Subscribe
Follow Us
The Pittsburgh Pirates are putting together a solid core looking to finally looking to break a nine-year postseason drought. A reason they made headlines last year is their superstar pitcher Paul Skenes. The former top pick shined in his first season with the Bucos and could be in the NL Cy Young conversation again. Pirates GM Ben Cherington said what you see is what you get with Paul Skenes on MLB Network.
“It's not hyperbole. Inside the clubhouse, being around him — it's pretty much what you all see. It's super high-level talent combined with work ethic, aptitude, care, doing it the right way. We're lucky he's on our side,” the Pirates GM said.
Cherington continued, “He's sorta meeting and exceeding expectations which were already really high. But the cool thing about him is that he's getting after it right now to get better. There's pitch design work he's doing this offseason to get even better.”
Skenes made his debut on May 11 and almost immediately became one of the best pitchers in baseball. He had a shaky first start, allowing three runs in four innings, but turned it around after that. In his next eight starts for the Pirates, he allowed nine earned runs in 48.1 innings, kicking off a Rookie of the Year campaign.
The Pirates must build around Paul Skenes and their great rotation
Paul Skenes is not the only great young pitcher on the Pirates. Jared Jones is 23 years old and had a solid season, while Mitch Keller and Bailer Falter also had a great year. Each of these players is under 30 years old and under contract through at least 2026. That is a great base to build a contender on but Cherington must take advantage this winter.
The Pirates have made one move so far at the Winter Meetings. The Guardians picked up first baseman Spencer Horwitz by trading Andres Gimenez and immediately flipped him to the Pirates. Horwitz replaces Rowdy Tellez who had a poor season at first base. If Horwitz can have a similar season to last year, where he had a 125 OPS+, that will help their lineup.
Offense is a clear need for the Pirates this offseason. Adding Horwitz takes out veteran first-base options like Anthony Rizzo, Carlos Santana, and Justin Turner. One depth option they could add is Alex Verdugo, who will likely sign a one-year deal after a bad season with the Yankees. He could turn it around in Pittsburgh and be a great veteran piece for their young core.
