Former Blue Jays outfielder gaining interest from Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are in need of help in the outfield and former Blue Jay Randal Grichuk could be their solution.
MLB insider Mark Feinsand first reported that the Pirates, who are reportedly also in on Alex Verdugo, were circling Grichuk.
Grichuk spent four seasons with the Blue Jays and at one point was the anchor in the outfield, and potential franchise player of the future.
He first came to the Blue Jays in a trade with the Cardinals, which saw pitchers Dominic Leone and Conner Greene head to St. Louis. After starting off slow and spending some time on the IL, he ultimately co-led the team in home runs with 25.
He then signed a five year contract extension just ahead of the 2019 season. While Grichuk always had power, including hitting a career-high 31 home runs in 2019, he struggled to find consistency elsewhere. In 2019, his average was .232 and his OBP was .280.
The Blue Jays signed George Springer ahead of the 2021 season and suddenly the outfield became crowded. While the Blue Jays pulled off a balancing act that year, the writing was on the wall for Grichuk. Before next season, he was shipped to Colorado for Ramiel Tapia.
Grichuk spent 2024 with Arizona. While he only hit 12 HRs, the rest of his game was strong, including a 140 OPS+.
Grichuk is a likely to be a platoon player at this stage in his career, but having the ability to play both centre and right field will only increase his chances of getting signed.
For his career Grichuk is slashing .252/.300/.469 with 203 home runs. and 602 RBIs.
