NL Silver Slugger finalists reveal further emphasizes massive Pirates gap

On Wednesday, FanSided partnered with the iconic Louisville Slugger to reveal the National League finalists for the 2025 Silver Slugger award – given to the best offensive player at each position.

Every contending NL club has at least one player recognized for offensive excellence. The Pittsburgh Pirates? Zero finalists. Zero consideration. Zero fear from opposing pitchers.

The 2025 NL Silver Slugger finalists are more than a list; they’re a mirror reflecting how far behind the Pirates have fallen behind their peers offensively – not just in individual production, but in organizational philosophy, lineup depth and player development.

While peer franchises have evolved into data-driven, hitter-friendly powerhouses, the Pirates are still tinkering with broken development pipelines and waiting for their “next wave” to arrive. Until Pittsburgh produces or acquires hitters who can actually threaten this finalist tier – not just dream of it – they’ll remain an afterthought in both the awards race and the standings.

Teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks have multiple finalists across positions – a testament to balanced, dynamic lineups. Even smaller-market clubs like the Milwaukee Brewers have managed to produce or acquire legitimate offensive stars. By contrast, Pittsburgh doesn’t have a single player whose 2025 offensive output ranks near the top third of the league at his position. The talent gap is glaring.

Pirates' lack of Silver Slugger finalists represents failure in player development, organizational philosophy

This list of Silver Slugger finalists is effectively a scoreboard for scouting and development success that reveals how much the Pirates’ offense is still built around potential, rather than production. Six years into Ben Cherington’s tenure as general manager, the Pirates have yet to develop a single homegrown hitter who ranks among the NL’s best. That’s a damning statement for a franchise that claims to build through the draft.

After investing nearly $26 million in position-player bonuses from 2020–23, the Pirates have no Silver Slugger–caliber contributors to show for it. Every other mid-market team on this finalist list does.

The NL Silver Slugger finalist teams all share one trait: they know who they are offensively. The Dodgers slug and draw walks. The Diamondbacks combine athleticism with gap power. Even the Cubs, once a contact-first team, now have genuine, middle-of-the-order punch.

The Pirates, by contrast, remain stuck in between identities. They are too passive to slug and too inconsistent to grind out runs. Their offense finished in the NL’s bottom third in runs, OPS and slugging despite playing in a hitter-friendly era. That lack of identity keeps them irrelevant in the awards conversation and – more importantly – in the standings.

The "Team" category says it all. The fact that Arizona, Chicago and Los Angeles are team finalists underscores something bigger: Silver Slugger–level hitting doesn’t happen by accident – it’s systemic. Those organizations invest in hitting infrastructure, biomechanics, and approach.

Pittsburgh? Still relying on “maybe this guy figures it out” rather than modern development or aggressive acquisition of established bats. The absence of Pirates from both the individual and team categories symbolizes their organizational stagnation.