Pirates GM Expecting Return in 2026
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PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates fans will want many changes after a poor 2025 season, but the main person in the front office will most likely stay on heading into next season.
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington is in his sixth season in the role and the team has had little success during his tenure.
The Pirates are 360-503 overall (.417) since the start of the 2020 season, have missed the playoffs each season, not had a season above .500 and only finish once above last place in the National League Central division.
Pittsburgh secured both its seventh consecutive losing season and 10th consecutive season outside the playoffs in 2025. They have a 66-89 record with seven games remaining, 29 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in first place of the NL Central division, 14 games out of the last NL Wild Card spot and have the fourth worst record in the MLB.
Cherington also made the decision to fire manager Derek Shelton, who he hired at the start of his tenure, after a 12-26 start to the 2025 campaign on May 8.
Despite Shelton's firing and the poor season, Cherington said that he expects that he'll still be around as general manager of the Pirates going forward.
"I'm certainly doing the job that way," Cherington said. "We talk all the time. Haven't heard anything to the contrary. I don't know if any of us in this room ever have full assurance of anything, but I want to help the Pirates win more games. That's it. I don't do the job because of the job. I do the job because I want to be a part of making this thing work. Winning more games and being able to leave PNC Park at night feeling better and everybody feeling better. That's why I do it. I still want to do it. I badly want to do it."
Cherington also shared frustration with the season and especially the last two weeks, where the Pirates have won just two of their past 14 games, suffering sweeps to division rivals in the Brewers and Chicago Cubs at home, plus the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards.
The Cubs, who last made the postseason in 2025, clinched a playoff spot on the Pirates home field during that victory, while the Pirates continue missing out on a chance for success in October.
Cherington said that this season has been a tough one for everyone in the organization and that they all have to get better if they want to improve in 2026.
“It’s been really tough. I think that we have to win more games. There are some things that have happened at the major league level this year that have been really good, but certainly not nearly enough. Good things have happened. While we really do believe that with the players in the organization that we have, the players on this team, that not only can we be better than this, that we will be better than this."
"To some extent, the last two weeks make you really confront the things that you have to get better at, that we have to get better at. It’s not just one thing. The roster needs to improve. That’s going to be a combination of guys who are already here and strengthening the roster in the offseason. And we also need to play a really consistent, smart brand of baseball. We haven’t done that consistently enough in the last couple of weeks. It’s not a lack of effort. We just haven’t executed the way we need to to win games. It’s been very difficult but also incredibly motivating. We’ve gotta be better."
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.