Out of nowhere today came the news that the Pirates are suddenly at .500 for the first time since midseason, and went 4 for 6 against the Chicago teams this week. There's two weeks left in the regular season, and the Pirates are 6 games back from the wild card spot, but...I dunno, I guess it's never too late.
What's helped has been the returns of several very crucial pieces of this team. Konnor Griffin just got activated, and his rookie year continues, though it'll only be a 300 at-bat year at this rate. Still had 22 steals, 27 RBIs, a .262 average, and hit his stride in May and June [right before the injury]. I think he's still kinda ramping back up to where he was, but he's welcome. Same with Ryan O'Hearn, who was hurt for 2 months and is now trying to make up for lost time. He's gonna finish the season, I'm assuming, with 20+ homers and 75+ RBIs, which is pretty good [only Brandon Lowe has more RBIs], and he'll definitely be around next year for more damage. And now Oneil Cruz is back and winding back up, with 18 homers, 63 RBIs, 27 stolen bases and a .273 average, probably the most outwardly lethal season we've gotten from Cruz, which makes it all the more insulting that it was a small sample size again. But all of those pieces are back, and doing their best for the late push.
Yet, concerningly, they seem to have traded off with some other guys who are just now ending their seasons. Braxton Ashcraft got hurt last week and is out for the year, after providing the Pirates' best pitching performance with a 3.65 ERA, 14 wins and 173 strikeouts. The team also just lost star rookie Esmerlyn Valdez, who was able to hit 17 homers and 47 RBIs in 72 games, always a very nice aspect. They also lost Kirby Yates after a pretty strong couple weeks in Pittsburgh. And while Paul Skenes isn't technically injured, it's clear this is a down year due to fatigue from the very strong 2024 and 2025 campaigns, and the hope is he can bulldoze through and pop out way better next year [you know, the way pitchers used to]. The velocity is still not where it was last year, but Skenes still has 10 wins, a 3.78 ERA and 185 Ks. This is a very human year for Skenes, and people assumed he wouldn't have any of those. But here it is.
I applaud this Pirates team for actually getting somewhere with what seemed like the bricks for a competitor, even if it's probably not leading to a postseason spot. Nick Gonzales, Brandon Lowe, Spencer Horwitz, Bryan Reynolds, Esmerlyn Valdez, Jared Jones, Bubba Chandler, Rafael Flores and Jared Triolo all played like firm pieces of a great team. Them not getting there has to do with injury issues, Skenes's inconsistency and the fact that the Brewers and Cubs were just better teams. The hope is that the team doesn't need to get bailed out by a deadline push next year and can actively grow over time and emerge as an under-the-radar threat in a small market. A full year of Konnor Griffin could do that. He's only 20 and the sky seems so high for him.
Coming Tomorrow- A very strong starter for a team that is gonna kick itself for years for not making this season happen.
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