Andrew McCutchen appears to be returning to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The 36-year-old, who was named NL MVP in 2013 while playing at Pittsburgh, has agreed to a deal with the Pirates for the upcoming season, sources have confirmed. The closing of the deal is pending a physical examination.
McCutchen likely has a summer of milestones ahead, requiring 52 more hits to hit 2,000 in his career, eight more doubles to hit 400 and 13 more homers to hit 300.
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The Pirates drafted McCutchen 11th overall in 2005 and promoted him to the major leagues in 2009. McCutchen established himself as an Impact player almost immediately: In 2011 he was named to the All-Star Team, the first of five straight seasons he has earned that honor. In 2014, McCutchen led the league in on-base percentage (.410) and OPS (.952). He won a Golden Glove for his defensive work in midfield in 2012 and finished in the top five in the NL poll every year from 2012 to 2015.
In 2017, the Pirates ousted McCutchen from midfield as rising starling Marte began to establish himself in the big leagues, and when McCutchen was close to free agency, the Pirates traded him to outfielder Bryan Reynolds, reliever to the Giants from Kyle Crick and international bonus dollars. Later that year, the Giants brought him to the Yankees. McCutchen has since played for the Phillies and Brewers.
Last year he fought for Milwaukee with a .237, with a base percentage of .316.
McCutchen joins the Pirates at a time when Pittsburgh is hearing offers for Reynolds.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette was the first to report on McCutchen’s new arrangement with the pirates.