OOTP 26 Pittsburgh Pirates Rebuild — 2027 Q3: October Comes Into Focus

IamCogs
Jun 9
11 min read

Updated: Aug 18

It's been a busy 40 games for the Pirates, and with 3/4ths of the season under wraps they remain the team with the best record in the MLB sitting at 80 wins, just 2 wins away from securing their third winning season a row, a feat they last accomplished between the 2013 and 2015 seasons.

The Pirates continue to be a complete ball club, with pitching (1st in team ERA) and offense (1st in runs scored) still leading the way for the Buccos.

While the bullpen has seen some bumps in the third quarter (bullpen ERA dropped to 6th in the league this split) the starting pitching has seemingly only gotten better, while the offense continues to hit with power in a balanced manner across the lineup with 10 players hitting over 10 homeruns and 3 players now over 20. Both Tyler Locklear and Jack Suwinski have a shot to join the 20 homerun club as well.

Some things we will be covering this check-in:

NL Central check-in
League update including stats, standing, milestones
1st year player draft, All-Star game recap and trading deadline updates
Team stats, milestones and transactions
A check-in on the farm

Here's the Team Report through 121 games.

Basics

The Pirates remained fairly consistent in the W/L column over the 3rd quarter of the season, posting a NL Central best 25-15 record over the last 40 games. The Cubs remain the most consistent threat to the Pirates in the Central, but they have faded to 11 games behind.

The Brewers continue to play about .500 ball on the year, and are hoping for a winning season for the first time in this series. At the very least they are well on their way towards finishing above 71 wins, their high mark thus far in the series.

The Reds have completely gone into a full tailspin and are battling with the Cardinals over last in the division. The once dangerous Reds rotation has dropped to 15th in the league in ERA. On the plus side for the Cardinals, Jordan Walker seems to have finally hit his stride in the league and is panning to be the star the Cardinals have hoped for.

Since our last check in the NL Central teams have gone: Pirates: 25-15

Cubs: 20-19

Brewers: 19-19

Cardinals: 20-20

Reds: 13-25

Here's the stats rankings through 121.

Changes from last Check-In:

On-Base PCT 5th -> 7th
wOBA 2nd -> 3rd
Base Running 1st -> 2nd
Bullpen ERA 1st -> 6th
Defensive Eff. 1st -> 6th
Errors t-6th -> 8th

League News

Milestones

07/26/27: San Diego Padres DH Xander Bogaerts (46/46) recorded his 2000th career hit against the New York Mets.
08/13/27: Milwaukee Brewers DH Christian Yelich (54/54) recorded his 2000th career hit against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

And some milestones creeping close:

Los Angeles Dodgers SS Mookie Betts (61/61) is 13 hits away from 2000.
Cleveland Guardians 3B Jose Ramirez (58/58) is 78 hits away from 2000.
New York Yankees DH Giancarlo Stanton (44/44) is 13 homeruns away from 500.
Philadelphia Phillies DH Kyle Schwarber (58/58) is 3 homeruns away from 400.
Los Angeles Dodgers 1B Freddie Freeman (59/59) is 5 homeruns away from 400.
New York Yankees RF Aaron Judge (69/469) is 17 RBI's away from 1000.
Houston Astros DH Jose Altuve (46/46) is 32 RBI's away from 1000.
Detroit Tigers SP Chris Sale (54/54) is 81 strikeouts away from 3000.
Atlanta Braves RP Jose Quintana (40/40) is 1 strikeout away from 2000.
Chicago Cubs SP Zack Wheeler (56/56) is 57 strikeouts away from 2000.

Standings

A recent cold streak from the Yankees has created a little distance between them and the Red Sox and Orioles, meanwhile the AL Central has no team over .500 and is really anyone's division aside from the White Sox.

Two of the top three teams in the NL live in the NL East with the Nationals and Phillies, the Nationals rebuild has been a resounding success as many of their young prospects are currently making impact on the big league roster.

The NL West is also close, with just 1 game separating three teams.

