The Major League Baseball free agency period is a painfully slow one. In almost every other league, as soon as the deadline hits, it’s off to the races for teams signing players.

But perhaps its rather fitting that a slow-paced sport like baseball has a slow-paced offseason.

In any sense, the Pittsburgh Pirates finally made a move in the free agent department, signing outfielder Gilberto Celestino to a minor league contract.

Celestino, formerly of the Minnesota Twins, is coming off an injury-riddled 2023 season that saw him play 59 games in the minor leagues. He underwent surgery on his left thumb in March, which kept him off the baseball field until mid-June.

The vast majority of his minor league experience came at the Triple-A level, where he played 55 games and slashed .243/.392/.389. He recorded 4 home runs and 31 RBIs with the Twins’ affiliate in St. Paul.

For a brief understanding of his major league work, he appeared in 122 games for Minnesota in 2022, where he slashed .238//.313/.302 for the Twins, adding 2 homers and 2 RBIs.

He also appeared in 23 big league games for the club in 2021, but he swung a depressing 136/.177/.288 slash line in that time.

While Celestino is far from a power hitter, and his performance at the plate overall has been unimpressive to date, the native of Santo Domingo is better known for his defensive work in the outfield. He’s good with the glove and has got a cannon of an arm from center field.

He won’t be expected to make an immediate impact on the major league club in Pittsburgh. The Pirates have several outfielders in their system who rank ahead of Celestino as of right now.

Celestino certainly isn’t the big-name free agent that Pirates fans may be hoping for (whether realistically or not), and he also doesn’t solve any of the glaring issues on this team. But at only 24 years old, he’s not a bad depth option for this team.

It’s never a bad idea to take a flyer on a young player who already has big league experience. After a 2023 that kept him out of the majors, he’ll have some extra motivation to get back to the big leagues with an up and coming Pirates team.

(Featured image by Tommy Gilligan/USA Today Sports)