Pirates by Position: Competition for corner outfield alongside Oneil Cruz, Bryan Reynolds

Now that the Pittsburgh Pirates completed a seismic shift by moving Oneil Cruz from shortstop to center field — a switch to which they appear committed — they are attempting to address another gaping hole.

With Cruz and two-time All-Star Bryan Reynolds, two-thirds of their outfield appears set. But after non-tendering contracts to Bryan De La Cruz — a trade deadline bust — and Connor Joe, the Pirates have signed a pair of 30-something veterans to fill the corner spot opposite Reynolds this offseason.

A week after bringing back 33-year-old Adam Frazier, a 2022 All-Star at second base who can play left field, to a one-year, $1.525 million contract, the Pirates signed 36-year-old Tommy Pham to a one-year, $4.025 million deal. Frazier and Pham are expected to compete with a pool of candidates that includes Ji Hwan Bae, Joshua Palacios and Jack Suwinski — all of whom spent much of last season either injured or at Triple-A Indianapolis — and rookie Billy Cook.

No wonder the Pirates tend to shift the conversation to Cruz, who returned from a fractured left ankle to bat .259/.324/.449 with a team-high 34 doubles to go with 21 home runs and 76 RBIs in 146 games.

The 6-foot-7, 220-pounder possesses the best bat speed in baseball and ranks among the game’s leaders in hard-hit rate, barrel percentage and exit velocity. After playing 110 games at shortstop, he moved to center field in late August and played 23 games at his new position.

The Pirates are hoping Cruz’s elite speed and arm strength can make up for his inexperience in center field after having Gold Glove winner Michael A. Taylor patrolling PNC Park last season.

“Just taking into account his speed and athleticism,” Reynolds said of Cruz, “I’m sure that once he gets his feet fully wet — they got a little wet last year — I bet he’s going to be pretty good out there.”

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington told MLB Network in December that he believes Cruz’s bounce-back season took a backseat to the breakout rookie campaign of All-Star right-hander Paul Skenes.

“In some ways, because of what Skenes did, his year got overshadowed a little bit,” Cherington said. “Internally, we felt like it was a really good, successful story for the Pirates, the fact that he came back from major, major injury, played a full season.

“We think he made a successful transition to center field — not a finished transition, but a successful transition to center field. He showed us enough that he can do that, and we’re committed to him in center field going forward.”

The Pirates are counting on Cruz playing center to free him up offensively. After committing a dozen errors in the month before his move, Cruz batted .389 in August and only .160 in September. But he also finished with 22 stolen bases, flashing the potential to become a 30-30 player after setting the goal of joining the 40-40 club.

And Cruz made major improvements at the plate against left-handed pitching, batting .366 against lefties in July and August.

“By the end of the year, we’re looking at a guy that we think can be a true everyday player in center field,” Cherington said. “And then obviously, sometimes he does those special things, where you just drop your jaw. He’s such an important part of the team, and we think really good things are ahead for Oneil.”

Reynolds continued to be a model of consistency at the plate, leading the Pirates in batting (.275), on-base percentage (.344), OPS (.791), home runs (24) and RBIs (88) in 156 games. It marked his fourth consecutive season with 24 or more homers and driving in the most runs on the team.

“I think it’s a huge thing, not necessarily the numbers specifically, but being in there every day, showing up to the park knowing that I’m going to be in there and preparing that way,” Reynolds said. “I think that’s what leads to consistency in the numbers and consistency all around.”

Reynolds worked on his arm strength in anticipation of a switch to right field last year, but Suwinski’s struggles forced Reynolds to return to left. After hitting 19 homers in 2022 and a team-high 26 homers in 2023, the streaky Suwinski batted .182 with a .588 OPS in 88 games before being demoted. He also struggled in both left and center field, with a minus-7 defensive runs saved in both spots.

Pham can play all three outfield positions, although the majority of his starts (612 of 885) have come in left field. The right-handed hitter has a career .258/.346/.427 slash line in 11 seasons with nine teams, including three last season. He brings valuable postseason experience, having played in the World Series with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023, and batting .315/.331/.492 with five doubles, six home runs and 12 RBIs in 37 career playoff games with St. Louis, Tampa Bay, San Diego, Arizona and Kansas City.

Frazier has 650 starts at second base in his nine-year career, with 95 in left field and 52 in right. Not only does he add a veteran presence to the clubhouse, but Frazier got postseason experience each of the past three years with Seattle, Baltimore and Kansas City.

Palacios was sidetracked by illness and injuries, including a hamstring strain, that limited him to 23 games with the Pirates last season after hitting 10 homers with 40 RBIs the previous season. Bae also dealt with a hip injury that limited him to 29 games with the Pirates. A converted infielder, the bulk of his outfield experience has come in center field.

The 26-year-old Cook, acquired from the Orioles at the trade deadline, made his major-league debut in September and batted .224 with two doubles, three homers and eight RBIs in 16 games for the Pirates. He showed off a strong arm and the ability to play all three outfield spots.

But the Pirates enter spring training without a clear idea of who will start in the corner outfield spot next to Cruz and opposite Reynolds.

“I don’t know,” Reynolds said last month at PiratesFest. “It’s going to take some guys stepping up, separating and showing they are those guys because you can’t just hand out spots. It’s got to be taken and earned.”