worcester Red Sox, but through 13 games with the Indians, he is batting .362 with five doubles and seven RBIs.

Yorke, the return piece for pitcher Quinn Priester, primarily plays second base.

Looking ahead : It seems a fair bet both may get some major-league playing time before the end of September.

Acquired, then released

Left-hander Josh Walker was acquired from the New York Mets for fellow lefty Nicolas Carreno.

Assigned to Triple-A, the 29-year-old landed on the injured list after a week and was designated for assignment then released soon thereafter.

He made a lone appearance for the Indians, allowing two runs in one inning Aug. 3.

Looking ahead : The next chapter of Walker’s baseball career remains to be seen, but it won’t be written with the Pirates.