The Los Angeles Dodgers are tied with the San Diego Padres atop the NL West, despite countless injuries to the pitching staff and the profound struggles of former MVP and eight-time All-Star Mookie Betts. How did the Dodgers manage to stay afloat? Well, the front office has endless resources and will spend relentlessly the maximize the available talent on the roster.
Few teams can withstand injuries and setbacks better than LA. Now the Dodgers could get another chance to improve their strength on the margins. The waiver wire will heat up in the coming days as teams take stock of their postseason hopes and long-term plans. And no team loves to save a bit of extra money more than the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Andrew McCutchen emerged as a prime waiver wire candidate after he openly floated the idea of leaving in free agency. The vet is a legend in the Steel City and has spent the majority of his career in a Pirates uniform, but he (like us and every Pirates fan) is tired of Pittsburgh refusing to spend money on a competitive roster. The saddest organization in MLB can give fans one last thing to get mad about by letting McCutchen chase rings with a real team.
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Dodgers should covet Andrew McCutchen as potential waiver candidate
With all due respect to the Pirates, there isn't much of a reason, legacy or otherwise, to keep McCutchen around. While he went back and clarified his statement about wanting to win in 2026, noting that he needs to perform better individually too, it's clear that McCutchen is halfway out the door. He can't do much at this stage of his career to improve on a magical résumé with the Pirates. He will forever be a legend in Pittsburgh, but he deserves the chance to pursue that elusive World Series title with a contending club.
The Dodgers' true weaknesses are few and far between, but the outfield depth chart is one of them. McCutchen has primarily functioned as a DH this season, but it's hard to imagine him being much worse than Micahel Conforto, whose in the seventh percentile for defensive range (-6 Outs Above Average) this season.
Whatever your thoughts on Conforto's defense in left field, just know that he's even worse offensively. The 32-year-old knocked 20 home runs with respectable metrics just last season, but his first (and probably only) stint with the Dodgers has been an abject disaster. Conforto is batting .184 with a .608 OPS and nine home runs in 342 at-bats, with an fWAR of -0.9 — the only sub-replacement level starter on the Dodgers roster.
Andrew McCutchen would bring pedigree and some leftover pop to Dodgers lineup
The only reason Conforto is still logging at-bats every day in L.A. is because the alternatives aren't any better. James Outman was demoted and shipped away. Their current outfield reserves — Buddy Kennedy, Alex Call, Justin Dean — are either woefully inexperienced or just plain unreliable.
McCutchen is far from his prime self at 38 years old, but he has still slugged 12 home runs with 47 RBI and a solid .715 OPS. He's one of the few semi-decent hitters on the Pirates roster and he'd bring some legitimate noise to the back half of the Dodgers lineup.
McCutchen has never been obsessed with ring chases and legacy, but if he's fed up with losing in PGH, the Dodgers present a golden opportunity to get back into a starting lineup and compete for a ring.