The Pittsburgh Pirates traded minor-league pitcher Joe La Sorsa to the Boston Red Sox on Thursday for cash considerations.
La Sorsa, a 28-year-old left-hander, had spent the entirety of this season with Triple-A Indianapolis, going 1-1 with a 3.46 ERA over 22 games.
This past November, the Pirates signed La Sorsa, a veteran of 46 MLB games from 2023-25 with the Rays, Nationals and Reds, to a minor-league contract.
Within his contract was an upward mobility clause (UMC), which La Sorsa reportedly triggered May 31.
When a player exercises a UMC, his club must either add him to the active roster or make him available to every team in baseball.
If there are no takers, the player can remain in place within the club’s farm system.
However, if interest is shown, in this case Boston having communicated as much to the Pirates, then the player must be traded.
A non-roster invite by the Pirates to spring training, La Sorsa posted a 2.25 ERA over four Grapefruit League appearances but did not make the Opening Day roster.
Upon being assigned to Triple-A at the end of March, he exercised his UMC for the first time but ultimately stayed in the Pirates organization.
La Sorsa, a St. John’s alum, was originally chosen in the 18th round (No. 548 overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft by Tampa Bay.