Pirates Have Obvious Positives, and Setbacks
The book on the Pittsburgh Pirates' season is all but written with six games remaining and their playoff hopes well out the window.
Pittsburgh experienced its fair share of ups and downs, including being in the postseason picture to crashing out after going 8-19 in August. With the ups and downs, ESPN graded the Pirates' season as a C, highlighting the pitching they received from Paul Skenes and Jared Jones while also noting they have to address their struggles at the plate if they're going to improve.
"Paul Skenes came up and immediately became one of the best starters and most recognizable players in the game, and fellow rookie Jared Jones emerged as a potential top-of-the-rotation starter," ESPN writes. "Bubba Chandler could also give them a third power right-hander in 2025 after a breakout season in the upper minors."
Skenes is doing things no other pitcher in baseball has done, let alone one in their first season in the big leagues. The 2023 No. 1 overall pick is 11-3 with a 1.99 ERA through 22 starts and has struck out 167 batters over 131 innings pitched. Skenes is the first pitcher in MLB history to have an ERA under 2.20 while striking out over 150 batters in their first 21 starts.
Jared Jones has also flashed promise, though, an oblique injury has slowed down what was a strong start to the season for the rookie right-hander. Jones is 6-8 with a 4.14 ERA across 21 starts and 117.1 starts and has struck out 125 batters.
If the Pirates are going to maximize having one of the best young one-two punches in baseball atop their rotation, they have to improve offensively next season. Pittsburgh ranks in the bottom-10 in nearly every statistical category at the plate.
"Ke'Bryan Hayes had a miserable season at the plate and one of the team's few good hitters was 37-year-old Andrew McCutchen," ESPN writes. "That was a nice story, but they need to develop some young hitters to go with what could be a stellar rotation in 2025."
Pittsburgh (73-83) begins its final series at home when it faces the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers (89-67) on Tuesday at 6:40 p.m. ET.
NATHANIEL MARRERO