The Pirates’ offense has potential, but a bad approach is holding them back

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ 2024 offense will likely be why this team does not end the year with a playoff berth, or even a good record. They’ve been on the losing end of quite a few close games. But while this lineup certainly has potential, they need a new approach, because the current one is holding back what could be a solid hitting team.

As a unit, the Pirates hit the ball hard with an 89.1 MPH exit velocity. That is the sixth-best mark in baseball. Their 9% barrel rate is the seventh best among all 30 teams. They have a .315 xwOBA and .413 xSLG%. They have the second-largest negative difference between their xwOBA and wOBA, and the second-largest negative difference between their xSLG% and SLG%. The Pirates also have a respectable 27.6% chase rate.

These are some solid numbers. If the Pirates played up to their expectations, this team might still be in the Wild Card hunt, if not in the division hunt, instead of just trying to claw back to .500. The big reason for this is the lack of a good approach. Many have criticized the unit for being overly patient, and once you look at some of the plate discipline numbers, you’ll see why.

Pirates' plate discipline to blame for poor offensive season

The Pirates don’t swing outside the zone much, but they’re not aggressive on pitches inside the zone, either. They have just a 64.2% in-zone swing rate, the fourth lowest in the league. Unfortunately, they do this quite often on two-strike pitches. Overall, they have the most strikeouts looking in the National League and second most in MLB. It’s not as if the Pirates are a team that gets pitched around quite often. They have the seventh-highest in-zone pitch percentage. They have the sixth-highest "strikes looking" rate in baseball. This lack of aggression has led to them being behind in the count in 1,919 plate appearances, the 13th most in baseball. 

Another area where the Pirates need a better approach is with runners on base. The Pirates have the 13th-most plate appearances with a man on. Their wRC+ in these situations is just 90. Every team above them in plate appearances with men on base has a wRC+ of at least 100. The Pirates also have the 14th-most plate appearances with runners in scoring position, but just an 85 wRC+ in those situations.

Once again, they've displayed a severe lack of aggression in these situations. They have the fifth-most called strikes with only the 21st-most pitches swung at with RISP. When the Pirates swing the bat and make contact, they usually make good contact, with an 88.5 MPH exit velocity and 8.7% barrel rate with RISP.

The solution is simple: The Pirates need a new approach to hitting. There is a difference between being patient and being passive and, at this point, the Pirates’ hitting approach falls into the latter category. Obviously, a lot of that blame will go Andy Haines’ way, and rightfully so. He is the one responsible for teaching the hitters how to hit and emphasizing the approach he believes they should take at the major league level. It's more evident than ever, now that the offense has potential, that whatever approach Haines is teaching isn't working.

Regardless, the Pirates’ offense has the potential to be an average unit, at the very least, if not better, but a poor approach featuring too many passive looks at strikes has bogged down what could have been a promising season. This needs to change as soon as possible, because while this Pirates core will win on the backs of their pitching, they still need the offense to do its job to a semi-competent extent, and the current passive approach clearly isn’t helping.