Pirates should take inspiration from these 2 teams to find their next general manager

Ben Cherington’s job as the Pittsburgh Pirates’ general manager should be nearing its end. Constant poor trades and the lack of an ability to find any hitting despite having nearly five full seasons to develop it have led to some of the Pirates’ most disappointing years in ages. When the Pirates start looking around for general manager candidates, they should take some inspiration from their division rival, the Milwaukee Brewers, as well as the Miami Marlins.

When you look at most general managers’ resumes (or the equivalent of that, such as a president of baseball operations), most have a background in scouting, player development, or something similar. Cherington’s start was in scouting before moving into front office roles. Some teams, like the Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners, and LA Dodgers, have former MLB players at the helm. The Brewers and Marlins opted to go a different route than most teams. While their GMs may have a baseball background, it expands way beyond that.

Matt Arnold, the Brewers’ general manager, was hired a day after the Pirates hired Ben Cherington. Arnold was reportedly who the Pirates looked into before ultimately making their ill-fated choice. So far, he has led the Brewers to three seasons of 90 or more wins. With how things are going right now for the Brew Crew, they may tally Arnold’s first 100-win season.

Arnold isn’t unfamiliar with scouting. He was a professional scout for the Rays in 2006 and became their director of pro scouting in 2009. Arnold also worked as the assistant director of pro scouting for the Cincinnati Reds. But he is much more in tune with the scientific and technological side of baseball. According to the Brewers’ biography on Arnold, he “worked to develop the process of integrating science, biomechanics, and human movement analysis within all levels of baseball operations.” That is something that makes Arnold stand out from other general managers.

Peter Bendix is the Miami Marlins’ president of baseball operations. He took over after the 2023 season. While he tore down the team in 2024 after making the postseason in 2023 (leading to a 100-loss season), the Marlins already are back to having a better record than the Pirates at the time of this writing. Many of his trades have worked out tremendously. Bendix has brought in the likes of Kyle Stowers, Agustin Ramirez, and Jakob Marsee, and currently has four top-100 prospects, according to Baseball America.

Pirates next GM must have mastery of scientific aspect of baseball

Bendix doesn’t come from a scouting background. He has never been hired as a scout. He got his start in a sabermetrics course at Tufts University, which led to him joining the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009. A decade later, in 2019, he worked his way up the ladder to become the team’s vice president. In 2020, he was named the organization’s president of baseball development. Not long after that, Bendix succeeded Erik Neander as the team’s general manager. 

This is a path the Pirates should explore, and they can look at their own recent history as to why they need to do this. They were once at the forefront of baseball thinking. When Neal Huntington took over as the Pirates’ GM in 2007, he had a heavy focus on baseball analytics. Huntington was known for revolutionizing the shift and catcher framing. These things helped the Pirates get the most out of pitchers like A.J. Burnett, Francisco Liriano, and many more.

Sure, the second half of Huntington's time with the Pirates wasn't great, but the results can't be denied. The Pirates made the playoffs from 2013-2015, with much of the credit attributed to Huntington’s forward thinking. The Pirates seemingly started to fall behind in their thinking in the mid-to-late-2010s, and they've yet to catch back up. Cherington clearly hasn't helped in this regard, either. It should be no surprise given how often it feels Cherington shoots himself in the foot when it comes to running this team, managing the roster, making trades, signing players, and developing hitters.

There is a science to baseball, and the Marlins and Brewers brought in guys who have all but mastered it. The Pirates were once considered one of the most advanced teams when it came to this stuff. Unfortunately, they haven’t evolved with the times. It’s time they start doing so.