The Pittsburgh Pirates have announced the signing of Yoshi Tsutsugo. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Pirates have designated Colin Moran for assignment.
The corresponding move indicates where Tsutsugo will play in 2022. Moran was projected to make $4 million in arbitration, and would have returned to first base if he returned to the team. Tsutsugo was signed to a one-year, $4 million deal, and will almost certainly be the starting first baseman now.
In total, the Pirates have swapped out Moran and Steven Brault for Tsutsugo and Jose Quintana. The former players were projected to make $6.2 million in arbitration, while the latter are making $6 million. I see Tsutsugo and Quintana as both better options, so this is a good use of resources. I would have kept Brault around, as I don’t think the Pirates had enough players better than him to DFA him.