League Leaders

Offense

Pitching

First-Year Player Draft

The first overall pick fell to the Colorado Rockies who selected 18 y/o SS Paul Harris (34/80) from Brooke High School who in 35 games slashed an insane .702/.792/1.614 with an equally insane 2.406 OPS. He has prodigious power which should only get enhanced in the thin Colorado air.

The top 10 Pirates picks were:

18 y/o RHP Hector Gasca (33/74)
18 y/o CF Trevor Bolton (23/74)
18 y/o C Art Gonsalez (23/80)
18 y/o C Corey Arnold (26/72)
18 y/o LHP Steve Stainbrook (29/56)
19 y/o 3B Carlos Orosco (27/55)
18 y/o RHP Mike Gold (28/65)
18 y/o 3B Justin Castro (26/52)
18 y/o RF Kevin Nelson (26/49)
18 y/o LHP Rich McWhorter (31/44)

All-Star Game

The National League All-Stars prevailed over the American League, 4-2. Pirates 2B Termarr Johnson was responsible for the game winning RBI, when he took a bases loaded walk in the top of the 5th, pushing the NL's lead to 3-0. Overall the Pirates delegation had a good showing, Skenes pitched a perfect 1st frame and the offense came through with 2 hits, a run and an RBI. Baltimore Orioles C Adley Rutschman (58/58) won the game MVP going 2-3 with a solo home run.

The Pirates sent 4 players to the All-Star game

SP Paul Skenes (80/80) (4th selection and starter) [1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K]
SS Bo Bichette (55/55) (4th selection and starter) [2-2, 1 R]
C Henry Davis (57/57) (2nd selection) [0-1, 1K]
2B Termarr Johnson (57/57) (1st selection) [0-1, 1 BB, 1 RBI]

Trade Deadline

Another fairly quiet deadline for 2027, the Pirates made a few moves along with a few others.

The Chicago Cubs acquired 2x All-Star CL Jeff Hoffman (64/64) from the Toronto Blue Jays. In return the Jays get prospects RHP Brayden Risedorph (35/46) and CF David Silva (25/52)
The Kansas City Royals shipped 1B Vinny Pasquantino (52/52) to the Los Angeles Angels for prospects C Gabriel Davalillo (27/43) and LHP Conner Ware (34/44).
Cardinals 3B Nolan Arenado (52/52) was sent to the Atlanta Braves for 23-year old LHP Noah Samol (31/45).
The Baltimore Orioles acquired minor leaguers LHP Kody Funderburk (43/43) and 2B Gus Fajardo (23/53) from the Brewers in return for LF Heston Kjerstad (49/49).
The Pirates and Guardians swapped left fielders, sending Josh Palacios (49/49) for Dairon Blanco (52/52).
- Dairon provides excellent defense in all outfield spots with fantastic base stealing upside and more balanced splits between lefties and righties. Palacios never returned to his All-Star form in 2026, batting just .226 after finishing 2026 batting .304.
The Pirates also acquired 7x All Star CL Aroldis Chapman (47/47) from the Toronto Blue Jays, sending LHP John King (46/46) in return.
- King struggled with the Pirates posting a 5.65 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 28.2 IP.
- It marks a fresh start for Chapman as well who had a 5.00 ERA in 45.0 IP with Toronto.

Other Team Transactions

A few things to cover here for the Pirates:

On 7/10 exciting rookie CF Kevin Alcantara (49/62) suffered a fractured thumb sliding into second base after hitting a bases loaded, base clearing double. He is set to begin his rehab assignment at the start of the final quarter of the season.
- RF Matt Gorski (44/44) was called up to the majors to replace him.
RP Tyler Holton (44/44) was claimed off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks after RP John King was DFA'ed.
- Holton has pitched 12.0 innings with the Pirates so far, sporting a 2.25 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP.
On 7/23 we traded RP Dennis Santana (44/44) and $750,000 in cash to the Atlanta Braves for RP Blake Treinen (48/48).
- Santana had a rough fall off from his 2026 season where he posted a 2.24 ERA. His ERA ballooned to 6.20 in 40.2 IP with the Pirates this year.
- In 10.0 IP, Treinen has a 6.30 ERA and a 1.80 WHIP, early struggles for the new Pirate.
On 8/3 the Pirates claimed veteran LF Mike Tauchman (46/46) off waivers from the Philadelphia Phillies.
- In 7 games Tauchman has slashed .368/.400./.421 with a .821 OPS.
  - Matt Gorski was optioned back to AAA to make room for Tauchman.
On 8/7 we released RP Pierce Johnson (41/41) who in 42.0 IP posted a 5.14 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP.
On 8/15 RP Jesus Tinoco (45/45) was activated from his rehab assignment.
- RP Carmen Mlodzinski (44/44) was optioned to make room for Tinoco
On 8/16 Rp Dedniel Nunez was optioned to AAA.
- Dedniel had some issues in the quarter and was sent down to recalibrate, he has posted a 4.75 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP in 60.2 IP.
  - Carmen Mlodzinski was recalled to match this move.

