NEW YORK -- Will Craig might have already played his last game for the Pirates.
He might have even played his last game in the country.
On his radio show with 93.7 The Fan Sunday, Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said that Craig is “exploring an opportunity” to play in Asia.
“We’ve been talking a little about that, and he has expressed interest,” Cherington said, adding that he’ll “see where that conversation goes” in regards to a decision.
Craig was a late scratch from the Indianapolis Indians’ lineup Saturday.
Craig, 26, was a first-round draft pick by the Pirates in 2016 and played parts of the past two seasons with the club. He slashed .203/.261/.281 with one home run and three RBIs over 69 major league plate appearances.
He will probably be best remembered for a defensive gaffe he made earlier this season, though. Playing against the Cubs on May 27. After a throw took off the first base bag, Craig opted to try to chase down Cubs infielder Javier Baez, who was jogging back to the plate, rather than touch first base for the force and to end the inning. He flipped the ball to catcher Michael Pérez at the plate, and Baez was able to beat the throw down the line, resulting in the deciding runs in a loss.
“I messed up,” Craig said. “I came off the bag and caught the ball, turned to look and saw him bolt towards home, and I just kind of lost my mind for a second… It just kind of all went downhill from there.”
In Indianapolis, Craig hit .287/.367/.549 with eight home runs and 23 RBIs and was on a recent hot streak.
The Pirates needed to add a first baseman to the roster last week after Colin Moran and Erik González were placed on the injured list on back-to-back days, but the team opted to trade for John Nogowski from the Cardinals rather than give Craig another look.
Craig was designated for assignment both this offseason and in June, but passed through waivers both times.
