Pirates and the right hand José Urquidy they agreed on a contract, reports Will Samson of The Athletic. He will earn $1.5MM on a one-year contract, added Jon Heyman of the New York Post. Urquidy, an Octagon client, can increase that salary further through incentives.
Pittsburgh generated headlines yesterday when it jumped as a late entry Framber Valdez bidding before finally going to the Tigers last night. They will still add a former Astros pitcher to team up with new coach Bill Murphy, albeit on a much smaller scale. Murphy coached Urquidy and Houston from 2021-24.
Since 2021-22, Urquidy has been an unheralded but valuable member of Houston’s rotation, starting 48 games and posting a solid 3.81 ERA with a 20.3% strikeout rate and a minuscule 5.2% walk rate. Injuries started to slow him down in 2023. He missed three months with a shoulder injury that season, and his entire 2024 campaign was ended by an elbow injury that eventually required Tommy John surgery over the summer. The 2025 season was scheduled to be Urquidy’s last year in club control, so the Astros surprisingly released him following the season.
Urquidy is sticking with the Tigers for a one-year, $1MM contract that includes a 2026 club option worth $4MM. He returned from the injured list in September but pitched just 2 1/3 innings in the majors before being optioned. He pitched well in the minors last year (2.91 ERA, 22.2 K%, 6.2 BB% in 21 2/3 frames) but was hit hard in his small big league sample. The Tigers opted to decline their 2026 option and send Urquidy back to the open market.
With injuries seemingly out of the question, Urquidy heads to Pirates as an undrafted hotshot with good results. Because he likes the changeup as much as his first pitch, he has a huge upside in his career. Lefties posted an abysmal .203/.257/.362 slash against him, while righties — with some help from the left-field porch in Houston — tagged him with a .267/.314/.468 batting line. Going from one of the best right field home runs to perhaps the worst in MLB will benefit his skill set.
What role the Pirates have in store for Urquidy, who turns 31 in May, remains to be seen. The Bucs are as deep as any team in sports when it comes to starting tackles but they seem to add a veteran at a low cost this offseason every year. In the past, that meant temporary downloads Tyler Anderson, Jose Quintana, Martín Pérez again Andrew Heaney. Urquidy isn’t a lefty like that quartet but still seems to meet general manager Ben Cherington’s annual bargain starter quota.
Reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes of course he will be the opening day starter for the Pirates. You will be followed by a certain program for the veteran Mitch Keller and new firefighters Bubba Chandler again Braxton Ashcraftboth impressed as rookies in 2025. Urquidy will join the competition for the fifth place that includes Carmen Mlodzinski, Hunter Barco, Thomas Harrington and Jared Jones, who will be returning in 2024 from Tommy John surgery. Mlodzinski played better than the starter last season, so this move could push him into the fold. If Urquidy is overtaken by Jones, Barco or Harrington in the camp, he could open the season with a good swing.
