MLB Trade Ratings: Pirates Are Buyers, But Did They Overpay for Jalen Beeks?

Pittsburgh Pirates get: Left-handed pitcher Jalen Beeks

Colorado Rockies get: Left-handed pitcher Luis Peralta

Stephen J. Nesbitt: I don’t understand what the buyer means here, unless the Pirates are preparing for another move, such as trading left-hander Aroldis Chapman.

As it stands, the Pirates are giving up a top-25 prospect for a rental reliever. We’ve written about how expensive relief pitching is at this trade deadline , but Beeks, 31, isn’t one of the big relievers on the market. He’s a soft-contact savant with guile and decent stuff who had a couple of solid seasons with the Rays. But the area numbers have gotten worse, and the swing-and-miss is gone this season (down 10 percentage points from last year). You can’t just dismiss Beeks’ numbers as the Coors Effect. He’s actually significantly better at home (3.81 ERA) than he is away (6 ERA) this season. That’s not to say Beeks won’t be good for the Buccos in the final period. He’s still dominating lefties (.529 OPS), though that’s less useful in the post-LOOGY era.

LHP Luis Peralta is going to the Rockies in exchange for left-handed reliever Jalen Beeks, per @Feinsand.

Peralta was ranked as Pittsburgh’s 24th prospect in our last midseason update, after going unranked all year.

Scouting report: https://t.co/D1jrCcpwvB

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Giving up Peralta, the younger brother of Brewers All-Star Freddy Peralta, is an unfortunate price to pay. Peralta, 23, struggled at Single-A Brandon in 2022 and 2023 but has dominated this season, posting a 1.13 ERA in High A and Double A. He has lowered his walk rate and struck out more than 14 batters per nine innings. Relief pitching prospects like Peralta often fail to pan out, but most get a chance at some point. It’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Beeks provides the Pirates with enough value over the next few months to make losing Peralta worthwhile.

Pirates: C
Rocky mountains: a

Chad Jennings: In 2018, Beeks was the Red Sox prospect who was traded at the deadline for two months of veteran starter Nathan Eovaldi. Now, Beeks is the veteran, coming to the Pirates to bolster their bullpen for two months before becoming a free agent. Beeks has been a starter and a long man throughout his career, and he has saved nine games this season. He has been excellent in left-on-left situations, and he should provide some balance to a predominantly right-handed Pirates bullpen.

Peralta has had a good year himself, having brought his still-high walk rate down to a more reasonable level. He could be a bullpen piece for the Rockies in the relatively near future, which is far more valuable to them than whatever Beeks has been doing the last two months.

It’s good to see the rising Pirates make an addition, even if it’s a relatively small one. And it’s good to see the often stagnant Rockies sell, even if it’s for a relatively small return.

Pirates: B
Rocky mountains: B

(Photo: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)