It took Ryan O’Hearn a few years to get back on track after a great rookie season. But the veteran flourished after leaving the Kansas City Royals, culminating with an All-Star season in 2025.
Now O’Hearn is getting paid. The 32-year-old first baseman reportedly agreed to a two-year, $29 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
While it’s not an exorbitant amount of money, it represents a massive raise for O’Hearn, who made $3.5 million with the Baltimore Orioles and San Diego Padres last season. Details of O’Hearn’s contract have not yet been released, but his new contract will average him about $14 million per season.
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O’Hearn looked like a budding superstar early in his career. As a 24-year-old rookie, he hit .262/.353/.597, with 12 homers in his first 170 plate appearances with the Royals. However, with expectations sky-high, O’Hearn collapsed over the next two years, hitting .195/.287/.351 in 502 plate appearances, essentially blazing his way into the Royals’ future.
After another poor offensive year in 2022, O’Hearn was traded to the Orioles ahead of the 2023 MLB season. Something seemed to click in Baltimore, as O’Hearn posted a combined .275/.329/.450 slash line in his first two years with the team.
He got off to an even better start in 2025, hitting .283/.374/.463 with the Orioles – and earning his first-ever All-Star nod – before being traded to the Padres at the deadline. O’Hearn saw his power production drop in San Diego, but he continued to post a solid batting average and on-base percentage with the team in the playoff race.
The Pirates are certainly hoping the team can find themselves in contention for a playoff spot in 2026. After a 71-91 record last season, Pittsburgh has been active this winter. The team traded for powerhouse second baseman Brandon Lowe, defensive stalwart Jake Mangum and 23-year-old outfielder Jhostynxon García, who played in the Futures Game last season.
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While these moves should help, the O’Hearn deal will likely have the biggest impact on the club in the immediate future. The Pirates apparently firmly believed that was the case, as O’Hearn is the first free agent the team has signed to a multi-year free agent contract since Ian Snell in 2016.
If he can maintain the growth he showed in Baltimore, O’Hearn could be a solid middle-order hitter for a lineup that desperately needs production. The Pirates ranked last in runs, RBIs and home runs last season. O’Hearn should help in all three categories and combines with Lowe, Bryan Reynolds and Oneil Cruz to give the Pirates some formidable names in the middle of the order for the first time since 2015, the last time the franchise reached the playoffs.
