Morning Rundown: Adam Frazier reunion? Martin Perez cutter
Could the Pirates turn to a familiar face in free agency?
Adam Frazier played the first 5+ years of his major league career with the Pittsburgh Pirates before being traded to the San Diego Padres during the 2021 season.
Could a reunion be in the works?
It would certainly be an interesting signing for the Pirates, who aren’t lacking in options for the second base position.
Frazier batted .283/.346/.420 with an OPS+ of 105 and 39 home runs during his time with the Pirates. He struggled in Seattle during the 2022 season but bounced back to have a solid year with the Orioles in 2023.
He hit a career-high 13 home runs and drove in 60 runs while also stealing 11 bases. While the Pirates have a few players more on the side of being free swingers in Liover Peguero and Nick Gonzales in the mix at second, Frazier is the exact opposite.
According to Baseball Savant, his whiff and strikeout rates were still in the 84th percentile or better last year.
The issue would come from his defense, as his -15 Outs Above Average on Savant was the fourth-worst mark among all qualified players.
The Pirates will rely on Martin Perez to revert to his 2022 self to put together some productive innings. After putting together a career-best 194.1 innings and 2.89 ERA in 2023, the 32-year-old struggled and was eventually pushed to the bullpen down the stretch for the Texas Rangers.
Alex Stumpf of DK Pittsburgh Sports had a fantastic look at the key for Perez to find the magic from 2022, his cutter.
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I have absolutely zero interest in bringing back Adam Frazier. There is no upside. He is what he is. If the Pirates are going to have a playoff caliber team in 2024-2026, Adam Frazier will not be a part of it. It has to come from Peguero, Gonzales, Bae, Cheng, etc.
Adam Frazier’s bat is definitely worthy of a major league contract. His glove isn’t. Considering the Pirates brought in two ground ball SP’s, it doesn’t make much sense to me to spend money on another infielder who makes team defense worse. A Tellez/Frazier pairing very well might be the worst right side of the diamond defense in MLB.