Royals completing massive turnaround should put pressure on Pirates in offseason

ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan last week handed out the second annual Passan Awards, his end-of-year accolades for teams and players "who did cool things."

Covering non-traditional categories like "Nastiest Pitch" and "Most-Hyped Phenom" (of which Pittsburgh Pirates rookie flamethrower Paul Skenes was the obvious winner), the "Passans" attempt to celebrate the "most enjoyable elements" of the 2024 MLB season as it comes to a close.

The winners of the "Biggest Surprise" category were the Kansas City Royals, who bounced back from a 106-loss season in 2023 and currently hold the third and final Wild Card spot in the American League with an 82-74 record. They now have a chance to play in the postseason for the first time since winning the World Series in 2015.

But while their bounce-back season may have been a surprise, it wasn't an accident; Passan notes that the Royals spent close to $100 million on seven free agent signings: right-handed starters Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha, outfielder Hunter Renfroe, utility men Garrett Hampson and Adam Frazier and relievers Will Smith and Chris Stratton. He also mentions Kansas City's in-season free agent acquisitions and the decision to be buyers at the trade deadline.

The Royals, Passan writes, "are the perfect example of what can happen when a team – regardless of its market size – has an owner commit to winning and backs it up with savvy front office maneuvering."

Passan might as well have been speaking directly to Bob Nutting, Ben Cherington and the Pittsburgh front office when he said that – and not only because Frazier and Stratton are former Pirates, though that is cruelly ironic. The Royals had a historically bad year and were able to turn it around in just one offseason, while the Pirates have been stuck in perennial mediocrity (at best) for the past three decades.

That's not the result of a poor on-field product; that's poor ownership and management.

Royals completing massive turnaround should put pressure on Pirates in offseason

With the 2024 Royals as an example, the Pirates have no excuse for yet another failed season. A franchise turnaround isn't only doable; it's doable in a single offseason.

As Passan points out, market size is a non-factor here. Pittsburgh is one of the greatest sports towns in the nation with fans who are unapologetically loyal and passionate about their teams. If you build it, they will come.

The Pirates, however, can't seem to get out of their own way, and ownership is largely to blame. But even if we travel to fantasy land for a moment and imagine that Nutting actually did manage to open his wallet during the offseason, it's hard to argue that Cherington and company are the type of "savvy front office" that has what it takes to make meaningful moves and build a winning franchise.

Again, the problem begins with Nutting, but the owner can't be fired. Cherington, however, has been at the helm of Pittsburgh's front office for five years while actively making the franchise worse. If the Pirates have a prayer at becoming a winning team, he has to go – and soon.

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