The Pirates upgraded their lineup with All-Star slugger Brandon Lowe. What's next?

A slugging second baseman, Brandon Lowe immediately improves the Pirates' lineup. Jason Miller / Getty Images

To this point in the offseason, the message from Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington was clear, consistent and, to many fans, wholly unconvincing: He intended to significantly improve the lineup, but he didn't yet know which avenues he'd take to add or when that work would transpire.

MLB's Winter Meetings came and went. Free agents signed elsewhere. The league's lowest-scoring lineup last season remained virtually unchanged.

Talk turned to action on Friday when the Pirates landed infielder Brandon Lowe, outfielder Jake Mangum and left-handed reliever Mason Montgomery from the Tampa Bay Rays in a three-team trade that sent Pirates starter Mike Burrows to the Houston Astros.

Burrows, 26, was coveted by numerous clubs in trade talks in recent years. In Pittsburgh, the allure of rotation depth was outweighed by a lineup demanding attention.

The trade is a significant step toward building a workable lineup behind reigning Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes and one of the highest-upside rotations in the sport: Mitch Keller, Braxton Ashcraft, Bubba Chandler and eventually the rehabbing Jared Jones.

The deal represents a sensible pivot after missing on free-agent targets Josh Naylor, Kyle Schwarber and Jorge Polanco, and it isn't a pricey move. So, if Pirates owner Bob Nutting is indeed willing to expand spending in 2026, what could be next?

Cherington has given some clues.

At the Winter Meetings, the Pirates GM said he'd prefer to add left-handed bats with power but was open to any hitting profile ("More on base, more power, more contact. You name it. We need all of it.") He said he wanted to add leverage relievers, and arms to get out lefty hitters. Cherington also said that, after trading Johan Oviedo, if he moved another starting pitcher, it would need to be for an immediate lineup upgrade.

All that was addressed in Friday's trade.

A starter traded for a hitter (or two) who will plug right into the lineup. Lowe is a lefty with power. Mangum has a contact-oriented hitting profile the Pirates are missing. Montgomery is a southpaw with stuff that should suffocate lefties. News of the deal broke as the Pirates were introducing another lefty reliever, two-time All-Star Gregory Soto, to local media.

What happens next may have been hinted at, too.

First, the simple answer: Cherington said last week that if the Pirates traded another starter they'd likely look to backfill that rotation spot.

That add, which would provide rotation depth while Jones rehabs, is likely to come in the form of a one-year free agent deal. That's an assumption based both on the Pirates' free agent history and the plentiful back-of-the-rotation options still available, from right-handers such as Zach Eflin, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander and Tyler Mahle to former Pirates lefties José Quintana, Tyler Anderson, Andrew Heaney and Martín Pérez.

Next, a more complicated situation: how the Pirates will proceed at third base.

After moving on from Ke'Bryan Hayes at the trade deadline, the hot corner remains unaddressed. Asked last week whether he felt the Pirates' internal infield options, namely Jared Triolo and Nick Gonzales, could solve what he was looking for at third base, Cherington said they did. It's unclear whether he intends to add at third base.

There are impact bats available, but, outside Alex Bregman, they come with defensive concerns. Eugenio Suárez had 49 homers last year and -6 Outs Above Average. Munetaka Murakami has huge power (and huge swing-and-miss concerns) from the left side, and Kazuma Okamoto provides pop from the right side, but both could wind up at first base before long.

All three will command multi-year deals: The Athletic's Tim Britton has projected eight years and $158.5 million for Murakami, four years and $78.5 million for Okamoto and 3 years and $69 million for Suárez, respectively. It's been nine years since the Pirates signed a free agent to a multi-year deal. Their record free-agent guarantee is $39 million.

Even after Monday's move, the Pirates' lineup is undermanned.

Last year, the Pirates had MLB's third-lowest batting average (.231), fifth-highest strikeout rate (23.7 percent) and eighth-highest walk rate (8.8 percent). On an individual level, that profile can work. Some call that the modern-day slugger. Except the Pirates were dead last in home runs ... by 31.

Adding swing-and-miss sluggers may not be such a risky move for the Pirates. At least when they connect they can reach the Allegheny.

If Cherington is focused on raising the floor of the Pirates lineup, he moved in the right direction Friday. It's a much stronger lineup against right-handed starters when loaded up with Lowe, Mangum, Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz and Spencer Horwitz from the left side. The Pirates were the worst team against right-handed pitching in 2025, and the second-worst against left-handed pitching.

Lowe, a two-time All-Star, rakes against right-handers (.840 career OPS). He's coming off his second career 30-homer season and entering a platform year. He'll make far more money in free agency next year if he proves he can still play a passable second base. He spent all of last season there for the Rays, turning in -13 Outs Above Average, but has, in the past, split time between second, first base and the corner outfield spots.

Mangum exists in the extremes. As a 29-year-old rookie last year, he batted .296, had a low strikeout rate (15 percent) and showed exceptional speed. He also had one of the league's worst walk rates (4.4 percent), chase rates (43.7 percent), barrel rates (2.6 percent) and average bat speeds (67.3 mph). On one hand, that's Luis Arraez lite. On the other hand, it's rangy, controllable, switch-hitting Luis Arraez Lite -- pairing that contact-oriented approach with plus defense in center field and five years of club control.

Montgomery, 25, has the sort of stuff that would interest any front office this time of year.

It's a triple-digits mph fastball from the left side with a wipeout slider. He has struck out one of every three batters he's faced in the majors. He gets chase and racks up whiffs. Yet, Montgomery is dogged by walks and hard contact. After a five-run blow-up in September ballooned his ERA to 5.67, the Rays sent him to Triple-A Durham. Perhaps the Pirates will bring back Montgomery's splitter, as The Athletic's Keith Law noted.

Last weekend, the New York Mets signed Polanco, taking one of the Pirates' second-base options off the board. Polanco's new salary: $20 million.

Cherington's moves so far this offseason: Oviedo and Burrows out; Lowe, Soto, Mangum, Montgomery, Jhostynxon Garcia and Marco Luciano in. They are estimated to come out just under $20 million. The trade market works nicely that way, if you're willing to part with prospect capital.

He still should, in theory, have ample room to expand payroll. There's a pitching staff to round out and a lineup to lengthen. Adding a corner infielder would seem prudent. The Pirates have been linked to Okamoto and lefty-hitting first baseman/corner outfielder Ryan O'Hearn. If they want a designated hitter, they could turn to Andrew McCutchen for another reunion or, looking beyond Western Pa. locals, Marcell Ozuna.

On paper, there's still a long way to go to turn the 2026 Pirates into a National League contender. But they look a lot closer than they did last week.