According to Jason Mackey, the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed 30-year-old outfielder Brian Goodwin to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training.
Per sources: Pirates have signed OF Brian Goodwin to a minor-league deal with an invitation to big league camp.
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) February 11, 2021
Goodwin split the 2020 season between the Los Angeles Angels and Cincinnati Reds, hitting .215/.299/.417 in 50 games. He has played five years in the majors, also seeing time with the Washington Nationals and Kansas City Royals. He has a .250/.317/.455 career slash line in 357 games. Goodwin has seen plenty of time at all three outfield spots, though his defense has rated below average during all five seasons. He doesn’t steal many bases or get on base at a high clip, but he has shown some power throughout his big league time, topping out at 29 doubles and 17 homers in 413 at-bats during the 2019 season.
The Pirates have just four outfielders on their 40-man roster, though that doesn’t include the possibility of Cole Tucker seeing time out there again. Jared Oliva will be fighting for an Opening Day spot, while Anthony Alford likely has an Opening Day spot, be he has yet to stick in the majors after four partial seasons, showing a .529 OPS in 51 games. Gregory Polanco and Bryan Reynolds will both have starting spots. The non-roster invites to ST include four players with no big league experience and three who haven’t made their Double-A debut yet, so it’s unlikely that one of them breaks through without seeing minor league time first. That leaves Goodwin in a good spot to get an Opening Day spot.
