MLB Trade Rumors confirmed Saturday that the Pirates have designated Cam Sanders for assignment, the kind of transaction that barely makes a ripple outside Pittsburgh but says plenty about where this pitching staff stands.
MLB Trade Rumors broke the news that Pittsburgh had designated Sanders for assignment.
Sanders is a 29-year-old who took the long way to the majors. Selected by the Cubs back in the 2018 draft, he spent 7 seasons grinding through the minors before signing with Pittsburgh as a minor league free agent last year. His MLB debut finally came in 2025, and it started well enough — 2 scoreless innings against the Giants — before the results caught up with him.
The numbers explain the move. Sanders posted an 8.10 ERA over 6 2/3 innings in his 2025 debut season, and 2026 hasn't been kinder: an 8.68 ERA across 9 1/3 innings and 9 appearances, with a walk rate that ballooned to 20.8%. There's a silver lining buried in there — his strikeout rate jumped from 11.8% to 27.1% — but free passes at that clip aren't sustainable for a big-league bullpen arm, even one with a mid-90s fastball and a cutter that got a 54.1% whiff rate in Triple-A.
This DFA comes a day after Sanders was optioned to Triple-A for the fifth time this season, the maximum allowed, which made him the obvious odd man out once Pittsburgh needed to open spots. It's also the first time he's ever been designated for assignment, and since he's never been outrighted before, he'd have to accept a Triple-A assignment if he clears waivers rather than sticking in the organization on his own terms.
The bigger picture here is a Pirates front office actively reshaping the 40-man roster. The DFA freed up a spot alongside another move sending shortstop Konnor Griffin from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL, and both openings were needed to accommodate Jacob Gonzalez and Brandon Eisert, acquired in a trade with the White Sox. Sanders becomes collateral in a roster crunch that's really about upgrading the pitching depth around him.
For Sanders, the clock is now on waivers. Given the control issues, it wouldn't be shocking if another club takes a flier on the strikeout uptick and the raw stuff, but if he clears, he's Triple-A bound for what would be a sixth trip up and down this year alone.