Pirates' Jared Jones Could Join Baseball's Elite in 2027
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PITTSBURGH — Jared Jones is pitching at his best in September, and the Pittsburgh Pirates are finally seeing just how dominant he can be for the future.
Jones took a perfect inning against the St. Louis Cardinals, giving up just one hit and tying his season-high of nine strikeouts, in the 2-0 shutout win at PNC Park on Sept. 22.
It was another incredible performance from Jones, who has flirted with perfection before, but is still just short of MLB history.
Jones is almost done in 2026, but the way he's pitching right now will put him into the very best of baseball for 2027.
What Made Jones So Dominant Against Cardinals
Jones didn't change his approach against the Cardinals and just stuck with what has worked for him throughout September.
He relied heavily on the fastball, and it worked, posting seven of his nine strikeouts on it and getting weak contact too, just two hard-hits on eight batted-ball events.
Jared Jones Pitch Usage + Avg. Velo
Pitch | Usage | Average Velocity |
|---|---|---|
Four-Seam Fastball | 60% (52/86) | 97.7 mph |
Slider | 16% (14/86) | 90.0 mph |
Curveball | 14% (12/86) | 86.1 mph |
Changeup | 9% (8/96) | 92.2 mph |
Jared Jones Strikeouts + Whiff Rate By Pitch
Pitch | Strikeouts | Whiff Rate |
|---|---|---|
Four-Seam Fastball | 7 | 34% (11/32) |
Slider | 1 | 33% (3/9) |
Curveball | 1 | 43% (3/7) |
Changeup | 0 | 20% (1/5) |
Jones didn't necessarily know what would happen when he threw the fastball, but he trusted it and catcher Rafael Flores Jr. kept calling for it, a combination that worked out well.
“Kind of felt like I could put it wherever I wanted," Jones said. "I didn’t really know what I was doing with it. I mean, I threw a 20-vert fastball, then a 10-vert fastball, 18-horizontal, so I had no idea what it was going to do when it left my hand, but I guess it worked out.”
The only blemish on the night for Jones was a double from Cardinals center fielder Nathan Church with one out in the top of the sixth inning.
Jones jammed Church with a 98.6 mph four-seam fastball, but it still landed past Pirates third baseman Jacob Gonzalez's outstretched glove and fell for a base hit.
He bounced back, getting a lineout and a strikeout to end the inning, and finished his game with just 86 pitches through seven innings.
Jones Turning into Dominant Starrter
It was a rough August for Jones, who posted some of the worst numbers for any starting pitcher: a 7.40 ERA, a .318 BAA and a 1.94 WHIP.
Jones has bounced back massively in September, with a 3-0 record in four starts, a 1.08 ERA over 25.0 innings pitched, 35 strikeouts to four walks, a .140 BAA and a 0.64 WHIP.
He came close to a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on Sept. 10, getting into the seventh inning with it, but still finished with eight strikeouts in the 2-0 shutout victory.
Jones also threw six perfect innings against the Atlanta Braves at PNC Park back on July 8, but departed due to pitch count.
The Pirates' starting pitcher is almost four months removed from his first start back after internal brace surgery on his right elbow, which took a year to recover from.
Jones has had his struggles, particularly in June and August, but both July and now September have been brilliant.
He's relying mostly on his fastball, doing so vs. the Cardinals, but also his slider, posting seven of his nine strikeouts on it against the Los Angeles Angels at PNC Park on Sept. 4.
Jones combines that with selective usage of his curveball and changeup, both of which help set up his fastball and slider and keep hitters guessing.
His progression is crucial, as he's pitching longer and deeper into games, returning to his top rookie form, but also refining his craft and putting himself in a better spot to excel in 2027.
Pittsburgh has a strong rotation lined up for next season, including All-Star Braxton Ashcraft, Bubba Chandler in his second year, Mitch Keller back from injury and 2025 Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes.
Jones showed that he not only belongs in this Pirates rotation, but that he could become of the best starting pitchers in baseball next year.
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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.