Opinion: Major issues plaguing the Pittsburgh Pirates

Rotation Issues- Ben

Heading into the season, the Pirates finally seemed to have built a pretty strong pitching rotation. With the likes of Paul Skenes, Jared Jones and Mitch Keller as the three main starters.

Things seemed bright heading towards Opening Day, but then took a dark turn when reports came out about Jared Jones dealing with elbow discomfort. It left many fans wondering if he would need Tommy John.

Thankfully, Jones does not need surgery and is shut down for six weeks. Despite him having to miss a chunk of time, it is a best case scenario for Pittsburgh.

With the Pirates also losing Johan Oviedo to the 60-day injured list, the Bucs are down a couple starters heading into opening day.

The rotation will feature the aforementioned Skenes and Keller, as well as lefties Bailey Falter and Andrew Heaney. Carmen Mlodzinski, who doesn’t have experience as a starter in the major leagues, will be manning the fifth rotation spot.

This rotation could be a surprise, but without Jones and Oviedo, it’s hard to look at this rotation and think positively about it.

Lack of Investment- Austin

One of the Pirates main issues is the low payroll compared to other teams around the league. In recent years, the payroll of the team has ranked near the bottom year in and year out.

Almost every offseason there is little to no activity within the free agent market.

Management just continues to settle for the lower-cost signing rather than pursuing a big time player that could actually help the squad win games.

It just continues to be an endless cycle of nothingness when it comes to bringing in players who aren’t years out of their prime.

The last thing is the farm system. It seems as if the Pirates always have a top prospect they call up every June in hopes of them turning into a superstar player but it just never happens.

Owner- Brennan

Every single problem listed in this article has one root cause: ownership. Since his purchase of the team in 2007, Bob Nutting not only has been one of the worst owners in baseball, but in all of sports as well.

Nutting has shown no willingness to improve the team since the purchase, as he dishes out no money to his players or free agents.

The largest contract given out in the Nutting era was to Francisco Liriano who received a three-year $39 million deal in 2014.

Another massive criticism of Nutting has been his cheapness. Whether it be refusing to start Rowdy Tellez at the end of the season so he does not get his incentive money, or going to arbitration over money in the thousands, he has shown time and time again he will do anything to save a penny.

Bob Nutting is so cheap he does not even provide his players with simple pain medications such as aspirin in the dugouts. While in Bradenton for Spring Training, he makes the team doctors drive his dad around in a golf cart instead of doing doctor things.

Ownership has been such a problem that Pirates fans’ biggest concerns are not about the performance of the team, rather, “how long until (insert superstar play is traded?)” It is a sad reality all Pirates fans face, and yet time and time again it happens.

Sitting in his lavish mansion, Nutting is probably on the phone right now with other executives in the league trying to ship off Paul Skenes as we speak.

Lineup- Giustino

The Pirates have a top pitching staff for the upcoming 2025 season, but with the lineup they have put together, it won’t matter.

Ke’Bryan Hayes will return as the starting third baseman with hitting numbers that have gotten worse each season. The right field position is another problem spot for the Bucs.

Jack Suwinski and Ji Hwan Bae both played well in spring training, but will either break out in the regular season. The track record of both players indicates that answer being no.

Finally, the position that was formerly owned by fan-favorite Rowdy Tellez, first base. Endy Rodriguez will likely start the year there as Spencer Horwitz is still recovering from his injury.

Endy is coming off an injury that kept him out all of last season and Spencer Horwitz hasn’t played at all this spring.

Matt Hague has a big job ahead of him as the Pirates hitting coach with a lineup that determines the fate of the Bucs season.

Brennan Kirkpatrick is a second-year student majoring in broadcast-journalism. To contact him, please email blk5545@psu.edu

Austin Moran is a second-year student majoring in broadcast-journalism. To contact him, please email acm6506@psu.edu

Ben Barker is a second-year student majoring in broadcast-journalism. To contact him, please email bsb5566@psu.edu

Giustino Racchini is a second-year student majoring in broadcast-journalism. To contact him, please email gar5448@psu.edu