Pirates Trade Sammy Stafura For Luke Weaver

The Pirates added one of the best relief pitchers on the market for a prospect whose value surged in the last month.

Sammy Stafura had a month for the ages.

In the month of July, he hit 14 home runs for High-A Greensboro. Not the type of home runs that make you think the power is just a product of a hitter-friendly park. Some of these were 450-foot shots.

On Monday, less than two hours before the MLB Trade Deadline, the Pirates flipped the red hot Stafura to the New York Mets for relief pitcher Luke Weaver.

In the deal, the Pirates get back one of the best relievers on the market, filling their need for late inning bullpen help.

Weaver had a 1.84 ERA in 44 innings this year for the Mets. He ranks 19th out of 167 qualified relievers in fWAR. And just like Stafura, Weaver has been on an impressive run.

On July 16th, Weaver allowed an earned run. He allowed an unearned run on July 6th. Prior to that, the last time he allowed an earned run was on April 30th. That’s 30 appearances in a row where the right-hander allowed only two runs, one earned.

Weaver has been a 7th/8th inning guy with the Mets. A starter up until the 2024 season, Weaver has never been a 9th inning guy. He has combined for a 2.90 ERA and a 3.40 FIP across 192.2 innings over the last three years in relief. The 32-year-old will likely get the chance to close for the Pirates.

The Mets signed Weaver to a two-year, $22 million deal ahead of the 2026 season. He’s making $9.5 million this year and $12.5 million next season. With this move, the Pirates not only add relief help for the remainder of the 2026 season, but they also help the bullpen next season.

One year ago at the deadline, the Pirates added Stafura for Ke’Bryan Hayes. That deal was more of a salary dump at the time, with the hope Stafura would provide some long-term value as a lower-level lottery ticket. At the time of the trade, Stafura was hitting .261/.392/.410 with four home runs in 403 at-bats in Low-A.

Entering June 26th this year, Stafura only had four home runs on the season between Bradenton and Greensboro, while missing some time with an injury. That’s when his historic run started.

He homered on the 26th of June, then proceeded to hit a home run in 12 of his next 21 games. He had three games during that stretch where he hit multiple home runs. Stafura was the Pirates Prospects Player of the Month for his performance during July.

The Pirates did well to flip Stafura when his value was high. The power might be limited to a little over a month, but it’s definitely real to an extent with how far Stafura has been hitting the ball. The Pirates don’t need to worry about the long-term sustainability of that power.

With Konnor Griffin in the Majors, the Pirates can afford to trade a surging middle infield prospect for a more immediate need. The Mets buy early on the power emergence from Stafura for their top relief option.

Most importantly, the Pirates addressed their biggest need this season. The addition of Weaver follows the trade that brought Camilo Doval from the New York Yankees. In that trade, the Pirates traded Omar Alfonzo, dealing from a place of catching depth in the middle levels of the minor league system.

Weaver and Doval are a big boost to a bullpen that has been one of the worst in the game at protecting leads. That will help the Pirates in their pursuit of the playoffs down the stretch.

UPDATE 4:39 PM: Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports the Mets are sending $2 million in 2026 and $6 million in 2027 as part of the deal. This means the Pirates are barely adding salary in 2026, and get Weaver for $6.5 million in 2027.

Less than an hour until the trade deadline…

-Tim Williams