NL Central preview: 4. Pittsburgh Pirates
I know this might be hard to believe, but the Pirates actually spent money in an offseason! Pretty crazy stuff. Nonetheless, it would be foolish to say this money was well spent. Bringing back Pirates legend Andrew McCutchen was really the only intriguing signing Pittsburgh had this offseason. McCutchen will join a young lineup that has undeniably improved this offseason. Carlos Santana, Ji-Man Choi and Austin Hedges are all new additions that improve the overall product of the team. But the question is just how much? Certainly not enough to make them even relatively close to contending. Regardless, we can expect big seasons from Oniel Cruz and Bryan Reynolds, who are by far the most talented players in this lineup. The sky’s the limit for Cruz, who showcased incredible power and exit velocity in his rookie season. Bryan Reynolds has established himself as one of the premier outfielders in our game, recording a career high 27 homers last season. The All-Star is clearly unhappy in Pittsburgh, reportedly requesting a trade earlier in the offseason. Rodolfo Castro is another name to monitor in the lineup, with the 23-year-old slashing a respectable 103 wRC+ in 278 AB’s last season.
Despite the additions of Rich Hill and Vince Velasquez, the rotation is still one of the worst in baseball. After a disastrous start to the 2022 season, the once highly touted Mitch Keller settled down and managed to piece together a fine season. While the beginning was tough, Keller finished the season oddly strong, posting a 1.80 ERA in 30 innings of work in the month of September. Keller will look to improve his ERA mark of 3.91 last season, reportedly adding a hybrid cutter/slider to his repertoire over the offseason. In addition to Keller, Pittsburgh has a few more quality young arms that could pan out in the coming future. Both Luis Ortiz and Roansy Contreras are young righties with electric sinking fastballs averaging around 98 mph. Contreras looked promising in 95 innings last year, posting a 3.79 ERA with 86 strikeouts. Another name to watch is Quinn Priester, who is expected to make his debut later this year. The 22-year-old is currently the 60th-ranked prospect on MLB Pipeline.
There’s no denying the future is bright for Pittsburgh. Aside from their young roster pieces, they have an incredible farm consisting of five top 100 prospects (according to MLB Pipeline). Not to mention, Pittsburgh also has the number one overall selection in this year’s entry draft. While it’s very likely another brutal season in Pittsburgh, help may soon be on the horizon for the Bucs.