Start Believing in Pirates Offense
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates are producing at the plate and its something they've done throughout this season.
The Pirates continued that in their most recent series vs. the Houston Astros at Daikin Park, scoring 24 total runs and winning two of three games in their first series of the month.
Pittsburgh won 10-6 in the series opener on June 2, fell 11-9 on June 3 and then won 5-1 in the series finale on June 4.
The Pirates put up good enough performances to win all three games from the plate and it's the main reason they've had so much success this season.
Pirates Offense Takes Liftoff in Houston
The Pirates swept the Minnesota Twins at PNC Park, May 29-31, prior to this series and scored 25 total runs, marking 49 over the past six games, good for more than eight runs per contest.
Pittsburgh has shown their power this season and they hit six home runs vs. the Astros to keep it going.
Catcher Endy Rodríguez hit a two-run home run to tie the game up 2-2 in the second inning of the series opener, center fielder Oneil Cruz hit a three-run home run to give the Pirates a 5-4 lead in the sixth inning and then second baseman Brandon Lowe sealed the win with a three-run home run in the eighth inning to make it 9-4.
Fellow catcher Henry Davis hit the first grand slam of his career in the second game of the series to give the Pirates a 4-2 lead int he fourth inning and second baseman Nick Gonzales hit a two-run home run, his second of the season, extending the Pirates' lead to 7-3 in the seventh inning.
Right fielder Ryan O'Hearn hit the sole home run in the series finale, a two-run home run to make it 4-0 in the sixth inning, and finished with three RBI in the victory.
Cruz had a great series in Houston, with six hits and four walks, while Gonzales also tied him with six hits and three RBI.
Outfielder Jake Mangum had four hits and two stolen bases in the series opener and played some solid defense in the series finale too.
Pirates Hitters vs. Astros
Player | Hits/At-Bats | Walks | RBI |
|---|---|---|---|
Oneil Cruz | 6-for-14 | 4 | 3 |
Nick Gonzales | 6-for-13 | 1 | 3 |
Jake Mangum | 5-for-9 | 0 | 0 |
Ryan O'Hearn | 3-for-10 | 1 | 3 |
Brandon Lowe | 3-for-14 | 1 | 3 |
Bryan Reynolds | 2-for-12 | 2 | 1 |
Endy Rodríguez | 2-for-9 | 1 | 3 |
Jared Triolo | 1-for-9 | 4 | 1 |
The Pirates haven't had to rely on just one person this season, as they've gotten contributions from almost everyone in the lineup on a consistent basis.
Pittsburgh saw that happen against Houston, with different players stepping up in different games to come through and provide runs and hits.
How Pirates Offense Stacks Up to Rest of MLB
The Pirates rank statistially amongst the best teams in baseball and are in the top five/top 10 teams in most categories.
Pirates 2026 Stats and NL/MLB ranking
Stat (Total) | NL/MLB Ranking |
|---|---|
Hits (560) | 1st/1st |
OBP (.339) | 2nd/2nd |
Stolen Bases (62)/Batting Average (.256) | 3rd/3rd |
OPS (.744) | 3rd/4th) |
Walks (251)/Slugging % (.405) | (3rd/5th) |
RBI (310)/Runs (325) | 4th/4th |
Home Runs (74) | 6th/10th |
It's a dramatic change from last season, where they were arguably the worst hitting team in baseball, ranking dead-last or close to the bottom of most of these same statistical categories.
The offseason additions of O'Hearn and Lowe have been massive for the Pirates, both of whom have brought veteran leadership, but also great production at the plate.
O'Hearn has slashed .295/.371/.486 for an OPS of .857 in 48 games, with 51 hits, six doubles, nine home runs, 33 RBI and 20 walks to 39 strikeouts.
Lowe leads the Pirates and ranks 4th in the National League/11th in baseball with 15 home runs, eighth in the NL/16th in MLB with 40 RBI, seventh in NL/13th in MLB with a .532 slugging percentage and 10th in NL/20th in MLB with a .873 OPS.
Cruz is having a big rebound season and is slashing .269/.349/.482 for an OPS of .831 in 61 games, with 45 runs scored, 66 hits, 10 doubles, 14 home runs, 44 RBI and 20 stolen bases.
He is second in baseball with stolen bases, ranks tied for third in NL/tied for sixth in MLB in runs scored, tied for fifth in NL/tied for sixth in MLB in RBI, tied for 8th in NL/tied for 14th in MLB in hits, tied for seventh in NL/tied for 16th in MLB in home runs, while ranking 21st in baseball in slugging percentage and 25th in OPS.
Bryan Reynolds has also been excellent with his plate discipline, tied for the sixth-most walks in baseball (44) and has the ninth-best on-base percentage (.397), while Spencer Horwitz isn't too far behind with the a .386 on-base percentage, 17th-best in baseball.
Gonzales has been one of the best hitters in baseball, with his .313 batting average eighth-best in MLB.
Rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin had a solid May and if the likes of Mangum, Rodríguez, Davis, fellow rookie Jhostynxon Garcia can join in more consistently, this Pirates lineup will continue playing a big role in a lot of wins the rest of the season.
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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.