Former Blue Jays slugger resurfaces in new position with lowly Pirates

While former Toronto Blue Jay Daniel Vogelbach hasn't officially retired, it appears a new era is in store for the burly slugger.

The author of one of the better moments on the 2024 Toronto Blue Jays is taking his talents to the Steel City.

According to multiple reports, Daniel Vogelbach has been hired as a special assistant to the Pittsburgh Pirates' hitting department. With that, Vogelbach is reuniting with a handful of former Blue Jays players and coaches tasked with the collective challenge of turning around a historically moribund franchise.

Former assistant hitting coach Matt Hague departed Toronto this winter to take the hitting coach job in Pittsburgh. Remember Spencer Horwitz? He's in Pittsburgh too after Cleveland flipped him to Pittsburgh following his trade to Cleveland for Nick Sandlin and Andrés Giménez. Vogelbach will also be reunited with Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who was acquired by Pittsburgh at last summer's deadline in exchange for infield prospect Charles McAdoo.

Hague and Vogelbach will need all the good fortune they can to help turn around an offense that scored the seventh-fewest runs in baseball last season.

Vogelbach, originally a second-round pick of the Chicago Cubs, played for five teams in parts of nine seasons, and his stay in Canada last season didn't go as planned. He signed a minor league deal before spring training and appeared in 31 games while slashing .186/.278/.300. The Jays designated him for assignment in June and he was eventually released.

Vogelbach was brought to Toronto to fill a specific role as a power lefty DH in the lineup, but he struck out too much while not fulfilling the power end of the bargain. He drew walks at an above average clip, but a 21.5 percent strikeout rate just with one home run wasn't going to cut it. Toronto was only responsible for paying whatever remained of his $2 million contract when he was DFA'd.

Vogelbach experienced early career struggles with Seattle, but a productive 2019 led to his one and only All-Star appearance. A stopover in 2020 with the Blue Jays didn't go over well, but he found a second wind during a 75-game stint with the 2022 Pittsburgh Pirates.

He was able to parlay that production with the Pirates to a trade to the New York Mets at the 2022 deadline. He hit .255 with six home runs and a 139 OPS+ in 55 games down the stretch for the Mets but the club non-tendered him after hit .233 for them in 2023.

Vogelbach will end his career with a 219/.340/.405 slash line in 602 games. He hit 81 home runs and had a 106 OPS+. The one thing that Vogelbach will certainly bring a light-hearted and fun personality to the Pirates, as he was having fun with his teammates seemingly every time he was shown on the televsion broadcast.

Hitting is one of those things that players need to be relaxed for, and hopefully Vogelbach can apply whatever magic pixie dust he has to improve the Pirates' offensive attack.