Pirates sign two-time All-Star Dee Strange-Gordon to minors deal

The Pirates signed infielder Dee Strange-Gordon to a minor league contract, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reports (Twitter link). Strange-Gordon will report to Pittsburgh’s Triple-A affiliate.

As Passan notes, Strange-Gordon has made it almost a full circuit around the NL Central within the last five months. He was previously released from minor league deals with the Reds and Brewers, and then he opted out of a minors contract with the Cubs just Tuesday. All of this movement hasn’t resulted in any MLB playing time for Strange-Gordon, though a more clear path back to the majors might exist in the Steel City.

The Pirates have seen their infield depth considerably thinned within the last week, with Colin Moran, Erik Gonzalez and Phillip Evans all placed on the 10-day injured list. Gregory Polanco’s own IL stint (due to a bilateral adductor strain) has further subtracted from the position player mix, and Strange-Gordon did accumulate some outfield experience in his three seasons with the Mariners. While the rebuilding Pirates are more prone to take a look at younger players than a veteran like Strange-Gordon, he can at least provide some depth in the event of any more injuries or perhaps if any Pittsburgh players are moved prior to the July 30 trade deadline.

While it has been some time since Strange-Gordon was even a league-average hitter, he does offer some multi-positional versatility as a shortstop, second baseman and outfielder. Even as his batting declined over three seasons with Seattle, Strange-Gordon was still a threat on the basepaths, going 22-for-27 in stolen base attempts as recently as 2019.