Pirates Opening Day Roster, Lineups, Rotation & Bullpen

We finally made it! Opening Day is upon us. The Pittsburgh Pirates will open the 2025 campaign Thursday in South Florida against the Miami Marlins, thus beginning their quest to avoid a seventh straight losing season and reach the playoffs for the first time in a decade.

As reigning National League Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes prepares to take the mound in an epic pitching matchup against Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara, let's take a closer look at how the Pirates' 2025 Opening Day roster shakes out.

Pirates Opening Day Roster, Lineups, Rotation & Bullpen

The Pirates' 26-man roster for Opening Day is as follows:

• Catchers (2): Joey Bart, Endy Rodríguez
• First base (1): Jared Triolo
• Second base (1): Nick Gonzales
• Shortstop (1): Isiah Kiner-Falefa
• Third base (1): Ke'Bryan Hayes
• Outfielders (3): Bryan Reynolds, Oneil Cruz, Tommy Pham
• Designated hitter (1): Andrew McCutchen
• Bench/utility (3): Ji Hwan Bae, Jack Suwinski, Adam Frazier
• Starting rotation (5): Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, Bailey Falter, Andrew Heaney, Carmen Mlodzinski
• Bullpen (8): Colin Holderman, Dennis Santana, Justin Lawrence, Joey Wentz, Tim Mayza, Ryan Borucki, Caleb Ferguson, David Bednar

Conspicuously missing from the Pirates' 26-man Opening Day roster are first baseman Spencer Horwitz and starting pitcher Jared Jones, both of whom are set to begin the season on the injured list. It looks like the Pirates will take a by-committee approach at first base while Horwitz recovers from offseason wrist surgery, with Triolo and Rodríguez likely to split time there in some capacity.

Mlodzinski, a converted reliever, slides into the back of the rotation while Jones recovers from a UCL sprain. It's unclear how long that will last, though, with pitching prospects like Bubba Chandler, Thomas Harrington and even Mike Burrows waiting in the wing and likely to receive Major League call-ups at some point this season.

While we have a good idea of which players will be in the Pirates' Opening Day lineup, projecting the order in which they hit is a bit trickier, given the return of Hayes after an extended stint on the injured list and the offseason addition of Pham in free agency. Prior to the lineup's official reveal, our best guess was:

1. McCutchen, DH
2. Reynolds, RF
3. Cruz, CF
4. Bart, C
5. Hayes, 3B
6. Gonzales, 2B
7. Triolo, 1B
8. Pham, LF
9. Kiner-Falefa, SS

In actuality, here's how the Pirates chose to line up. Pham's spot genuinely surprised us:

As far as the starting rotation, no real question marks there. The absence of Jones – who likely would have slotted into the No. 2 starter role behind Skenes – moves Keller, Falter and Heaney up and allows Mlodzinski to slot in at No. 5.

1. Skenes, RHP
2. Keller, RHP
3. Falter, LHP
4. Heaney, LHP
5. Mlodzinski, RHP

In the bullpen, Lawrence, Wentz, Mayza, Borucki and Ferguson are all middle relief options. Holderman and Santana are the primary setup men, with Bednar likely to reprise his role as closer. Given Bednar's epic collapse in 2024, however, manager Derek Shelton may be keeping him on a shorter leash. If he struggles early, don't be surprised if we see Santana slide into the closer role.

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