Toni Kukoc Jersey The Pirates are acquiring outfielder from the Marlins, according to multiple sources. The Marlins receive right-hander and infielder in return. De La Cruz, 27, was in the midst of his fourth season as a Marlin prior to this deal. An international signing of the Astros, he went to Miami in the that sent to the Astros. Hes now appeared in 431 major league games with his standout trait being his home run power. In his 1,654 plate appearances, he has walked in 6.2% of them and struck out in 24.4% of them, with both of those rates being a bit worse than average. But he has launched 55 home runs in that time and stolen 12 bases. His .258/.305/.419 batting line translates to a wRC+ of 97. Though De La Cruz has been three percent below league average at the plate in his career, the Bucs likely still consider that a notable upgrade. Pittsburgh outfielders have hit a collective .227/.300/.352 this year for a wRC+ of 83, or 17% below league average. That includes a monster showing from , who is hitting .288/.354/.483 this year for a 133 wRC+. The rest of that output includes rough performances from , , , and others. Defensively, De La Cruz doesnt get strong grades. In over 3,000 innings at all three outfield spots, hes currently been worth -10 Defensive Runs Saved and -16 Outs Above Average. Hes been close to league average in right field but that only makes up roughly 600 of those innings, as he has spent most of his time in left field. The Bucs use Reynolds in left field almost every day so perhaps they are hoping that De La Cruz can be pa sable in right field and around average at the plate. While that might not be the most exciting development, it could still be a notable one for the Pirates. The club is just two games out of a playoff spot despite its warts, so a patch here and there might be enough to help them retain more water and stay afloat. For a low-spending club like the Pirates, they are also undoubtedly attracted to his contract status. De La Cruz has not yet qualified for arbitration and is earning around the league minimum. He will pa s three years of service time this season and qualify for arb this winter, with the Bucs able to retain him for three seasons after this one. As for the Marlins, despite making the postseason last year, they have been in sell mode for a while. They did almost nothing in the offseason and then their cold start in 2024 prompted them to start selling early. It was in early May that they flipped to the Padres for prospects. In the past week, they have leaned hard into that proce s, sending out , , , , , , , and De La Cruz, which has totally remade their farm system with a pile of new prospects. In this deal, they get the 20-year-old Shim. Hes mi sed a lot of time due to injury, with just eight official innings on this ledger so far. However, lists him as the Pirates #28 prospect at the moment. Forrester, 22, was a third-round draft pick last year. Hes hitting .273/.413/.382 in High-A this year while splitting his time between catcher, first base and third base. Last week, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic that the Bucs were interested in De La Cruz. Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported today that he was indeed going to Pittsburgh. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com first reported Shims inclusion while Christina De Nicola of MLB.com had Forrester . Simisola Shittu Jersey