Four Reasons Why Pirates Missed Playoffs
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates won't play postseason baseball this season and there are a few explanations as to why.
The Pirates were eliminated from the playoffs, as the San Diego Padres defeated the Miami Marlins at Petco Park on Sept. 18, ending their chance at a late run.
Pittsburgh is 77-77 overall and can't catch up with the Padres, who are 85-69 and hold the intradivision tiebreaker.
It's not the way the Pirates wanted the season to end, but there are a few culprits as to why they fell short again.
Bullpen Troubles Throw Away Key Games
The biggest issue for the Pirates this season, particularly early on, was the bullpen simply not holding onto leads and/or never giving the offense a chance to come back.
Pittsburgh threw away wins they should've had, which would've put them in a much better position, rather than just having eight games remaining with nothing to play for.
Pirates Bullpen Blown Leads Before Trade Deadline
Lead/Leads (Inning) | Opponent (Ball Park) | Result (Defeat) | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
5-0/6-2 (Second/Fifth) | Chicago Cubs (Wrigley Field) | 7-6 | April 12 |
4-0 (Fourth) | Tampa Bay Rays (PNC Park) | 8-7 (13 innings) | April 18 |
2-0 (Ninth) | St. Louis Cardinals (PNC Park) | 4-2 | April 27 |
4-2 (Sixth) | San Francisco Giants (Oracle Park) | 7-6 (12 innings) | May 10 |
6-0/8-3 (Third/Sixth) | Philadelphia Phillies (PNC Park) | 11-9 (10 innings) | May 15 |
8-3/9-5 (Sixth/Seventh) | Houston Astros (Daikin Park) | 11-9 | June 3 |
2-0 (Seventh) | Atlanta Braves (Truist Park) | 3-2 | June 7 |
3-2 (Eighth) | Colorado Rockies (Coors Field) | 4-3 | June 19 |
7-6 (Eighth) | Cincinnati Reds (PNC Park) | 9-7 | June 27 |
3-0 (Eighth) | Cleveland Guardians (Progressive Field | 5-3 | July 18 (Second Game of Doubleheader) |
7-5 (Eighth) | Reds (Great American Ball Park) | 8-7 | July 31 |
The Pirates saw a big regression from relief pitchers in Dennis Santana and Justin Lawrence, both of whom they designated for assignment, and Isaac Mattson, who has split time between Triple-A Indianapolis and the major leagues.
Pittsburgh also bounced between several pitchers, and until the trade deadline, they never found the consistency they needed from their bullpen.
The Pirates did make the additions they needed at the trade deadline, but they had close to 11 games the bullpen lost themselves, which would've made a massive difference in the NL Wild Card Race.
Injuries Decimate Strong Lineup
The Pirates had one of, if not the, best offenses in all of baseball through to the All-Star break, which was thanks to a few players who would later miss time with injury.
Pittsburgh lost many of their top hitters to injury, particularly center fielder Oneil Cruz, shortstop Konnor Griffin, first baseman/right fielder Ryan O'Hearn, first baseman Spencer Horwitz and catcher Endy Rodríguez.
Pirates Hitters Injuries in 2026
Player | Injury/Injuries | Games Missed (Time) |
|---|---|---|
Oneil Cruz | Left hand fourth and fifth metacarpal non-displaced fractures | 61 Games (68 days) (June 10-Aug. 17) |
Konnor Griffin | Right Elbow Strain | 22 Games (26 days) (May 31-June 26 ) |
Konnor Griffin Pt. 2 | Left ring finger sagittal band injury | 51 Games (59 days) (July 7 to Sept. 4) |
Spencer Horwitz | Left hamstring strain | 32 Games (38 days) (June 25 to Aug. 2) |
Ryan O'Hearn | Right quad muscle strain | 13 Games (14 days) (May 17 to May 31) |
Ryan O'Hearn Pt. 2 | Left quad strain | 36 Games (41 Days) (Aug. 1 to Sept. 11) |
Endy Rodríguez | Left glute strain | 15 Games (19 Days) (July 7 to July 28) |
Endy Rodríguez Pt. 2 | Left hip inflammation (Season-Ending Surgery) | 44 Games (45 Days) (Aug. 13 to Sept. 27) |
Losing one key player is hard enough, but the Pirates lost so much of their best production, that it hurt them, especially later on.
Star rookie in Griffin and Cruz, who was on pace for 34 home runs and 53 stolen bases before his injury, are two of the best Pirates players and each missing two months was a massive loss.
Horwitz and O'Hearn were huge for the Pirates' first-half offense, and Rodríguez looked like he finally put it together, until yet another injury for him that has him out until midseason 2027.
The Pirates had decent replacements, but they couldn't replicate the offensive production, which hurt them at their worst times.
Paul Skenes Regresses After Cy Young Campaign
There was no better pitcher in baseball than Paul Skenes in 2025, and his incredible campaign won him the NL Cy Young Award, setting many historic feats along the way.
Skenes hasn't been anywhere near that level this season, posting a 10-11 record in 31 starts, a 3.91 ERA over 168.0 innings pitched, 192 strikeouts to 47 walks, a .230 batting average allowed and a 1.13 WHIP.
He didn't make it out of the first inning of his Opening Day start vs. the New York Mets at Citi Field, giving up five earned runs, but much of that was Cruz making poor plays in center field.
Skenes bounced back, posting a 1.09 ERA over his next eight starts, but he gave up five runs against the Philadelphia Phillies at PNC Park on May 17, which kickstarted his first MLB slump.
He has posted a 4-9 record in his last 22 starts, with a 4.73 ERA over the past four months, a drastic change from the sub-2.00 ERA he posted in his first two seasons with the Pirates.
Skenes has dealt with fatigue from pitching for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic in March, mechanical issues, a drop in fastball velocity, among other issues this season.
The good news is that Skenes isn't injured, so his long-term health with the Pirates is currently fine.
Skenes pitching like this has prevented the Pirates from getting the wins they would've gotten had he pitched like he did last year, that would've gotten them further in the NL Wild Card Race.
Pirates Can't Fend Off Second Half Slump
The Pirates stayed competitive throughout this season, but they never put together the streak they needed to separate themselves.
Pittsburgh has been at .500 more than 20 times this season and their longest winning streak if five games, which took place March 31-April 1, April 3-5, the second and third series of the season.
The Pirates were around the .500 mark for most of the year and never built a good enough record so that when they did have a poor run, it destroyed their chances.
Pittsburgh did have that slump in the second half, losing seven straight series and going 7-16 from July 20 to Aug. 13.
The Pirates have won seven of their past 10 series, but also dropped as low as 63-69, six games below .500, after getting swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodgers Stadium, Aug. 21-23.
Pittsburgh can still finish with a winning record, their first since 2018, but they'll rue that they didn't do enough early on to get to the postseason.
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Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.