Pirates Trade 34th Overall Pick to White Sox
The Pirates sent the 34th overall pick and LHP Jaden Woods to the White Sox for infielder Jacob Gonzalez and LHP Brandon Eisert.
According to Jeff Passan, the Pittsburgh Pirates have traded the 34th overall pick in this weekend’s MLB Draft to the Chicago White Sox.
Passan reports the Pirates packaged the pick with left-handed relief prospect Jaden Woods, receiving Jacob Gonzalez and Brandon Eisert in return.
Gonzalez was drafted in the first round in 2023, taken 15th overall. The infielder is currently in Triple-A, where he has spent time at first, second, third, and the majority of his time at shortstop. He’s hitting for a .320/.422/.675 line in 200 at-bats with 10 home runs this season.
There would be a question of how legitimate this power surge is from Gonzalez. He hit .232/.307/.345 last season between Double-A and Triple-A, which matches the numbers he’s put up so far in his pro career. This year is either a fluke, or the start of a breakout season.
Eisert is a 28-year-old left-handed reliever who has 103.2 career innings in the Majors across the last three seasons. Originally drafted in 2019 by the Blue Jays, Eisert was traded to the Rays for cash in January 2025, then claimed off waivers later that spring. He’s pitched the last two years in the White Sox bullpen, with a 5.93 ERA in 27.1 innings this year.
This isn’t the big reliever the Pirates have been looking for, with Eisert instead looking like another depth option. His fastball sits a touch under 90 MPH and he pairs that with a slider and changeup in the low-to-mid 80s. He does have a good whiff rate, generating swing and miss from the secondary stuff. Eisert has four years of service remaining after this season.
Quick Trade Analysis
Last year, the Rays traded the 37th overall pick for Bryan Baker, who came with three-plus years of service time, and who is now their closer.
Eisert doesn’t seem like a comparable situation, but this trade is also different.
Gonzalez looks like the main return in this deal. The Pirates got a former first rounder who might be starting to break out in exchange for their 34th overall pick this year.
The Pirates also lowered their bonus pool in the process from a league-leading $19,130,700 to the updated total of $16,233,300. The White Sox previously had the third biggest bonus pool, and move to the top spot with this move.
So, the Pirates got a potential first round talent whose stock has dropped but might be at the start of an upswing, and didn’t spend any money to get him.
The other part of the deal was the swap of lefties. Eisert was on the waiver wire a year ago, and he hasn’t done much to significantly improve his value since then. He adds to the Pirates’ depth, especially with lefty Evan Sisk currently injured. He’s also familiar to Ben Cherington, being drafted by Toronto during Cherington’s final year with the Blue Jays.
In return, the Pirates sent Woods, who actually pitched two shutout innings with four strikeouts tonight for Indianapolis. Woods, taken in the seventh round in 2023, has only recently moved up to Triple-A. He has a 7.71 ERA in 11.1 innings after tonight’s appearance, with a 95 MPH fastball and a 40% whiff rate on his slider.
You could make the argument that Woods might end up being better than Eisert in the future. For the current season, Woods isn’t going to be a depth option, while Eisert can help the bullpen if he pitches to his ~4.50 FIP from each of the last two seasons.
The value of this trade isn’t bad for the Pirates. It hinges on the breakout of Gonzales being the real deal. If that’s the case, they’ve added an infielder who is at the start of a breakout, and closer to the Majors than any draft pick, while saving a few million by trading their pick, and getting more immediate lefty relief help in the Woods/Eisert swap.
This move doesn’t really solve anything. It improves the relief depth, and improves the position player depth that was getting thin in Triple-A. The Pirates will still need relief help, and considering they just unloaded nearly $3 million in draft spending commitments, they’ll have additional resources at the deadline.
If Gonzalez really is starting to click in Triple-A, this trade will look like a good one, regardless of what happens with Eisert.
Until the next time I go live…
…which will be tomorrow for the 2026 MLB Draft. Follow along at PiratesProspects.com and follow every pick on the Draft Pick Signing Tracker.
-Tim Williams
Question: Quick look only. How does Gonzalez rate on the Bucs' prospect list. Like is he a top ten guy or somewhere down around fringe starter?