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2 questions Pirates have already answered in 2024, 1 that still lingers

Will anyone take control of a position the Pirates have struggled to fill in recent years?

By Tanner Vogt |
Pittsburgh Pirates v Chicago Cubs
Pittsburgh Pirates v Chicago Cubs / Nuccio DiNuzzo/GettyImages
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The NL Central seemed like a wide-open division heading into the 2024 season. The Cardinals were coming off a terrible season, while the Cubs and Reds were likely the favorites. The Brewers, for once, were expected to buck the odds and potentially round out the division's bottom after dealing a few key players (including staff ace Corbin Burnes). The Pirates seemed to be somewhere in the middle of the group, ranking as a young team not quite ready to break through just yet.

The team had a few question marks coming into the offseason and, given their mediocre budget, had to get creative to find and address those concerns. As a young team, they needed some young players to step up and answer those question marks for the Pirates, something that we will touch on shortly.

Unfortunately, when you are a team that consistently roles out one of the lowest payrolls in the game, you have to hit on most of your moves, or deal with the fact that you may have a few glaring holes due to the limited resources. That's the fairest way to assess this Pirates team that has been solid, but could surge into playoff contention ahead of schedule after answering just a few more questions.

3 burning Pirates questions: 2 they've answered, 1 they haven't

The Pirates have their answer at first base, and it's a familiar face

Coming into the offseason, the Pirates had some question marks at first base. They were able to get solid production for the first half of the year from veteran switch-hitter Carlos Santana. After Santana was dealt away, Connor Joe filled in well. How would they handle the position moving forward, though? Was Joe going to get an extended look there? Would they address the spot with a new face like Rhys Hoskins or Adam Duvall? Or maybe a veteran return from Santana, or a surprise name like Brandon Belt (still technically available)?

Well, the team resorted to a lesser-known commodity, signing Rowdy Tellez to a one-year deal, for a relatively low-risk $3.2 million. They sort of answered the question, but did they really? Tellez had a monstrous 2022 season with 35 home runs before a dud of a 2023 season made him a possible bounce back candidate.

As Tellez continues to struggle in 2024, the first base question has popped up again. However, the Pirates have their answer, and he is currently on the roster. He just needs to be playing at first base every day.

Connor Joe has been one of the better stories of 2024. A former first-round pick in 2014, Joe struggled to find his role, bouncing between the NL West with the Giants and Rockies before ending up back with the Pirates. He filled in after the trade of Santana last year, slashing .247/.339/.421 with 11 home runs in 133 games. He also had above-average walk (10.6%) and strikeout (23.3%) numbers; all of that was good for a 107 wRC+.

He has built upon that impressive stretch in 2024 by slashing .277/.345/.466 with six home runs so far in 2024. He has cut his strikeout rate down to 18.8% and his walk rate remains strong at 9.1%. Joe is obviously the Bucs' best option at first base at this point. They may need to find a long-term answer there, but for 2024 and likely 2025, the team has their answer at first base.

The Pirates are still searching for their second baseman

With question marks at other positions in the offseason, there seemed to be little doubt about what second base would look like in 2024. The Pirates knew they need depth and talent in their pitching staff as well as their outfield, and they added to that. But second base seemed like a position they had their guy at, as Jared Triolo looked like a potential slugging solution.

In 2023, Triolo was called up mid-year after starting the year with some injuries, and he looked like he was going to solve all of the Pirates' issues at second. The then 25-year-old righty hit .298/.388/.398 with three home runs and six stolen bases in just 54 games. He put up a 118 wRC+ carried by the average and walk rate (11.5%). There were some underlying concerns, however, like the 30.1% strikeout rate and the disappointing .398 slugging percentage. This has carried into 2024, and though his 25% strikeout is a good sign, he is hitting just .209 with a .261 slugging percentage. Triolo isn't likely to be a 30-home run hitter, but you would like to see the slugging percentage creep into the mid-400's and the average and on-base be about 60 points higher.

The disappointing start to Triolo's season has led to a lot of questions about who will be the everyday second baseman moving forward. Triolo still possesses a lot of upside and has the ability to play second and third base, something that has proven valuable with Ke'Bryan Hayes' injury. The positional outlook gets murky when you consider recent first-round pick Nick Gonzales' debut last year was also disappointing (though he has been solid in 2024).

Ji Hwan Bae has also just been called up and could fight for that role. He brings a different element to the Pirates club that is in the bottom half of the league in stolen bases. Bae has legit 70-grade speed, and a solid ability to make contact, though he may be better suited for a sort of super utility role, bouncing around between second base and the outfield. No matter who you like personally, no one has really stepped up to the plate and run away with the spot, leaving a lot to be desired.

The Pirates' rotation is looking like it might be one of the best in the league very soon

This offseason, there was little doubt about who would be at the top of the rotation. The team had Mitch Keller atop the rotation. They acquired a pair of crafty veteran left-handers in Martin Perez and Marco Gonzales, while the last few spots were sort of up for grabs. This seemed like a respectable rotation, but nothing that would seem to scare a lot of teams.

Now, over 50 games into the 2024 season, the Pirates have one of the best one-two punches in baseball, and with the recent Paul Skenes performances, as well as Jared Jones' rapid rise, Pittsburgh possesses a rotation that will surely be one of the best, one through three, in all of baseball.

Everyone knows that Keller is an innings eater and someone that will limit damage, not walk anyone, and just be the underrated work horse (and, after being extended, he'll be in Pittsburgh for quite a while. Everyone thought Jared Jones would be good, but did anyone think he would dominate as much as he has? In nine starts, Jones has thrown 53 innings with an absurd 10.7 K/9 and 1.2 BB/9. Jones is looking like a legit ace and, at just 22, will be a fixture in this rotation and for the National League Cy Young for years to come. The other starter he may be duking it out with, Paul Skenes, looks like he is going to live up to the "generational talent" label that was thrown out there ahead of his debut.

Seeing these three dominate the way that they have proves that this rotation could become one of the best in baseball, and very soon. The three-headed monster of Keller, Skenes and Jones could go toe-to-toe with many of the rotations in baseball and rivals the young, high-powered rotation that the Mariners have built. You factor in some of the other guys that are knocking on the door like Quinn Priester, Bubba Chandler, Anthony Solometo, and Thomas Harrington, and this rotation has the chance to become one of the best rotations Pirates' fans have ever seen.

No matter who from that second group pans out, Pittsburgh has already answered any offseason rotation concerns emphatically.

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