(Featured photo by Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images)

Death, taxes, and Ben Cherington signing a left-handed pitcher in free agency.

The Pirates general manager and Andrew Heaney have reportedly agreed on a one-year, $5 million deal, per Robert Murray. Heaney is coming off of a weird season with the Texas Rangers, where he went 5-14 with a 4.28 ERA, 1.250 WHIP, and 3.38 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 160 total innings.

Those numbers were roughly on par with his career big league stats, which include a 4.45 ERA and 1.265 WHIP, spanning just over 1,000 innings.

Heaney won’t be a star in the Pirates’ rotation, but at 33 he does provide some veteran leadership to a group that is crowded with young stars, as well as some more depth at baseball’s most important aspect.

Statistically, Heaney is slightly better than Bailey Falter, a fellow lefty who went into spring training penciled in as the fifth starter. Heaney’s arrival could mean a few different things:

• Falter is relocated (either to the bullpen or another team)
• Johan Oviedo, who is coming off Tommy John surgery in 2024, will not ve ready to go when the season opens
• The Pirates will explore a six-man rotation this year

But regardless of what Heaney’s signing means for the rest of the club, I figured it would be interesting to take a look at the fate of each lefty starter the Pirates have signed since in the last six years. Cherington has signed one every offseason he has been the general manager of the Pirates, and Jason Shelter over at Burgh Sports United put together a list of that group.

Let’s look back on how they all did.