The bad news is the Pirates are in last place after losing 5 straight. The good news is that they're a last place team that's at .500, with the same record as the Tigers and Guardians. And the even better news is that they still have Paul Skenes.
The idea that Skenes would someday headline a halfway decent Pirates team was always possible, if unlikely, but this is the best they've looked in years, and Skenes is very much at the forefront. Though the quest for a sub-2 ERA for the third season in a row will be harder than usual thanks to that damn Mets start, he's still got a 3.18 ERA, a 4-2 record and 39 strikeouts. The domination that Skenes has always been capable of has continued, even through a rocky start. I do worry this will be a little closer to normal than usual for Skenes, as he's giving up more homers than expected, and just last night he gave up one to J.J. Wetherholt. But there's no true warning signs, and he's not having much trouble getting through games.
The most telling part of the improved climate of this team is that it's not on Skenes as much as last year to carry the team. Keller and Ashcraft are strong starting options around him that can also carry the weight. Keller always looks like he's gonna worry people but he's got things worked out at last, and has a 3.18 ERA through 6 starts. Ashcraft has 39 Ks in 6 starts, as many as Skenes in 7, so that's pretty cool. Carmen Mlodzinski's innings-eating has parlayed into a fine starting spot. And the bullpen is better than it's been in a while, with Gregory Soto, Yohan Ramirez, Mason Montgomery, Isaac Mattson and Dennis Santana working on excellent seasons.
And then suddenly, out of nowhere, we finally have a Pirates team that can hit. Brandon Lowe, Oneil Cruz, Ryan O'Hearn and Bryan Reynolds are all optimally raising the quality of the power hitting game. Cruz's is a lot more lopsided because he's still making mistakes in center, but those 9 homers say a lot. Lowe has been really fantastic in Pittsburgh, that's exactly why they dealt for him. O'Hearn is working as a corner infield/OF/DH bat. And Reynolds is hitting again. After a really weak 2025, Bryan Reynolds is hitting .246 with 19 RBIs and 3 homers, which is an improvement. Konnor Griffin's slowly warming up as well, and hopefully by midyear he's more comfortable in the bigs.
It's a Pirates team that's verging on multifaceted, with a lot of really interesting angles and upsides. I really do think they can outweigh the Cardinals and potentially even compete this year. Remember, we don't know how long they've got left with Skenes, so they've gotta do something soon.
Coming Tomorrow- My fantasy team this year has the very clever name of Big Amish Paradise, which was attained from picking up this guy right when he went on his HR tear last year.
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