Sliders graded out well for Pittsburgh Pirates in 2024
Pirates pitchers graded out well on FanGraphs Stuff+ when it came to their slider
The Pittsburgh Pirates have done well in acquiring pitching talent over the past couple of years. They will enter the 2025 season with Paul Skenes, Mitch Keller, and Jared Jones at the top of the rotation, with plenty more to come on the prospect side.
Looking at some of the reasons behind their success, one common theme was their success with sliders.
According to the FanGraphs Stuff+ model, the Pirates had three pitchers in the top 20 when it comes to sliders—Skenes, Keller, and Jones. Only the Chicago White Sox (Erick Fedde, Garrett Crochet, Erick Fedde) had three among the top 20 pitchers with at least 100 innings last year.
They were the only team with three pitchers who ended the season on the same roster (Fedde was traded).
Expanding it to the top 30, another name joins the list—Luis Ortiz. That gives four Pirates in the top 30 regarding their Stuff+ with the slider.
Skenes - 131
Jones - 130
Keller - 129
Ortiz - 121
Shifting to the bullpen, the Pirates also have some notable names towards the top of Stuff+ when it comes to sliders, led by Kyle Nicolas (138, 32nd). I set the cutoff at 30 innings pitched, here are the rest that qualified and were above average:
Colin Holderman - 133 (48th)
Hunter Stratton - 121 (98th)
Carmen Mlodzinski - 118 (117th)
Dennis Santana - 110 (161st)
Aroldis Chapman - 100 (199th)
There are plenty of intriguing names there, with four that should be back at some point in 2025.
Things even stretch into the minors, where some of their top pitching prospects have graded above average with their slider. Using TJStats (which have different grading parameters), four of their top pitching prospects had a slider that was above average (100+).
Braxton Ashcraft - 107
Mike Burrows - 106
Thomas Harrington - 105 (Sweeper)
Bubba Chandler - 104
TJStats grading is slightly different and almost harsher, so it doesn’t produce numbers as high as FanGraphs. So, a 107 on TJStats is far better than another 107 on FanGraphs.
Jones, for example, had a 109 TJStats+ on his slider, but it was still one of the higher-ranked ones.
The Pirates will rely on their pitching staff to get wins in 2025 and beyond, and the slider will be one of the pitches they lean on the most.
Other Top Pitches
When it comes to Stuff+ on FanGraphs, sliders weren’t the only pitch that Pirates’ pitchers were grading out well in.
Four Seam Fastball - Jared Jones - 132 (1st)
Sinker - Luis Ortiz - 105 (10th)
Curveball - Mitch Keller - 111 (19th)
Change-up - Jared Jones - 113 (12th)
Overall Stuff+ - Jared Jones - 127 (2nd)
FanGraphs didn’t appear to know what to classify Skenes’ ‘splinker’ as or didn’t grade out well on their model.
This site is 100% reader-supported, with no revenue coming from ads. If you enjoy our work, consider becoming a paid member today.
You will not only help the site grow but also get access to our fantastic premium content, which includes our Top 25 rankings and full-player write-ups, video breakdowns, and any features that come from my on-site trips.
Bucs On Deck is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Well I dont care how the Splinker is categorized. It’s the best pitch I’ve seen in years. Could see it ending up there with Gooden’s curve, Ryan’s fastball, Johan’s changeup, Rivera’s cutter, and Halladay’s sinker.
Off topic but what would a trade for Brandon Lowe and Taylor Ward look like? Get both of those bats and move Gonzales to SS. Then you have yourself a deep solid lineup. Then grab minter and Leclerc for bullpen. You are still around $100M in payroll and you add two 20+ HR guys with two years of control and legit bullpen arms.
I’m just not sure what you would need to give up for Ward and Lowe though.