The first domino in what should be a busy Trade Deadline for the Pirates fell Wednesday, as the Bucs struck a deal to send utilityman Adam Frazier to the Royals in exchange for infielder Cam Devanney.
Frazier returned to the Pirates this offseason after bouncing around the league the past four years, including a stop in Kansas City just last season. And while he hasn't been able to regain his 2021 All-Star form, he was a stabilizing presence in the clubhouse and lineup. Frazier took over second-base duties in the early portion of the season while Nick Gonzales was on the injured list and then split time between the infield and outfield over the past month.
TRADE DETAILS
Pirates receive: INF Cam Devanney
Royals receive: UTIL Adam Frazier
On the year, Frazier has a slash line of .255/.318/.336 with three home runs and 21 RBIs. This will be his second stint with the Royals, after he signed with them in January 2024.
Frazier is on an expiring contract, and there’s a case to be made that the Pirates will be better served giving younger players reps down the stretch to see if they can contribute in 2026. That said, Frazier contributed in many ways to this club, including passing along drillwork that Henry Davis said helped with his contact. With Gonzales back in the fold, though, Frazier just didn’t have much playing opportunity outside of the corner outfield.
In exchange, the Pirates receive Devanney, a 28-year-old infielder who has yet to appear in the Majors. He was enjoying a very strong season for the Royals’ Triple-A club in Omaha, hitting 18 home runs with a .931 OPS. Devanney got a callup to the Royals on July 8 but didn't get into a game. He was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis following the trade.
Devanney's batted-ball data supports that this has been his best offensive campaign in pro ball, as his average exit velocity jumped from 88.3 mph in 2024 to 90.4 mph this season. He has fared much better against breaking pitches (.295 batting average, 621 slugging percentage) compared to fastballs (.234 average, .438 slugging).
Devanney also swings and misses at a higher clip, whiffing 33.9% of the time this season, significantly higher than when it was just 25% in 2023. His slugging percentage was also more than 100 points lower in '23, so those extra whiffs seem to be a tradeoff for more pop.
Devanney has bounced around the infield in the Minors, but he has spent most of his time at shortstop, posting a .969 fielding percentage at the position. He’s made seven errors over 512 1/3 innings at shortstop and has been part of 25 double plays.
The Pirates are expected to deal shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa before the July 31 Deadline and aren’t exactly robust at shortstop depth. Jared Triolo has graded below average defensively at shortstop (-3 defensive runs saved in his career), while Liover Peguero and Tsung-Che Cheng have below average offensive numbers with Triple-A Indianapolis. That could create an opportunity for Devanney to show what he can do at the Major League level.
While Frazier is the first Pirate to be traded this deadline, he won’t be the last. Kiner-Falefa, Andrew Heaney, Tommy Pham and Caleb Ferguson are all on expiring contracts and should draw interest. Pittsburgh also has several players with years of team control remaining that could be dealt, like Mitch Keller, David Bednar and Dennis Santana.
If and when the Pirates make more moves, the focus appears to be on improving the 2026 club.
"Our focus is short-term,” general manager Ben Cherington said on his 93.7 The Fan radio show on Sunday. “By short-term, I don't necessarily mean August of 2025. But our focus is going to be: How do we get this thing on track and be better in 2026, win more games in 2026? That's our focus in all of our decision-making.
“That doesn't mean we wouldn't trade a player for a prospect. That just means that, if we do, it's, in our mind, a way to add value to the organization that we can somehow use that to build back toward a better team in 2026."