Team Stats

Batting stats 121 games into the 2027 season. (Sorted by AB)

Batting stats 121 games into the 2027. (Sorted by wRC+)

Batting Notes

Let's start with some milestone games.

On 7/6 1B Tyler Locklear (48/48) went 4/5 with 1 2B, 1 HR, and 4 RBI in a 11-7 win on the road against the Cubs.
In a wild 19-13 win on 7/11 against the Brewers, there were plenty of standout performances.
- 2B Termarr Johnson (57/57) went 3-5 with 4 R, 4 RBI and 2 HR.
- C Henry Davis (57/57) had the game of his life, going 4-6 with 4 R, 2 HR, and 8 RBI.
- Tyler Locklear, Chris Newell, and Jo Adell all also homered in the game.
Just a day before the Brewers and Pirates played to a 13-14 loss for the Buccos.
- 2B Jack Brannigan (44/45) went 2-4 wirh 3 R, 4 RBI, and 1 HR.
- DH Termarr Johnson had another fantastic game, going 2-3 with 3 R, 3 RBI, and 1 HR.

Now some general tidbits:

On 8/13 SS Bo Bichette (55/55) set the Pirates single game record for stolen bases, nabbing 5 in a 13-6 win against the Brewers. The Pirates as a whole stole 14 off the Brewers, coming just 1 short of typing the MLB record of 15 set by the Yankees in 1911.
Speaking of Bo, he has cooled off a bit in the third quarter of the season, with his average dropping from .330 to .302, but he still sports a healthy .355 OBP and .818 OPS, and is still on pace to surpass his career high 6.5 WAR set last year.
RF Jo Adell (53/53) has really sprang back from the slow start he suffered this year, now sitting at 23 homeruns, he is just 2 away from setting a new career high there while sporting a solid .798 OPS and 114 wRC+.
Speaking of power, 2B Termarr Johnson (57/57) has eclipsed the 20 homerun mark on they year, a surprising but welcome part of his game that includes leading the team in OBP at .363, and second in OPS with .844.
Bringing 3B Coby Mayo (53/58) via trade from the Orioles has paid huge dividends. Mayo is second on the team in homeruns with 21, and is just 2 RBI away from setting a career high. He has improved his hitting against right handed pitching, increasing his wRC+ to 97, and he still is killing lefties, sporting a 147 wRC+ against them.
SS Jack Brannigan (44/45) has looked great against lefties in limited plate appearances. In 78 appearances, he has a .948 OPS and 162 wRC+ while slugging at a .551 rate.
1B Tyler Locklear (48/48) is continuing to have a solid rookie campaign, hitting 18 homeruns and 22 doubles with a .233/.310/.460 slash line and an .769 OPS with a 109 wRC+.

Pitching stats 121 games into the 2027 season. (Sorted by IP)

Pitching Notes

Starting again with a milestone game.

RHP Mel Ramos (51/51) twirled a couple gems this split.
- On 7/1 in a 6-0 win againt the Milwaukee Brewers, Ramos went 6 strong, allowing just 3 hits and 1 walk while striking out 8.
- Then on 7/27 in a 7-2 win in San Francisco, "El Gordo" was brilliant. Tossing 7 innings of 2 run ball, walking just 1 while striking out 13, the second highest total of his career. (14 against the Blue Jays in 2026.)