Pirates trading for Yankees reliever Camilo Doval, sources say

The Pittsburgh Pirates, thirsty for bullpen help in their push to end an 11-year postseason drought, have agreed to acquire reliever Camilo Doval from the New York Yankees, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan on Saturday.

The Yankees, who will cover a portion of Doval's salary, are receiving a pair of minor leaguers in catcher Omar Alfonzo and outfielder Luis Cruz, sources told ESPN.

Doval, an All-Star closer in 2023 for the San Francisco Giants, is a high-ceiling, low-floor enigma. The Yankees acquired him from the Giants at last year's trade deadline thinking he could slide into a setup role and create a dominant back end of the bullpen with closer David Bednar. Doval's stuff -- a cutter that touches 101 mph, a sinker that sits 98 mph, a wicked slider -- looked the part, but the arm talent did not produce consistent results.

While Doval, 29, occasionally overwhelmed hitters and teased the Yankees with dominance, his outings went haywire too often this season. He surrendered multiple hits and/or walks in 15 of his 44 outings and was charged with multiple runs six times while accumulating a 4.54 ERA. The tendency for traffic prompted the Yankees to move him into a low-leverage role by June.

And yet the Yankees' bullpen entered Saturday ranked first in the majors in ERA and seventh in Win Probability Added. As they look to further upgrade the group, Doval became expendable and an attractive buy-low option for clubs.

Enter the Pirates, whose bullpen has been the weak link in a resurgent season in Western Pennsylvania.

Pittsburgh began Saturday with a 55-56 record, 2 games out of the final National League wild-card spot. It has remained in contention behind a talented rotation led by reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes and an offense that has scored the second-most runs in baseball. But the Pirates are under .500 because the bullpen, ranked 23rd in ERA and 19th in WPA, has been a glaring flaw.

The front office's effort to bolster the weak link began last week when the Pirates acquired right-hander Ron Marinaccio from the San Diego Padres and designated Dennis Santana, one of the team's high-leverage relievers to start the season, for assignment.

Doval, who is making $6.1 million this season and is under club control through 2027, arrives with the potential to reach the level he displayed over his first three big league seasons with the Giants.

From 2021 through 2023, Doval logged a 2.77 ERA over 166 appearances and graduated into the closer role. Since then, he has a 4.28 ERA with a significantly higher walk rate and lower strikeout rate.This season, his splits are uncharacteristically drastic: He has held right-handed hitters to a .478 OPS in 91 plate appearances while left-handed hitters have walloped him for a .999 OPS across 87 plate appearances.

The Pirates are betting on unearthing the first version for their first playoff appearance since 2015.br/]