The Pirates were 54-52 on August 3 before a ten-game losing streak tanked their hopes of contention, and the Bucs ultimately finished with the same 76-86 record as they had in 2023. Amidst some larger questions about how well the rebuild is progressing, there will be a clear focus on upgrading the lineup this winter.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Bryan Reynolds, OF: $88MM through 2030 (includes $2M buyout of $20MM club option for 2031)
- Mitch Keller, SP: $69.5MM through 2028
- Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B: $43MM through 2029 (includes $6MM buyout of $12MM club option for 2030)
- Isiah Kiner-Falefa, IF: $7.5MM through 2025 (Blue Jays covering roughly $1.22MM as per the terms of their July 2024 trade)
2025 financial commitments: $41.5MM
Total future commitments: $208MM
Option Decisions
Arbitration-Eligible Players (projections from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)
Free Agents
Paul Skenes lived up to the hype, wowing the baseball world with a 1.99 ERA over 133 innings and looking all the world like a franchise player. Though he was somewhat overshadowed by Skenes and spent almost eight weeks on the injured list due to a lat strain, Jared Jones also had an impressive rookie season. Behind these two star rookies, Mitch Keller was his usual solid self, Bailey Falter pitched well in his first full season as a Pirate, and Luis Ortiz had a lot of success after moving from the bullpen back into the rotation at midseason.
Since Marco Gonzales’ club option won’t be exercised, this group stands as the Pirates’ provisional starting five heading into Spring Training. However, Johan Oviedo will also be healthy after missing all of 2024 recovering from Tommy John surgery. Down on the farm, top-100 prospects Bubba Chandler, Thomas Harrington, and Braxton Ashcraft are all knocking on the door for their MLB debuts, and other pitching prospects like Mike Burrows (who did toss his first 3 1/3 big league innings in 2024), Hunter Barco, and Anthony Solometo aren’t far behind.
In short, Pittsburgh might soon become Pitch-burgh, with all of these young, controllable, and (except for Keller) inexpensive arms either in the majors or coming up the pipeline. Developing this much promising starting pitching is no small thing, and with Skenes leading the way, general manager Ben Cherington can certainly point to the Pirates’ rotation as the key to the team’s rebuilding efforts.
However, this rebuild has now resulted in six straight losing seasons, with the last five coming under Cherington’s watch. While nobody expected Rome to be built in a day, the last two years have shown just enough promise to leave Pittsburgh fans disappointed when things fizzled out, and left wondering when exactly the Bucs will be turning the corner towards real contention.
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