The Pirates have reached 80 wins for the 5th time in my life, being born in 1998. What would be a forgettable season in most franchises is now top 5 in terms of success since Barry Bonds hightailed it out of Pittsburgh. They win 2-0 Tuesday night off the back of a heroic performance from Jared Jones, who is showing promising signs of being a top end rotation arm for 2027. The 2 runs the Pirates got across the board was enough and the team has won 5 straight games. Watch DiNardo and Tyler break the game down in detail here:
Jared Jones is That Dude
Today was the 3rd time in a shortened season that Jared Jones had gone into the 6th inning without allowing a hit. Jones can be so dominant that flirting with a no-hitter or perfect game is just something that happens on a monthly basis. Jones ends up pitching 7 shutout innings and striking out 9 while allowing a singular baserunner to reach in the 6th inning. The double surrender wasn’t even a well-hit ball, as it was more of a blooper hit than anything else. Jones’ development over the course of this season has arguably been the most impressive thing we have seen from anyone on the roster. The ERA doesn’t tell the full story, as Jones has developed the ability to have real control over his pitches while keeping his velocity running high deep into games. No longer is he running into the issue of losing steam by the 5th inning like he was in his rookie campaign. Even in a down year it’s hard to unseat Skenes, but Jones makes a compelling case that he should be seen as Pittsburgh’s number one arm heading into the 2027 season. The 3-headed monster of Skenes/Jones/Ashcraft should be something any Pirates fan can look forward to.
Ben Cherington Did Say the Pirates Were Due For a Hot Streak…
While doing his weekly interview for 93.7 the Fan in late August, Ben Cherington said that the team had never had a hot streak and was due for one. The Bucs responded in September accordingly and are 13-6 in the last month of the season. The team is playing good baseball with good moments all over the diamond. The Bucs are the 7th best team in baseball by WAR, and the team is poised to finish with a winning record for the first time since 2018, and this has been the most fun I’ve had watching the Pirates in a long time. However, this team will sit out of the postseason because they hadn’t won 5 games in a row since April. This hot streak of winning when already eliminated can only feel so good, and all I can wonder is where was this winning in June/July/August. Despite taking advantage of a favorable September schedule, the bullpen in the first half of the season and the offense in the 2nd half are the reasons why the Phillies and Padres will go dancing while the Bucs hope to reach 85 wins. What a shame and disappointment.
Strikeouts Above All Else
The Pirates pitching trio combined for 9 shutout innings and 14 strikeouts. Jared Jones, Gregory Soto, and Luke Weaver all looked excellent tonight as they consistently missed Cardinal bats. When you look at the first half bullpen, you were featuring guys like Dennis Santana and Isaac Mattson in high leverage situations. While they served us well for a time, their inability to get strikeouts eventually cost them their jobs in Pittsburgh. After acquiring Weaver, Camilo Doval (RIP), and elevating Gregory Soto’s role, the bullpen got immensely better. This offseason, the Pirates should be focused on high strikeout guys who can fix their command instead of depending on soft contact relievers. We cannot afford the meltdown of the pen like we had at the beginning of 2026.
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