PIRATES

It's not hyperbole to say that the Pirates may possess one of Major League Baseball's top rotations heading into the 2026 season. 

The first two spots are filled by obvious locks in National League Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes and the always-reliable Mitch Keller, the latter being a seven-year veteran who is coming off a season in which he compiled a 4.19 ERA and 1.26 WHIP while making 30-plus starts and throwing 175-plus innings for a third consecutive year. 

Bubba Chandler, the No. 11 overall prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline, seems to be a logical candidate for a spot. He'll still have to earn it this spring, but he did impress during a brief major-league stint that began in late August, displaying better command with just four walks in 31 1/3 innings and producing both as a starter and reliever. 

Braxton Ashcraft is another young starter who seems destined for another big opportunity in 2026, especially after a year in which he did everything that was asked of him. As a reliever, he held a 3.22 ERA and struck out 36 batters in 36 1/3 innings. In eight starts, he was even better, compiling a 2.16 ERA and striking out 35 batters while walking 10 in 33 1/3 innings. His final totals stood out: 4-4 record, 2.71 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 71 strikeouts, 24 walks in 69 2/3 innings over 26 big-league appearances. Ashcraft certainly has the stuff, and he proved he can produce results, too. 

While the Pirates have four strong pitchers ready to be a part of the rotation, there's still a void to be filled at the back end. Johan Oviedo is now in Boston and Mike Burrows is in Houston after separate offseason trades, leaving the Pirates with less pitching depth. Carmen Mlodzinski and Hunter Barco, who has just three innings of major-league experience, seem to be the only real internal starting options heading into spring training, while Jared Jones is still recovering after missing the entire 2025 season. He’ll likely have an impact this year, but it won’t be to start the regular season. José Urquidy and Mike Clevinger could be in the mix, too. They’ll have quite a bit more to prove in order to earn an opportunity, though. 

Ben Cherington said at PiratesFest that they're still pursuing starting pitching options, preferably from the left side. They were reported to be pursuing Framber Valdez, the hottest commodity among starting pitchers on the free-agent market, but it was a long shot that they would end up with him. He's now in Detroit and the Pirates are continuing their pursuit. 

The Pirates seem destined to sign someone like José Quintana or Tyler Anderson, two veteran left-handed starters who make sense given their ability to still contribute quality innings and their familiarity with the organization. Once they fill that final puzzle piece and inevitably bring in that yearly veteran presence, an already good rotation will be in a better place.