Since being hired as the Pirates general manager in 2019, Ben Cherington has been working toward something in Pittsburgh, but all he has to show for it is five straight losing seasons and a fan base asking for more.

As pitchers and catchers report to Pirate City tomorrow in Bradenton, Fla., the 2025 outlook might be the grimmest of Cherington's tenure. However, there are still reasons for slight optimism, as small as they may be.

After a 2024 season in which the Pirates collapsed after a 10-game losing streak in early August, there were slivers of hope that the organization would act. After all, they have a once-in-a-generation type of talent in Paul Skenes leading a strong starting rotation with talented pitching prospects waiting in the wings. A key acquisition at first base or right field could spark a passionate fan base and exude positivity toward what might be ahead. But, those expectations were met with an underwhelming offseason that has created more questions than answers.

The Pirates spent just $14.7 million and are projected to have a lower payroll -- $82,854,962, according to Ethan Hullihen -- than a year ago. Andrew McCutchen was their biggest expenditure as he signed a one-year, $5 million deal like he has the past two seasons. Then, they added soon-to-be 37-year-old outfielder Tommy Pham on a one-year, $4.025 million contract and brought back Adam Frazier on a one-year, $1.5 million deal. They also added southpaw relievers Tim Mayza (one-year, $1.15 million) and Caleb Ferguson (one-year, $3 million). First baseman Spencer Horwitz, second baseman Enmanuel Valdez and relief pitchers Brett de Geus, Peter Strzelecki and Chase Shugart were all acquired via trade. 

This strange and underwhelming offseason has pointed to one thing: Cherington is expecting internal improvement to play a major role in how this season plays out. 

The Pirates failed to add pieces that could chase away players they already have in place. If Jack Suwinski bounces back from a dismal 2024 campaign and regains his 2023 form, he could easily overcome Pham for a starting role in right field. If Ke'Bryan Hayes has a clean bill of health and lives up to the expectations of his eight-year, $70 million extension, he becomes an important piece in the middle of a lineup that desperately needs it. If David Bednar suddenly becomes his former self and regains his All-Star form, the back end of the bullpen is suddenly solid again. The candidates for improvement don't stop there but this group paints the picture of what the front office is expecting. 

Hoping one improves should never be a game plan though. So, to try and ensure it, Cherington hired Matt Hague as the new hitting coach and paired Oscar Marin with Brent Strom to further develop a young crop of pitchers. 

That in itself, is where a piece of optimism is found. With the tools they have at their disposal, the players have challenged themselves to take a step forward and do what hasn't been done in Pittsburgh since the franchise made three straight playoff appearances between 2013 and 2015. It's the message that was consistently shared at PiratesFest last month and Skenes was at the head of it. 

"The group that we have from last year is going to be better, I think, than we were last year, we're going to have more experience," Skenes said. "And I don't think you can overstate the impact that coaches can have on them too. So we made some good additions there. It's not a complicated thing. It's hard to do, but it's not complicated. We just have to play better and I think we have the pieces to do that."

It starts with Skenes, Mitch Keller and Jared Jones as the foundation of the starting rotation. Bailey Falter and Johan Oviedo, who missed all of last season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, are expected to contribute. A mixture of Bubba Chandler, Mike Burrows, Braxton Ashcraft and Thomas Harrington could all find their way to the big leagues as well.

It's an exciting group to envision on the mound at PNC Park. There's talent there and it's all young. But, along with that comes Skenes' determination to lead. It's something that the Pirates have missed in recent years and while he wasn't in a position to speak up as a rookie, he mentioned his desire to do so this season. While it may be small, that can go a long way in a 162-game season.

"I don't know what the character of that will be but I'll have probably a little more say so and obviously having established myself a little bit but there's still a long way to go," Skenes said. "I'm not going to overstep but winning is winning. We've got to do what we've got to do to make it happen."

The desire, and the understanding, to play better and fix mistakes that plagued them last year, is a crucial piece of this puzzle. Players are aware they came up short in several areas and while spending money in free agency can fix things, playing the game the right way can too. 

At this point, they won't be a team that produces offense by hitting balls out of the park. They'll need to consistently string at-bats together and put pressure on their opponents. 

"Baseball is such a fundamentally sound game and if you do those things right, a lot of times you put yourself in a position to win the game," McCutchen said. "Sometimes you're just gonna get flat out beat and there's nothing you can do about it. But when you get in those instances where you have a chance to win the ballgame by laying a bunt down, by getting a guy over, getting a guy in with less than two outs from third base, making the routine plays, when you do all those little things when the pitcher gets ahead in the count, he's 0-2 and executes a pitch and gets the guy out, not working 0-2 to 4-2, all those things, calculate it man, you have a real good opportunity to win it."

However, no matter how they approach this season or what plans of action they put in place, several questions still remain. The futures of Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez are still undetermined, Isiah Kiner-Falefa's ability to fill in as a full-time shortstop is up in the air and the bullpen still has question marks with several unproven players.

So, while there's optimism within the clubhouse and amongst the players, this offseason created more questions than answers. The expectation that several players who took a step back will suddenly produce has caused angst among the fan base. So, while there aren't any answers just yet, they'll come in due time.

All that's left to do now is play ball.