The good, bad, and ugly: Pittsburgh Pirates 2024 midseason mark

How are things looking halfway through the 2024 season

Photo Credit: Ryan Palencer

The Pittsburgh Pirates played their 81st game on Friday, meaning their game on Saturday officially started the second half of the season.

With the first half of the season over and done with, I wanted to look back at some of the good, bad, and ugly of the Pirates 2024 season so far.

Through 81 games, the Pirates ended up with a 39-42 record. They finished the first half in third place in the NL Central and three games back from a Wild Card spot.

The Good

Bryan Reynolds has been fantastic for the Pirates this season, playing in all 81 games during the first half. He slashed .279/.347/.469 with 13 home runs, 46 RBI, and even stole five bases. His wRC+ of 129 is the best on the team of any player who has played in at least half of the Pirates’ games (only Joey Bart has a higher number overall).

Attention for potential All-Stars goes straight to the pitching, but Reynolds is putting up another season worthy of mention at the All-Star Game.

The rotation has been the Pirates' strongest position unit overall. Their collective 3.64 ERA is good for seventh in baseball. The strikeout rate isn’t what you would expect for having Paul Skenes and Jared Jones in the rotation, but most of the rest of the staff rely heavily on pitching to contact.

Digging deeper, Jared Jones and Paul Skenes have been everything the Pirates could have hoped for and then some.

They’ve put up a 9-6 record, posting a collective 3.12 ERA across 132.1 innings pitched (This isn’t counting Skenes’ start on Saturday). As a duo, they’ve struck out 28.6% of the batters they have faced while walking just 6.2%.

Mitch Keller has really settled in and continues to be a consistent force for the Pirates. The Pirates are really on to something with these three in the rotation together, and they should have another premium arm joining them by the end of next year.

Colin Holderman has solidified himself in the back of the bullpen with a 1.26 ERA in 28.2 innings pitched.

While he’s still struggling with breaking pitches, his added success with off-speed and fastballs has allowed Nick Gonzales to put up some strong numbers. He’s provided some much-needed spark.

While the bullpen has struggled, Luis Ortiz has settled into his role as a multi-inning guy. He even made an actual spot start and was fantastic as well.

The Bad

The bullpen hasn’t been great this year, whether due to injuries or an inability to throw strikes. David Bednar got off to a horrible start because he didn't pitch much in Spring Training, but he was turning things around until his injury, which has him on the injured list right now.

Aroldis Chapman has struggled to throw strikes, and while he’s mostly managed, it’s rarely pretty. The bullpen has the fourth-worst ERA in the majors, with the seventh-highest walk rate. They are in the middle of the pack regarding Win Probability Added (WPA), and the xFIP shows that maybe they haven’t been as bad as they’ve shown.

There is still an upside to them, so they are in the ‘Bad’ category instead of ‘Ugly.’ Carmen Mlodzinski and Kyle Nicolas are starting to get comfortable, and they should get Ryan Borucki back soon.

Rowdy Tellez hasn’t been what the Pirates have hoped, but he has been playing well as of late. Regardless, a 73 wRC+ from your first baseman during the first half isn’t going to cut it, but he is trending in the right direction.

The Ugly

The entire offense as a whole. Connor Joe, Andrew McCutchen, Tellez of late, and Nick Gonzales have been ok for the most part.

Still, the Pirates’ offense ranks near the bottom in almost every offensive category. For example;

28th - fWAR (2.3)

27th - wRC+ (85)

28th - SLG (.360)

24th - HR (76)

25th - Runs (328)

26th - Average (.228)

28th - OPS (.657)

After leading the team in home runs last year, Jack Suwinski has hit a brick wall in 2024. He has a .556 OPS and 55 wRC+ this season while spending some time in Indianapolis, which hasn’t helped.

The Pirates were hoping that former first-overall pick Henry Davis would claim the starting catcher job and a spot in the middle of the order. He’s posted a 49 wRC+ with a .503 OPS this season while also spending time in Triple-A.

He’s currently on a rehab assignment in Altoona, but he had a game where he went 0-4 with four strikeouts.

Then two of their free agent signings—Michael A. Taylor and Yasmani Grandal—are among the worst hitters in baseball. Taylor generally brings good defense to the table, but even that hasn’t been enough to offset his 38 wRC+ and .489 OPS. Grandal has put up worst numbers (.479 OPS and 32 wRC+), but he doesn’t have the defense to fall back on.

Finally, the team defense has been horrific—especially in the outfield. Regarding Outs Above Average on Baseball Savant, the Pirates have a collective -20 OAA this season, one of the worst marks in the majors.

The outfield has a -19 OAA, with three of the six worst players in the majors. Reynolds (-9, last), Suwinski (-7), and Olivares (-6) are all among the worst in the outfield defensively right now. Connor Joe hasn’t been great either, with a -3 OAA.

Hayes hasn’t been his usual defensive self, which has hurt the Pirates’ overall numbers, but he is still the best on the team (+3). Nick Gonzales has been solid defensively at second (+2), but Both Oneil Cruz (-2) and Rowdy Tellez (-3) have been below average.

You would like to see better defense with so many pitchers favoring pitching to contact outside of Skenes and Jones. Even with Skenes and Jones, bad defense extends innings, leaving your young pitchers more vulnerable. It’s a trend we are seeing throughout the system.

Outlook

The Pirates gambled on some free agents that haven’t worked out, but what has hurt are some of their key internal pieces taking notable steps backward.

They needed Hayes, Suwinski, and Davis to have big seasons, which none are, and you can argue two should be playing in the minors (one is on a rehab assignment).

Having Keller, Jones, and Skenes makes them one of the best trios in the NL, but they need to make many improvements overall if they want to make the playoffs.

It’s forced them into a position where they may have to look at overextending themselves at the trade deadline, tapping into a system that isn’t the same as it once was.

---

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 Top 25: Midseason updated list