3 prospects the Pirates should try and hold onto if they are buyers…

For the first time in years, the Pittsburgh Pirates have a good chance of being buyers in Septemper. They’ve played some solid ball over their last 30-35 games and are in the thick of a Wild Card race. It’s also very much a possibility they could take over the National League Central, provided they get hot or a division rival hits a cold snap.

The Pirates have built up a good farm system with a lot of pitching, which they’d likely use to negotiate in trade talks. However, while none of their prospects should be off-limits, there are some players the Pirates should hold onto or not let go unless an exorbitant price is met. It might be more valuable to the Pirates to keep them rather than trade them.

Pittsburgh Pirates should keep these prospects at 2024 MLB trade deadline

Termarr Johnson

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ best position player prospect (by far) is Termarr Johnson. The infielder was the Pirates’ first-round pick in 2022, and while he got off to a slow start to 2024, he still has one of the highest ceilings in the minor leagues among any position player prospect. Luckily, he’s started to heat up as the weather has gotten warmer.

Johnson owns a .218/.381/.359 triple-slash on the season. While that might not look too impressive, keep in mind the league average OPS in the South Atlantic League is about as low as it was during the Deadball Era. Once adjusting to a pitcher-friendly environment, Johnson’s production comes out with a quality 118 wRC+. Johnson has only struck out 21.8% of the time with an impressive 18.1% walk rate.

But since May 18, the second baseman has been hitting .270/.390/.500 with a .405 wOBA and 147 wRC+. While his 13.8% walk rate isn’t nearly as high as his season total, it is still well above average. Plus, he’s striking out less than 20% of the time with a 19.5% K%. Johnson is also hitting for pop, with a .230 isolated slugging percentage and five homers over his last 123 plate appearances.

Johnson is an above-average runner who projects as a solid defensive second baseman. He could be a potential 20/20 threat in the future. His bat has developed slower than anticipated, but he just turned 20 earlier this month and is already at High-A. It’s not surprising that there’ve been some growing pains, though he is on the right trend.

The Pirates need long-term hitters, and trading the one and only great position player prospect in the system is a little counter-intuitive, unless they’re getting a good, proven hitter back in a trade with more than three years of control remaining beyond 2024. I understand you have to give something to get something, but trading Johnson when you need long-term position players could cause an issue down the line.