CINCINNATI -- It was only a matter of time before the Pirates finally reached their magic number. No, we're not talking about the one that every team hopes to chase in regards to their postseason aspirations. In this particular case, we're referring to the magic number of 82 losses, a mark the Pirates finally reached with an 8-3 defeat at the hands of the Reds Friday night at Great American Ball Park. With the loss, they secured a losing season for the sixth consecutive year and 28th time in 32 seasons dating back to 1992.
"I mean, it's (crappy). Nobody wants to lose, nobody wants to be in this position where we're not playing for really anything at the end of the year," said Mitch Keller, who allowed eight runs and a season-high five walks over 3 1/3 innings while also experiencing a dip in velocity with each of his six pitches in this latest loss. "Yeah, it just sucks. Obviously we'd want it to be different, but that's not how it's going right now, so we got to make it be different."
Entering and even following spring training, many thought the now 72-82 Pirates had the chance to be a better team than they were in 2023 when they won 76 games and finished fourth in the National League Central standings. While they still have an opportunity to surpass last year's win total with eight games remaining, it's ultimately been a disappointing year.
The Pirates, who have now failed to reach the postseason nine years in a row, sit at the bottom of their division behind a lineup that ranks among the league's worst in multiple offensive categories, as well as a bullpen that has failed to meet the high expectations set back in February and March. The rotation has been an obvious strength, but there have been times where individual starting pitchers have experienced struggles.
It honestly seems like forever ago that the Pirates actually looked like they might be on their way to contending for a playoff spot. Things were trending in a much more positive direction back in late July when they were sitting at three games over .500 following a win over the Astros on July 30. They were two games behind the Padres for the last of three wild card spots out of the National League and, with the trade deadline looming, Ben Cherington eventually pulled the trigger on three particular deals to help improve both the team's lineup and bullpen with the additions of Bryan De La Cruz, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Jalen Beeks.
There was significant optimism surrounding where the group could possibly go. Many were saying how dangerous they could be in a playoff series, considering the caliber of arms they have in a rotation led by rookie of the year candidate Paul Skenes.
But instead of rising to the challenge of competing for a playoff spot in the latter months of the season, the Pirates experienced a drastic plunge beginning with a deadline-day loss to the Astros on July 31. Since then, they've gone 17-30 during a stretch that includes a disastrous month of August in which they went 8-19 and endured a painful 10-game losing streak. Their record in that 47-game span ranks as the third-worst among teams in Major League Baseball. The only teams with worse records during that time are the Angels and White Sox.
“Everyone goes through good streaks and bad streaks," Oneil Cruz said via interpreter and major-league coach Stephen Morales. "Anytime we have moments like that when we’re not playing as good, we just have to play together and stick together as a group. That’s the key.”
With Friday's loss, Derek Shelton has now managed 700 games over five seasons with the Pirates, posting a 290-410 record with a .414 winning percentage and no postseason appearances. Shelton's arrival in Pittsburgh did coincide with the team's rebuild and wins have, albeit slightly, increased from year to year, but there really hasn't been significant progress made. In fact, over the past five seasons of this rebuild under Cherington and Shelton, the Pirates have posted the second-worst winning percentage of any decade in the franchise's 143-year history. Only the infamous 'Rickey Dinks' of the 1950s were worse with a .400 winning percentage.
"I think it just shows you how much room we have to get better," Shelton said. "I think that's the big thing that you have to continue to focus on. Getting better. We're not in that spot right now, and that's our focus as we move forward to the last nine games of the season and into the offseason."
