This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf’s Pirates Beat e-newsletter. To learn the complete e-newsletter, click on right here. And subscribe to get it usually in your inbox.
From the beginning of the offseason to the Winter Conferences in Orlando, Fla., it was clear how a lot the Pirates desired to enhance their lineup. There’s nonetheless a month and alter to go till pitchers and catchers report back to Bradenton, Fla., and a few areas by which they will nonetheless enhance, however thus far they’ve added two large bats.
The enchantment of each is apparent, however they bolster this offense in additional methods than simply being good hitters. Additionally they handle among the Pirates’ greatest weaknesses offensively.
Listed below are three examples how:
They get extra left-handed
The Pirates needed to get extra left-handed this winter, and justifiably so. Final 12 months, Bucs left-handed hitters accounted for simply 2,099 plate appearances, the second-fewest for any Nationwide League membership (the Rockies had 1,563). Pittsburgh had almost twice as many plate appearances by right-handers (3,909). Including a few lefties wouldn’t solely convey extra stability to the lineup, but additionally play into PNC Park’s dimensions higher.
“[Lowe] provides us a left-hand complement to what had been a reasonably right-hand-hitting infield group,” normal supervisor Ben Cherington mentioned concerning the December commerce between the Pirates, Astros and Rays.
It additionally helps that O’Hearn hit left-handers effectively final 12 months, too, posting a .278 batting common and .474 slugging share over 109 plate appearances. Lowe struggled in opposition to left-handers final 12 months (.194 batting common, .317 slugging share in 147 plate appearances), however he had typically given southpaws a troublesome at-bat within the years prior (.234 batting common, .431 slugging, .321 anticipated wOBA from 2022-24).
If the lineup can get extra left-handed and not using a want for platoons, that’s an excellent greater win.
They’ve extra fastball hitters
Final 12 months, Pirates hitters slugged .382 in opposition to fastballs, the worst staff mark in baseball. Their .320 wOBA in opposition to fastballs was the worst within the Nationwide League. In a 12 months the place the league slashed .262/.344/.431 in opposition to fastballs, the Pirates posted a .253/.340/.382 line.
The brand new guys have stable monitor information in opposition to heaters. O’Hearn batted .303 with a .466 slugging share in opposition to fastballs final season, buoyed by a .371 batting common in opposition to sinkers and a .507 slugging share in opposition to four-seamers. Lowe had a run worth of +13 in opposition to four-seam fastballs final season. The one different center infielders who had been as worthwhile in opposition to four-seamers had been Willy Adames and Francisco Lindor.
Final 12 months, O’Hearn had a .384 anticipated wOBA in opposition to fastballs and Lowe was at .391. That takes into consideration how usually they made contact and the kind of contact that they had been making, providing proof that their outcomes had been extra a product of fine at-bats than luck. Bryan Reynolds was the one Pirate final 12 months to high them (.402 xwOBA, minimal 200 plate appearances in opposition to fastballs). Now they’ve two different bats who can again him up.
They get hits with runners on base
The Pirates aren’t going to steer the league in homers. They’re not making an attempt to construct a staff that does that, per se. They’d relatively have a stable one by way of 9 and drive residence runners in scoring place.
“After we had been actually good, I assumed we dealt with at-bats very well. We continued to cross the baton,” supervisor Don Kelly mentioned in the course of the Winter Conferences. “I do know it was one thing that after we had these stretches of being good offensively, it was we handed the baton, we acquired guys on base. Then that two-out, that large hit is the factor that eluded us plenty of occasions. … Simpler mentioned than accomplished, however persevering with to push in direction of [improving] that for subsequent 12 months.”
The issue is that they weren’t good in these spots final 12 months. Their .232 batting common and .350 slugging share with runners in scoring place had been each the worst in baseball.
Lowe and O’Hearn excelled in these spots final 12 months. O’Hearn slashed .292/.411/.508 with runners in scoring place, and Lowe was .286/.363/.500. Including these varieties of hitters to the center of the order ought to give the Bucs higher choices to money in with runners on second and third.
The Pirates must create extra offense in 2026. If that is the fashion of ball they wish to play, these two match that mould.
