Andrew McCutchen plays for the Pittsburgh Pirates during a game in 2016.
SAN FRANCISCO — Andrew McCutchen, a five-time All-Star and Pittsburgh mainstay, said hello to San Francisco on Monday.
With that, McCutchen personally confirmed the report that the Giants had acquired the 2013 National League MVP. The teams officially announced the trade about an hour later, allowing the Giants to add the kind of proven outfielder they've been seeking all off-season.
In exchange, Pittsburgh gets pitcher Kyle Crick, minor league outfielder Bryan Reynolds and $500,000 in international bonus pool space. The Giants get McCutchen as well as cash considerations. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, who first reported the trade, said the Pirates will send the Giants $2.5 million as part of the deal.
McCutchen will make $14.75 million in salary this year before being eligible for free agency.
The four-time Silver Slugger winner is expected to continue to wear the No. 22 he sported in Pittsburgh. That's jersey number made famous in these parts by sweet-swinging Will Clark.
Giants right fielder Hunter Pence was among the first to welcome McCutchen to the fold, posting a GIF of the Pirates outfielder trying to shoo ducks off the field in Pittsburgh.
"Eager to chase birds with you in the outfield," Pence wrote.
The move is reminiscent of the Giants trade that landed third baseman Evan Longoria, 32, in December. The team gets another respected veteran reaching his post-peak years.
McCutchen, 31, is coming off a season in which he batted .279 with 28 homers, 88 RBI and 11 stolen bases. He had a .363 on-base percentage, .486 slugging percentage and an .849 OPS.
He has topped the 20-homer mark in each of the past seven seasons. McCutchen is also durable — he's played at least 146 games in eight consecutive years.
Once considered an elite defender — he won the Gold Glove in 2012 — McCutchen's reputation in the field has waned in recent seasons. Sarah Langs of ESPN noted that the outfielders with the fewest defensive runs saved since 2015 are McCutchen (-50), Matt Kemp (-50) and Denard Span (-44).
At the Winter Meetings in December, Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said McCutchen was motivated last season to prove the skeptics (and the metrics) are wrong in regards to his decline in center field.
McCutchen made 1,310 career starts in center field while in Pittsburgh. The only two players in Pirates history with more were Hall-of-Famers Lloyd Waner (1,518) and Max Carey (1,416).
Wherever he ends up in the Giants outfield, the team will be counting on his offensive production after a season in which they ranked last in several categories. McCutchen batted .336 against left-handed pitchers last season, eighth in the N.L.
Though long mentioned in trade rumors, it was still jarring to see McCutchen bid farewell to Pittsburgh, the only major league home he has ever known.
The Pirates drafted McCutchen with the 11th overall pick in 2005 (one spot ahead of Jay Bruce, who was also linked to the Giants this offseason).
McCutchen went on to play nine seasons in Pittsburgh and leaves as one of four players to hit at least 200 home runs for the Pirates. The others are Hall of Famers Willie Stargell, Roberto Clemente and Ralph Kiner.
McCutchen made it to the postseason three times with the Pirates but never made it past the divisional round. He is 9 for 28 (.321) in eight career postseason games.
The Giants, meanwhile, give up the hard-throwing Crick, an intriguing bullpen piece. Crick, 25, relied primarily on a four-seam fastball that averaged 96 mph last season, according to PITCHf/x. In 32.1 innings at the big-league level, Crick had a 3.06 ERA and 28 strikeouts and 17 walks.
Reynolds, who will turn 24 on Jan. 27, batted .312 with 10 home runs, 72 runs, 26 doubles and nine triples in 491 at-bats at Class A San Jose. He had a .364 on-base percentage, .462 slugging percentage and .826 OPS.
Perhaps just as notable was what the Giants were able to retain. The team got McCutchen without having to surrender asked-about names like second baseman Joe Panik or coveted prospects Tyler Beede, Steven Duggar, Chris Shaw or Heliot Ramos.