Pirates trade for 1B Spencer Horwitz, sending RHP Luis Ortiz, 2 lefties to Cleveland

The Pittsburgh Pirates pulled off their first major offseason trade Tuesday night by sending right-handed pitcher Luis Ortiz and a pair of lefty prospects to the Cleveland Guardians for first baseman Spencer Horwitz.

The 27-year-old Horwitz is a left-handed hitter who batted .265/.357/.433 with 19 doubles, 12 home runs and 40 RBIs in 97 games for the Toronto Blue Jays last season. He finished first among all qualified major league rookies in on-base percentage, fourth in OPS (.790), sixth in batting average and eighth in slugging.

“Spencer has been a consistently strong offensive performer throughout his pro career, including his first extended major league experience this season,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said in a statement. “As a left-handed hitting first baseman with on-base skill, we believe he’s a strong fit for our lineup and team.”

Horwitz made his major league debut on June 18, 2023, and became the fourth player in Toronto history to record a hit, walk, RBI and run scored in his first game. He started the 2024 season at Triple-A Buffalo and ranked second in the International League in on-base percentage (.456), tied for third in batting average (.335), fourth in walks (44) and seventh in OPS (.970) when he was recalled June 7.

Horwitz has a reputation as a contact hitter with good walk (11.0%) and chase (25.7%) rates, and he reached safely in his first 17 starts to match Bo Bichette for the longest streak by a Blue Jays rookie. Horwitz had seven plate appearances in which he saw 10-plus pitches this past season.

The 5-foot-10, 190-pounder played 41 games at first base, 39 at second base and 17 at designated hitter for the Blue Jays as a rookie last season, but the Pirates have a major need at first base.

The Guardians acquired Horwitz from Toronto earlier Tuesday in a trade that sent Gold Glove second baseman Andres Gimenez and right-hander Nick Sandlin to the Blue Jays.

To acquire Horwitz, the Pirates gave up Ortiz, a 25-year-old Dominican who made a dazzling debut against the Cincinnati Reds in September 2022 by averaging 99 mph on 53 fastballs and touched triple digits six times. Ortiz was 12-13 with a 3.93 ERA in 59 appearances, including 34 starts, in three seasons with the Pirates.

Ortiz began last season in the bullpen but finished it in the starting rotation. He was 4-4 with a 3.22 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in 86 2/3 innings over 15 starts, including a one-hitter over six shutout innings in a 3-0 win over the Guardians on Aug. 31.

In addition to Ortiz, the Pirates included a pair of pitchers ranked their Nos. 15 and 17 prospects, respectively, by MLB Pipeline in lefties Michael Kennedy and Josh Hartle.

Kennedy, 20, was a 2022 fourth-round pick out of Troy (N.Y.) High School who averaged 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings in 18 games between Low-A Bradenton and High-A Greensboro last season. Hartle, 21, was a third-round pick (No. 83 overall) out of Wake Forest this past summer.