Let me start with a number: 29 quality starts in 61 games. That’s fourth in all of Major League Baseball. Only the Phillies, Rays, and Royals have gotten more from their starting pitching. That number is elite. That number should correlate with wins.

Now, here’s another number: 22 team wins.

Let that marinate for a second. Twenty-nine quality starts. Twenty-two wins. That’s not bad luck. That’s organizational malpractice.

The Skenes Situation: A Modern Tragedy

And at the center of this absolute mess? Paul Skenes, who has somehow managed to be both the most electric young pitcher and the most wasted asset in the league at the same time.

Let’s look at his last five starts:

• 6+ innings in each
• 1 run or fewer allowed in all five
• Pirates’ record in those games? 2-3

He’s got a 2.05 ERA, 85 strikeouts, and a WHIP under 0.90. By almost any statistical measure, Skenes is already one of the best pitchers in baseball. And what does he have to show for it? A 4-6 record, because this team can’t hit water if they fell out of a boat.

Paul Skenes deserves better. He really does. And so do Mitch Keller, Jared Jones, and the rest of this overachieving, under-supported pitching staff.

The Offense is Historically Bad

If the Pirates were simply mediocre offensively, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. But this lineup is a disaster. As of June 4, the Pirates are statistically the worst team in baseball, outside of the Colorado Rockies – and they play in a ballpark where literally everyone hits.

Want more context?

• The Pirates have scored just one more run than the Rockies
• Only the Kansas City Royals have fewer home runs
• The team batting average hovers around .220, and they are among the bottom dwellers in on-base percentage and slugging

This isn’t just a cold streak. This is organizational apathy dressed up as a rebuild.

Fans Deserve Better. Pittsburgh Deserves Better.

I’ve been to PNC Park. I’ve seen it. It’s not just one of the most beautiful stadiums in baseball—it’s one of the best stadiums in any sport. It sits along the Allegheny River like a crown jewel of the Steel City. And yet, it rarely gets the product it deserves.

Pittsburgh is a blue-collar, passionate, sports-crazy city. They’ve stuck with this team through decades of failure. They’ve watched stars like Andrew McCutchen, Gerrit Cole, and Tyler Glasnow leave or get wasted. And now they’re watching Paul Skenes, the best hope the franchise has had in years, get the same treatment.

And the front office? Crickets.

You Saw This Coming. We All Did.

We saw Paul Skenes coming from a mile away. #1 overall pick. Generational college talent. And we saw what this team could be if they paired him with a solid staff and gave him a half-decent lineup.

I PLEADED on this blog multiple times for the Pirates to make a move—sign Pete Alonso, add a legitimate bat, do something to capitalize on this historic rotation window.

Instead, they did nothing.

The result? A team that’s wasting elite pitching every single night. A team that’s losing 2-1, 3-2, 1-0 more often than most people even realize. A team whose greatest strength is being undone by its greatest weakness, while ownership watches from the luxury boxes.

Shame on You

The owners, the front office, and the decision-makers should be ashamed of themselves. They are watching a once-proud franchise rot from the inside. They are failing the fans, the players, and the city. And for what? A few bucks saved?

Honestly, I believe Major League Baseball should have the power to strip teams like this from ownership groups who refuse to invest in the on-field product. Do I think that will ever happen? No. But it should. Because fans deserve better. Players deserve better.

Paul Skenes deserves better.

You had a chance. You still have a chance. But every week that passes without adding real offense is another week closer to wasting yet another generation of Pirates baseball.

So here it is, loud and clear:

Do better, Bob Nutting.
Do better, Travis Williams.
Do better, Ben Cherington.

Or get out of the way and let someone else who actually cares about winning take the wheel.