The Pittsburgh Pirates are giving Joshua Palacios another shot. The 30-year-old outfielder signed a minor league contract Tuesday and will report to Triple-A Indianapolis. It’s a move that brings back a guy who spent the last two seasons bouncing between Pittsburgh and the minors.
Palacios played 114 games for the Pirates over 2023 and 2024 and put up a .236/.291/.398 slash line. He hit 12 homers, drove in 49 runs and stole six bases. His best stretch came in 2023 when he played a career-high 91 big league games.
He turns 31 later this month. The Pirates originally picked him up in the 2022 Rule 5 draft from the Nationals. Before that, the Blue Jays took him in the fourth round of the 2016 draft out of Auburn.
What Palacios Has Done Since
Over parts of five MLB seasons with four different teams — Toronto, Washington, Pittsburgh and the White Sox — Palacios has a career line of .223/.287/.349. That’s 15 homers and 64 RBIs in 207 games. About a quarter of his big league playing time came with Chicago in the first half of 2025. He spent the rest of that year at Triple-A.
He’s been a different hitter in the minors. In nearly 800 Triple-A plate appearances, Palacios slashed .293/.382/.475. His walk and strikeout numbers are solid there, but the swing-and-miss catches up to him against major league pitching. Defensively, he’s best in a corner outfield spot but can fill in at center if needed.
Why This Matters for the Pirates
This signing helps fill a depth hole at Triple-A. The Pirates recently released Dominic Fletcher and promoted Jack Brannigan after prospect Konnor Griffin landed on the injured list. Palacios gives them an experienced option who already knows the organization.
It’s not a splashy pickup. But for a team that needs bodies in the outfield pipeline, it makes sense. Palacios has shown he can produce at Triple-A, and if things break right, he could get another look in Pittsburgh at some point this season.
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