Pittsburgh Pirates Rank Last in First MLB Power Rankings of 2021

Jul 29, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton looks on during batting practice before playing the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 29, 2020; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton looks on during batting practice before playing the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
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MLB.com has released their first power rankings of the new calendar year and the Pittsburgh Pirates find themselves at the bottom of the list

With the calendar flipping from 2020 to 2021 it’s time for plenty of new things. One of these new things is new power rankings from MLB.com. In their first power rankings of the new calendar year, the Pittsburgh Pirates find themselves ranked dead last out of all 30 MLB clubs.

This should come as no surprise to anyone. After all, the Pittsburgh Pirates finished the 2020 season with a MLB worst 19-41 record. Throw in that the team has yet to make any major additions to their MLB roster via free agency or trades, as well as having traded away Josh Bell, and the team’s MLB roster has, on paper at least, gotten worse since the end of the 2020 season.

While the Pittsburgh Pirates are currently last in MLB.com’s power rankings, there are reasons to believe they can improve upon that in the 2021 season. While the team will most likely suffer their third consecutive losing season, they should see young talent take steps forward during the season.

The team will get the first full MLB season of Ke’Bryan Hayes which will make a difference. If Bryan Reynolds can bounce back, Jameson Taillon is healthy and pitching the way he did pre-injury, Mitch Keller can take a step forward, and Cody Bolton makes his MLB debut and pitches to his potential, then the Pirates should be a much better team than they were in 2020. The team should be better defensively in 2021 than they were in 2020 as well.

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As for the rest of the National League Central division, the Pirates’ foes find themselves in the 12-18 range. No one else in the NL Central have made any major additions this offseason, while the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs have experienced significant roster losses.

The highest ranked NL Central club are the 12th place St. Louis Cardinals. Next up after the Cardinals are the aforementioned Cubs and Reds who are in back-to-back spots in 15th and 16th. The Milwaukee Brewers are the closest to the Pirates, checking in at number 18.