McCutchen spent the first nine years of his career with the Pirates and won the NL MVP in 2013.
Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports
When I woke up this morning, I had no intention of writing about the Pirates for today’s newsletter. Why would I? I have mentioned them in previous editions—such as when I’ve written that they should trade their best player and when they gave up Aaron Judge’s 60th home run—but only as supporting characters on the greater baseball stage.
Things changed at 9:30 a.m.