The 20-55 Chicago White Sox are possibly the worst team in MLB. They are not going anywhere and won’t be competitive for a while. On the other hand, the 36-38 Pittsburgh Pirates are finally starting to see the light after years of mediocrity. They are far from perfect, but they are among a group of multiple squads competing for a spot in the playoffs via the Wild Card. Their offense could use some help. Jomboy Media analyst @jolly_olive is encouraging them to pursue an impact player that might become available ahead of the trade deadline. He plays for the White Sox, and his name is Luis Robert Jr.
“@Jolly_Olive wants the Pirates to trade for Luis Robert,” Talkin’ Baseball tweeted, with a video of the analysis.
.@Jolly_Olive wants the Pirates to trade for Luis Robert pic.twitter.com/KI6u7gUQPC
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) June 20, 2024
“There is a team that is young and fun, and they rank 29th in wRC+ out of their center field position: the Pittsburgh Pirates should trade for Luis Robert,” he started. The Twitter personality insists that the Pirates should take advantage of a talented young pitching trio and give them the offense they deserve. “We don’t know what the future holds. What we do know right now is that Paul Skenes, Jared Jones and Mitch Keller are all healthy and pitching really well, and the Pirates are in this thing and aren’t getting the offensive production they need. They have been hoarding prospects for years, they haven’t made a buying move since our friend Chris Archer that I can remember that is significant,” he explained.
Trading for Robert, a career .275/.324/.500 hitter with a .824 OPS and the ability to hit 38 home runs and steal 20 bases in the same season (like he did last year), would be a great idea for Pittsburgh. He is also controllable for a few more years, so he would be far from a rental.
“Now is the time, man! The NL Central is within reach. I know the Brewers are having this terrific season but there is 10 teams in the NL Wild Card hunt and you are in the thick of it! You can jump these teams with a nice stretch and you need a sparkplug bat, an X-factor in your lineup that you don’t really have right now,” the analyst closed.
Robert has the potential to turn the Pirates from merely competitive to legit playoff contenders.
