Takeaways: Pirates Bullpen Struggles Overshadow Exciting Power
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PITTSBURGH — It's the same story for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season, as their bullpen problems once again hurt them in another series.
The Pirates lost two of three games to the Cincinnati Reds at PNC Park, June 26-28, marking their first series defeat to their National League Central Divisional Rival this season, after winning five of their first six games against them.
Pittsburgh lost 6-4 in the series opener on June 26 and then again 7-6 on June 27, largely in part due to their bullpen not coming through when needed.
The Pirates are still at .500, 42-42, but without fixes to their bullpen, their hopes of making the postseason will be in great danger.
Pirates Bullpen Fails When Needed Most
The Pirates scored 19 runs over the three games vs. the Reds, good for more than six runs per contest and did so without the likes of center fielder Oneil Cruz and first baseman Spencer Horwitz, who are out with injuries.
Despite this, the Pirates gave up 17 runs and the bullpen was responsible for five of those runs, especially late, that played a role in the first two defeats.
Left-handed pitcher Mason Montgomery gave up a two-run home run to Reds pinch-hitter Noelvi Marte in a tie game in the top of the eighth inning, resulting in them taking a 6-4 lead, one they held onto in the series opener.
The Pirates then battled back from an early deficit in the second game to take a 7-6 lead heading into the ninth inning, but left-handed closer Gregory Soto allowed a three-run home run to designated hitter Eugenio Suárez on the final strike of the game.
Now, these two home runs weren't the sole reason the Pirates lost these games, but they need their bullpen to come through in those situations and give the offense, which has been fantastic this season, a chance to go win it.
It's much of the same for the Pirates this season, as they simply haven't had bullpen arms they can rely on in really any situation, especially high-leverage.
Both Montgomery and Soto, who have had solid seasons overall, have struggled in June and the Pirates haven't gotten the production needed from those two southpaws.
The Pirates have blown 17 saves on 34 attempts, which is holds rather than a save opportunity for a closer, but it still ranks tied for the fourth-most in baseball this season.
General manager Ben Cherington and the rest of the Pirates front office have a big challenge in how they figure out the plan to fix this bullpen and how they can do so before the trade deadline on Aug. 3.
Pirates Need Better From Starts From Skenes, Jones
The Pirates have regularly gotten some of the best pitching they've gotten in decades from Paul Skenes, but his recent starts haven't been quite as good as expected.
Skenes gave up four runs in the second inning in the series opener vs. the Reds, going just five innings and throwing 96 pitches.
It was a rare poor start for Skenes against the Reds, as he gave up just two earned runs over 34 innings against the divisional foe (0.53 ERA), but he's had a few rough outings recently, with a 4.40 ERA over his last eight starts.
Jared Jones just made his sixth start since coming back from internal brace surgery and he also had his issues, giving up four runs and three earned runs over 4.2 innings in the second game of the series.
He's posted a 5.76 ERA since returning and he's made it clear how he isn't pleased with his showing sos far
Skenes' advanced metrics show he's still had a strong season and it's understandable Jones has had some issues post-return, but the Pirates need their best showings now.
Each pitcher has a big start against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park coming up and it's a great chance for both to really prove they can dominate a top hitting team.
Ryan O'Hearn Playing Role of Veteran Leader
It's been quite the week for Ryan O'Hearn, who is now the Pirates starting first baseman after the injury to Horwitz and as one of the oldest players in the lineup, he has to take a bigger responsibility offensively.
O'Hearn showed he can help produce in the absences of Cruz and O'Hearn, hitting an RBI-single to tie the game up at 7-7 in the second game and then hitting two home runs in the series finale.
His first home run put the Pirates up 5-4 in the fifth inning, after they relinquished a 4-0 lead earlier on, and his second home run came after an hour rain delay, a three-run shot that essentially settled the game at 8-4.
It was just the third multi-home run game of O'Hearn's career and it couldn't have come at a more important fime for the Pirates, who really needed someone to step up to avoid a series sweep.
The Pirates signed O'Hearn as that leader who has previous winning experience and the way he's hitting shows he can do just that in 2026.
Rookie Power Bolstering Pirates in 2026
The Pirates have relied on many of their veterans and internal players to provide the power this season, but their youngest players have contributed as well.
Pittsburgh got five home runs of the eight home runs they hit this weekend from their rookies, who showed they were ready for whatever Cincinnati pitchers they faced.
Right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez took huge advantageof recent opportunities given to him, hitting three home runs and one home run in each game.
He hit his first home run 106.5 mph off the bat and 414 feet off the left field rotunda to tie the game at 4-4 in the series opener, hit an opposite field home run as a pinch-hitter to give the Pirates a 7-6 lead in the eighth inning of the second game and crushed a ball, 109.8 mph and 461 feet to center field, in the series finale for the final run, right after O'Hearn's home run.
That 461-foot home run is the seventh-farthest home run hit by any Pirates player at PNC Park in the Statcast Era (since 2015) and Valdez's power is proving real at the major league level.
Shortstop Konnor Griffin made his return from his right forearm flexor injury and hit a leadoff home run in the series opener.
It was the best hit home run from Griffin with the Pirates, as he smashed the ball 108,9 mph off the bat and 435 feet in the second level of the left field bleachers, becoming the fifth-youngest player in MLB history to hit a leadoff home run.
Tyler Callihan also joined in on the fun, with a three-run home run in fourth inning to put the Pirates up 4-0 in the series finale.
It was his third home run of the season, with his previous two homers coming in the 9-8 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at PNC Park on June 10, and was even more sweet for Callihan, as the Reds traded him to the Pirates this offseason.
The Pirates have 105 home runs and the 14 home runs from their rookies account for 13.3% of them, a good number for the young players so far.
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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.